The overall credit disbursement by banks to priority sectors including agriculture, MSME and social infrastructure in 2019 was Rs 23,01,567 crore, which rose to Rs 42,73,161 crore in 2024, recording an increase of 85 per cent over the six-year period, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
Within priority sector lending, the overall credit disbursement to the agriculture sector has seen steady and positive growth during this period. In 2019, the total disbursement to the agriculture sector was Rs 8,86,791 crore, and by 2024, it significantly increased to Rs 18,27,666 crore. The data includes credit disbursement towards agriculture infrastructure by banks, she said in a written reply to a question in the Lower House.
The overall credit disbursement to the MSME sector has also increased steadily from Rs 10,99,055 crore in 2019 to Rs 21,73,679 crore in 2024.
As the financial landscape continues to evolve and to enhance the quality of banking services for customers, banks have been collaborating with FinTechs for the provisioning of various services to customers. Some of the major areas where FinTechs are further augmenting banking services include opening savings accounts through e-KYC, V-KYC processes leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology for face recognition and name match, the Finance Minister said.
Digital loan journeys such as account statement analysis, leveraging alternative data in underwriting for quick credit assessment and real-time decision making, and development of innovative products for customers using APIs of banks are also taking place, she added.