Bharti Airtel will invest ₹20,000 crore in its NBFC arm, Airtel Money, with 70% from Airtel and 30% from Bharti Enterprises.
After securing an NBFC licence from the RBI, Airtel plans to scale its digital loan business, which has already disbursed over ₹9,000 crore.
The move strengthens Airtel's fintech push, targeting India's growing credit market and underserved borrowers.
Airtel Doubles Down on Fintech With ₹20,000-Cr NBFC Investment
Out of the total amount, 70% will be funded by Airtel, while the remaining 30% will be infused by the promoter group through Bharti Enterprises
Bharti Airtel
Summary
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Telecom major Bharti Airtel on February 23 announced that it will invest ₹20,000 crore in its non-banking finance company (NBFC) arm, Airtel Money, over the next few years. This marks one of the company’s biggest investments outside its core telecom business.
Out of the total amount, 70% will be funded by Airtel, while the remaining 30% will be infused by the promoter group through Bharti Enterprises.
The move comes just 10 days after Airtel Money received its NBFC licence from the RBI. The licence allows the company to officially operate as a lender and expand its digital loan offerings across the country.
Airtel's entry into full-scale lending builds on its existing Lending Service Provider (LSP) platform. Over the past two years, the platform has disbursed more than ₹9,000 crore in loans. The company said the system is powered by a strong data and analytics engine, supported by over 500 data scientists. It has helped assess borrowers better and keep loan defaults under control. Airtel described that the system delivered "best-in-class" delinquency outcomes through robust underwriting and real-time risk monitoring.
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Gopal Vittal, Executive Vice Chairman of Bharti Airtel, said the success of the LSP platform shows the company’s ability to combine technology, data and customer trust to offer credit at scale.
"The success of our LSP platform over the past two years is proof of our ability to combine technology, data, and customer trust to deliver impact at a national scale. We have built one of India’s most trusted and scalable digital credit engines—reaching millions with high-quality credit supported by industry-best performance metrics," he said.
"Our NBFC expansion strengthens this foundation and reflects our ambition to build a differentiated, future-ready digital lending business - one that stands for trust, innovation, and financial inclusion." he added.
The expansion also highlights Airtel's plans to tap into India's fast-growing financial services sector. According to Care Edge Ratings, India's formal credit-to-GDP ratio stands at 53%, indicating significant room for growth in lending and access to formal credit, especially for underserved consumers.
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