Women borrowers now account for ₹76 lakh crore of credit, representing 26% of total system credit in 2025, according to a joint report by TransUnion CIBIL, Niti Aayog's WEP, and MicroSave Consulting. This marks a near five-fold rise since 2017, signaling a structural shift in India's credit landscape. The number of women availing formal credit grew at a CAGR of 9% between 2017 and 2025, with outstanding credit for women rising 4.8 times during this period compared with 2.9 times growth in overall credit.
Women's share in retail loan originations increased to 27% in 2025 from 24% in 2022, reflecting broad-based growth across segments. Their share in housing loan originations rose to 69% from 63% over the same period, indicating increased asset ownership and participation in financial decisions. In consumption credit, women's share increased to 19% from 16%, while in gold loans it rose to 37% from 36%. Notably, the share of new-to-credit women borrowers in retail credit rose by 10 percentage points to 38% in 2025.
According to Bhavesh Jain, MD and CEO of TransUnion CIBIL, digitization has facilitated easier onboarding, faster loan processing, and improved access to information. The report indicates that digitisation has reduced turnaround time, with same-day approvals in consumption loans rising to 45% in 2025 from 34% in 2022. Around 19% of active microfinance borrowers now hold individual retail or commercial loans, suggesting a move towards more complex financial products.
The rising access to credit is translating into greater economic participation, with the number of women with active business-purpose loans growing at a CAGR of 31% over the past three years. This indicates a shift towards enterprise activity among women borrowers. The report emphasizes that women are moving from being passive beneficiaries to active drivers of credit demand, with the ecosystem recognizing that access to finance is a structural enabler of women's economic participation.
The report outlines several measures to expand participation further, including lenders using digital transaction data such as UPI histories for underwriting, especially for borrowers without collateral. It recommends strengthening last-mile digital capability through collectives and peer networks to build trust. The report calls for lifecycle-based financial products that combine savings, credit, and literacy, with a focus on women under 35. It also suggests expansion should be supported by better risk segmentation and use of alternative data to bring unserved women into the system while maintaining portfolio quality.
