Pawn shops are increasing the issuance of loans on bail

The reasons why people go to the pawn shop can be different. In fact, they are the same as people make loans in a bank or in an MFI: you need money – and the faster, the better.

Among those who are more likely to apply to a pawnshop for borrowed funds, 43% do not want to waste time while the credit institution considers their application. For 36% of respondents, the advantage of a pawnshop is that you do not need to undergo complex scoring and collect income documents. For another 21% of respondents, the main argument is the reluctance to receive entries in the credit history and increase their debt load

But there is a downside to the coin. This is the fear of forever losing pledged valuables and memorabilia: 37% of these, and almost a third of respondents consider the terms and interest on such loans unprofitable, the study participants doubt that the pawnshop staff will honestly evaluate their property.

The exact number of customers who do not buy the pledged thing is not publicly available. Pawn shops are not required to submit such information to the regulator. But, according to some estimates, up to 85% of items are bought back by citizens.

Last year, the volume of loans increased by 30% compared to the same period in 2024. The absolute figure was 412 billion rubles. The same trend continues in 2026. According to experts, the volume of loans will increase by 35% and reach 560 billion rubles. In the first quarter alone, the loan portfolio amounted to 117 billion rubles.

There is one caveat: more loans began to issue regulars, so to speak, trusted customers. The newcomers were only 3%.

Among the reasons for the growth, analysts call high prices for gold, which acts as the main collateral in pawnshops. If in December 2024, the historical maximum was 8950 rubles per gram, then in June 2026 - 10101 rubles. Legs themselves lead customers to the pawnshop, if in the pocket there is any grandmother's ring or earrings. Also, the demand for pawnshop services is affected by the tightening of requirements for borrowers from credit institutions. The question arises: how much more profitable are pawnshop services than the services of our traditional credit institutions?

- Who, everything is individual, - says financial analyst, candidate of economic sciences Mikhail Belyaev. The economic benefits cannot be verified by algebra or geometry. In the bank, the interest on consumer credit is lower than in a pawnshop. But the bank may refuse to issue a loan, especially in light of recent customer requirements. Someone is more profitable to quickly lay, for example, gold jewelry to solve current household problems.

People have reduced purchasing power, and many are used to maintaining their living standards. It is urgent to correct the shaky financial affairs, or there is a need to close the cash gap before repaying the loan. There are no situations. Moreover, a pawnshop has one advantage: if on the flea market you sold something to someone forever, then there, after paying the loan and increased interest, you have the opportunity to buy it back. A few years ago, pawnshops were generally used as points of sale, there they handed over unnecessary jewelry “stuff”, which no one bought. But it should be borne in mind that after evaluating the thing, pawnshops issue an amount that is significantly lower than its market value.

If the activity of pawnshops is regulated by the Central Bank, then they can be considered as a credit institution?

More specifically, the financial credit system. Operations that are made in pawnshops, in a generalized form, can be considered as a mortgage loan.

Experts predict that this year the volume of loans in this system will increase by another 35% year-on-year. What can explain this revival of the pawnshop market?

I believe that the prospect of accepting cryptocurrency as collateral on a par with gold. Bitcoins are equated to the property of a citizen, market players plan to use such an asset as collateral and receive a loan. What will later do pawnshops with cryptocurrency is not entirely clear.