Micro-loan industry accelerates slimming down with institutions reducing by nearly half

Small loan companies are facing difficulties now.. Recently, a person who has been working in the financial industry for many years expressed his feelings to the Beijing Business Daily reporter.

This is no empty claim. Currently, “internal strife and external aggression” is the situation faced by most small and medium-sized loan companies. Accelerated reshuffling and “downsizing” have become industry trends. According to the latest data from

Behind the trend of clearing out that has lasted for years, the industry believes that it is the combination of high-pressure supervision, market compression and risk exposure. The differentiation within the industry is constantly widening, and in th

Over 400 small loan companies exited the market this year

On November 5th, reporters from the Beijing Business Daily noticed that the latest data from the People's Bank of China showed that as of the end of September 2025, the number of small loan companies nationwide had dropped to 4,863 with a loan balanc

In fact, the industry has been experiencing a trend of "slimming down" for years. Reporters from the Beijing Business Daily have found that the number of small loan institutions has shrunk by nearly half compared to the peak of 8,965 in the third qua

The contraction of the small loan industry is not accidental but the inevitable result of policy tightening, market competition, and internal problems, according to industry insiders.

On one hand, the strong constraints at the regulatory level have formed the core driving force for industry liquidation. For example, the introduction of the Interim Measures for the Supervision and Management of Small Loan Companies by the end of 20

Local regulators are also strengthening their supervision. According to the incomplete statistics of Beijing Business Daily, more than 400 small loan companies have exited the market this year. From the perspective of regional distribution, Yunnan, G

In addition, the squeeze war on the market side has further compressed the living space of small loan companies. Wang Pengbo, chief analyst at Bo Tong Consulting, pointed out that with the downward shift of inclusive finance in banks, the expansion o

Shen Xiyi, deputy director of the Federal Reserve Securities Research Institute, believes that the rapid transformation of the small loan industry is due to the tightening of regulations. After detailed supervision of business scope, capital sources,

From the perspective of market demand changes, Shen Xiayi stated that in recent years, with the economic growth rate slowing down and corporate and individual debt serviceability under pressure, behavior towards adding leverage has become increasingl

Micro-loan institutions are accelerating their efforts to raise capital and bolster their financial strength.

Under the background of the overall contraction of the small loan industry, the differentiation among institutions is also shifting from quantitative changes to qualitative changes, presenting a distinct pattern of both head expansion and tail liquid

Beijing Business Daily reporters noted that the small loan industry is not all bad news. In terms of scale expansion, within this year, Ping An Rongyi's Heilongjiang Jinlianyuntong Microfinance Co., Ltd. increased its registered capital from 5 billio

In addition to capital increase, news about small loan companies replenishing their funds in the ABS market have also been frequently reported this year.

Beijing Business Daily reporters found based on data from China Asset-backed Securities Analysis Network (CNABS) that as of November 5th, several companies including Meituan Credit, Du Xiaoman Credit, Tenpay Credit, and JD Finance Credit, have issued

The industry believes that intensive capital increase and "replenishing blood" is a reflection of the continued strengthening of capital strength of small loans. In recent years, small loan companies have increased capital and replenished blood, refl

"Relying on shareholder background, data assets and technology investment, the head small loan companies are accelerating their evolution towards specialization, scenario, and digitalization. For example, focusing on Supply Chain Finance, green finan

On the other side of tail-end liquidation, we can see that industry institutions are becoming more concentrated while the heads are still expanding their business share. Wei Zheng, a researcher at the Fed Credit Securities Institute, pointed out that

Industry interest rates are expected to continue to decline

Industry insiders predict that the strict supervision of the small loan industry will continue to strengthen in the future. Recently, a Beijing Business Daily reporter exclusively learned from relevant industry insiders that relevant policies for sma

"By the end of next year, more small loan companies with tail risks may be eliminated from the market," an industry insider told Beijing Business Daily.

Subsequently, the differentiation among institutions will further intensify. Wei Zheng pointed out that small loan companies will further segment the market in the future, deeply bind with e-commerce, supply chain, medical care, education and other s

Wang Pengbo believes that the small loan industry should be wary of three risks: one is concentration risks caused by excessive reliance on a single shareholder or scenario; the other is privacy and regulatory penalties caused by blurred data complia

Reporter Liu Sihong from Beijing Business Daily