Aditya Birla Capital on Thursday (August 20, 2026) joined non-bank lending peers who are either entering or ramping up presence in the lucrative gold loan business.

Unlike some entities which have taken the acquisition route to enter the business, the Aditya Birla group's financial services arm seems to be focusing on building its gold lending business by itself and announced a target of 1,000 gold loan branches in three years.

It will start with opening up to 300 gold loan branches by the end of FY27 across high-potential markets, an official statement said.

"Gold loans are witnessing strong structural growth in India, and our entry into this segment is a natural extension of our secured lending strategy," said Rakesh Singh, executive director and chief executive - NBFC, Aditya Birla Capital.

It can be noted that lending against gold has seen a massive surge in the recent past with an increase in the prices of the precious metals.

Outstanding credit extended by non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) against gold jewellery surged nearly 69.3% year-on-year in June, marking the fastest growth among all major lending segments. The overall portfolio loans against gold jewellery stood at ₹3.42 lakh crore at the end of June 2026, up 69.3% from ₹1.44 lakh crore a year earlier.

According to experts, factors like high prices of gold and an emotional attachment that ensures borrowers repay to ensure that they get their gold back are among the factors driving the surge in gold loans.

The company is already into offering a slew of retail products and also sells offerings to the small business segment.

The newly launched gold loan offering will cater to various customers across urban and semi-urban markets, serving existing customers within the Aditya Birla Capital ecosystem and expanding its reach to new customers through an integrated distribution network of physical branches and digital platforms, the company said.

In FY26, the NBFC's assets under management grew 27% year-on-year to ₹1,59,916 crore, with retail and SME comprising 68% of AUM, while disbursements grew 25% to ₹84,204 crore.

In Q1 FY27, AUM of the company increased by 28% year-on-year to ₹1,67,456 crore, and disbursements increased 34% to ₹21,201 crore, the release added.

Published - August 20, 2026 09:49 pm IST