Thinking of Taking a Gold Loan in 2025? RBI’s New Rules Could Change Everything

India’s gold lending system is entering a clean-up phase. Fresh compliance norms are reshaping how lenders value, store and return pledged gold.

Many households still take small gold loans during tight days. That habit grew fast in 2024, and the RBI noticed it. The Draft Directions on Lending Against Gold Collateral released in April 2025 pointed to weak checks in some loans. 

RBI’s own review showed gold credit with banks touched nearly ₹1.07 lakh crore by September 2024. Maybe that was a hint that change was coming.

And this is where the new story begins.

Why RBI Stepped In With Stricter Checks?

The draft rules ask lenders to stop using repledged items. Gold becomes repledged when one person pledges it, someone else takes it again for a fresh loan. 

A messy chain. RBI wants this out. The move has raised fresh worry about the impact on lenders’ repledged portfolios, especially older wholesale loans routed through middlemen. Feels like real work for banks now.

A short look at the core checks shows how strict the shift is.
 

These rules hit at the base of old practices. And more theory hides beneath them.

Why Repledged Gold Became a Major Concern?

RBI wants clean valuation and clean storage. This sits at the heart of regulatory changes affecting gold loan practices. The real meaning is simple. No inflated values. No confusing documents. And no games with stones or making charges. Only gold weight.

This also leads to fresh compliance challenges for gold loan providers, because many lenders now must update appraisal rooms and borrower files.

RBI’s Annual Report 2023-24 noted that gold jewellery loans grew 18 percent that year. Growth is fine, but uneven growth can hurt. That is why these rules landed.

Here is another table with the larger picture.
 

The present step continues that thread. The financial implications of new RBI norms will slow risky models. Some lenders may even pause expansion for a while.

Back in 2023, PIB reports highlighted gaps in documentation across secured loans. Missing records often hurt borrowers during disputes.

The new framework continues that line of thought.

Experts say the financial implications of stricter norms may slow expansion for lenders who relied heavily on fast-cycle gold lending.

How Banks and NBFCs Responded

Past changes in 2016 saw lenders rework auction rules and clean vaults. A similar mood appears now. Many banks have started training branch staff again. 

The LoansJagat article reports that loans against gold jewellery jumped by 124% year-on-year as of June 27, 2025, reaching ₹2.77 lakh crore compared to ₹1.24 lakh crore in June 2024.

Some NBFCs created fresh gold purity counters. Government notes on pib.gov.in in past years also favoured strong checks in secured loans. So this reaction is no surprise.

Conclusion

RBI’s revised gold loan regulations have pushed lenders into a clean-up drive. Repledged stock will slowly vanish from books. The next year will show how banks reshape gold loan work, one locker at a time.

 

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