By FMTeam Can you even imagine that as of the last fiscal year, according to a report, there were more than 9480 NBFCs aka Non-Banking Financial Companies in India? That’s a huge number, no two ways about it. For those who don’t know, well, these NBFCs work like banks, but they’re actually businesses with bank licenses, you know, to provide banking and financial services to people in the country. And today though, we are here to take a good look at the top 10 leading NBFC companies in India right now. Alright, here we go then.
1. Bajaj Finance Limited
Sure enough, when it comes to Bajaj Finance Limited, this company clearly holds the top position in the NBFC industry in India, you know, just for the facts here, it has been going strong for over 35 years and has a customer base of over 50 million. Not just that though, there is something even special about it, you see, being rated by CRISIL AAA/Stable and A1+, it provides a variety of services like consumer loans, SME financing, and fixed deposits. So yes, hence, we had no other option but to rank Bajaj Finance Limited at the very top of this list today.
2. Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company
And indeed, as part of the Murugappa Group, since 1978 Chola Mandalam has been one of the primary sources of facilities for a large number of customers, but why exactly? Well, just know that it is different from traditional lenders as it has a large allocation of its total lending portfolio to rural and semi-urban markets in its home loan and SME loan products. Its role as a tractor, construction, and commercial vehicle outsourcing finance company in the rural areas of India made it even more unique, thereby making it one of the best choices for small businesses to do business operations right here in the country.
3. Aditya Birla Finance Limited (ABFL)
By this point, you probably know that Aditya Birla Finance Limited is one of the top five companies in the NBFC sector, with the latest figures for its Assets Under Management (AUM) indicating that by December 2023 it will reach ₹986.01 billion, which is pretty crazy if you think about it for a sec. Also, another thing that makes this company quite unlike every other one is its 146.50 billion equity base. Sure enough, the market is likely to be led by it and the investors have very high trust in the Company with the ratings of the ICRA and the Indian ratings agency, which classify it as AAA (Stable).
4. Shriram Finance Limited
One thing we are pretty certain of is that Shriram Finance Limited is the largest retail-focused NBFC in India, created by the merger of Shriram Transport Finance, Shriram City Union Finance, and Shriram Capital. As far as the financials go, well, as of September 2022, it has a total asset management of up to ₹1.71 trillion. You know, it offers a variety of solutions such as micro-businesses loans, automobile loans, and gold loan facilities, with the support of a strong nationwide network of 2,875 branch outlets.
5. Muthoot Finance Limited
Then there is the Muthoot Finance Limited, the largest in the gold loan NBFC industry in India, which has been a name investors could rely upon since 1939, you know? The location is Kochi, Kerala, and caters to individuals and small businesses who are in need of fast cash through loans. Not just that though, they have been doing quite a lot, like diversifying into fields like foreign exchange, travel services, and remittances.
6. Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services
Next on the list, would you not be surprised if we say here comes Mahindra Finance, which is evidently kinda the one that leads in the financing game of vehicles and tractors as well as a supplier of capital for the company in the villages and semi-urban areas. So yes, they sure are keeping up the good work down there, ever since 1991 actually.
7. L&T Finance Limited
And number seven is the L&T finance, you know, part of the L&T group but have you noticed any similarities in this list so far, our point being that these brands do belong to big business groups? So, what’s the difference between this one and this one? Well, let us take you back a bit, you see, this company was formed in 2008 and is located in Mumbai. Not much to add here, just wanted to let you know that this company needs no introduction or anything like that because its brand speaks quite loud with affiliations with big names like L&T itself.
8. HDB Financial Services
Next on the list, you see, HDB Financial Services is the subsidiary of HDFC Bank in the financial entities. As far as the history and why they’re famous, well, the company was founded in 2007, and it provides both secured and unsecured loans. The efficient processing of loans and a customer-oriented approach have made HDB the partner of choice for SMEs in India.
9. Tata Capital Limited
Tata Capital Limited being a part of the Tata Group is in no way the least among the financial services companies on our list because it is easily able to provide personal loans, wealth management, and infrastructure financing things such as mutual funds and banking products in the marketplace. Why and how? That’s the way Tata Group has always been, and ever since 2007, they’re doing the same with Tata Capital Limited.
10. Sundaram Finance Limited
Last on the list, come 1954, Sundaram Finance Limited started a business that is among India’s oldest NBFCs. As of 2024, yes, it has its headquarters in Chennai. It started life as a commercial vehicle finance company but has branched out into SME financing, mutual funds, and insurance, becoming one of the largest players in these fields, which is just impressive. All in all, as its tradition of reliability and trustworthiness goes on, it continues to foster businesses and individuals, particularly in the transportation sector.
Conclusion
We assume that you were looking forward to benefiting from the services offered by these top NBFCs in the country, or it could be that you’re someone who’s looking forward to investing in some of the companies. Right? In both cases, we have given you a detailed list, now it is your turn to dig a little deeper.