I. The report and its context
In June 2026 the BCRA published a new edition of its Report on Non-Financial Credit Providers, with data through February 2026 that reflect the sector's performance during the second half of 2025. The report divides credit providers into two broad groups: financial entities (banks and finance companies) and non-financial entities. Within the latter, Non-Financial Credit Providers (PNFC, for the Spanish acronym) comprise two registries: Other Non-Financial Credit Providers (OPNFC), which covers those extending personal loans, secured loans and other financing, and Non-Bank Credit or Purchase Card Issuers (ETCNB). A single company may appear in one or both registries.
The period was shaped by uncertainty around the October 2025 election, which brought volatility to the markets, and by economic activity that grew at a slower pace. The BCRA also notes that, since April 2025, it stopped setting a monetary policy rate and moved to a monetary aggregate control framework with greater exchange-rate and interest-rate flexibility. Against that backdrop, PNFC credit moderated after the strong expansion it had shown since early 2024. The full report is available on the BCRA website.
II. The universe of providers and the new classification
At the close of the first quarter of 2026 the PNFC registry reached 585 companies, 19 more than a year earlier (+3.4%). Of that total, 470 are OPNFC only, 60 are ETCNB only, and 55 hold dual registration. 2025 was the year with the most new registrations, at 85 companies, and the first quarter of 2026 added another 29.
The report introduces a methodological change worth keeping in mind when comparing figures with earlier editions: it creates a new group, Other credit card issuers, which brings together issuers whose main activity as declared before ARCA is credit or purchase card services (code 649220). Under this classification, Cooperatives and mutuals remains the largest group (137 entities, 23% of the total), followed by Fintech (77, 13%), Leasing & factoring (44, 8%) and the new Other credit card issuers group (41, 7%).
III. Credit, borrowers and the weight of fintech
Total PNFC financing reached ARS 13.9 trillion in February 2026. Between August 2025 and February 2026 it grew only 2% in real terms, though the year-on-year comparison remains high (+22%). The Fintech group was the most dynamic, with a real increase of 11% over the half-year and 47% year on year, and surpassed 7 million clients.
The number of people with financing reached about 12.1 million (+5% versus August 2025). Shared borrowers, those who hold credit with both PNFC and financial entities, account for roughly 57% of the total, more than 6.8 million people. Average financing per individual borrower stood at ARS 1.1 million and fell 3% in real terms between November 2025 and February 2026.
By type of assistance, growth came from personal loans (+5% real), while credit cards fell 1%. This tracks the performance by group: fintechs, associated with personal lending, expanded their portfolio, and Other credit card issuers reduced theirs.
The comparison with financial entities offers a reading that matters to the sector. By number of borrowers, PNFC account for 85% of financial system borrowers, four points more than in August 2025. By balances, however, PNFC financing equals 18% of the debt that individuals hold with banks. PNFC weigh heavily in access to credit, but their share as a source of financing by amount is more limited.
IV. Interest rates and the cap on non-bank issuers
In February 2026 the average nominal annual rate on OPNFC personal loans stood at 144%, 11 points above August 2025 but below the December level. On the same date, banks charged around 69% for personal loans. Within the OPNFC there are marked differences across groups: Cooperatives and mutuals posted the lowest rate (96%) and the Rest group the highest (179%).
The ETCNB rate stood at 87%. This figure carries a regulatory feature: for non-bank issuers, compensatory interest may not exceed the financial system's average nominal rate on unsecured personal loans by more than 25%, under Law 25,065. As a result, ETCNB rates move in line with the system and, in practice, usually sit close to the cap. With annualized inflation around 35% in February 2026, real rates stayed positive, though the gap narrowed from late 2025.
V. The rise in delinquency
The most significant figure in the report is the deterioration of the portfolio. Total PNFC delinquency reached 26.9% in February 2026, 9.7 points above August 2025 and 17.4 points above February 2025, when it sat at minimum levels. By type of assistance, delinquency was higher on personal loans (34.1%) than on credit cards (19.4%).
The increase was broad. Every group saw its delinquency rise except Leasing & factoring, which leans toward secured lending and corporate borrowers. Among the larger groups by share, Other credit card issuers reached 20.7% and Fintech 26.2%. The Rest group, with a small share, reached 58.4%, and Consumer electronics retail, 44.3%.
The deterioration also shows in shared clients: their delinquency on bank financing rose to 16.1%, at a time when household delinquency in the financial system moved to 11.2%. On top of this, an intermediate segment, with between 30 and 90 days past due, represented 5.9% of the portfolio and points to further pressure on the ratios.
VI. Bank funding and capital markets
Financing that PNFC take from financial entities fell 8% in real terms over the half-year, to ARS 2.2 trillion, and represents 16% of their active portfolio. The positive counterpart is that PNFC delinquency toward banks stayed very low (0.12%), so the deterioration of their own portfolio barely passes through to their bank creditors.
Faced with the pullback in bank credit, the capital markets held their role. Financial trust issuance stayed high, with fintechs as the main issuer and more than half of the securitized amounts. In negotiable obligations there were 18 placements by 9 issuers between the second half of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026: 10 in pesos, for ARS 263 billion, and 8 in dollars, for USD 293 million. In common currency, about USD 480 million, with Other credit card issuers in the lead.
VII. The platform economy and financial inclusion
The report includes a section on credit in the platform, or gig, economy, which identifies these companies within the Fintech group. The point of interest is how these platforms build an alternative score from the worker's performance (tenure, rating, acceptance rate and activity volume), which the BCRA describes as digital collateral: the history of trips or deliveries replaces the traditional guarantee. Platforms can also deduct loan installments directly from the worker's income.
The data show a sector in expansion. The number of borrowers on these platforms grew 177% between December 2023 and December 2024, and 122% during 2025. The predominant profile is the independent worker, who accounts for more than 54% of borrowers and more than 62% of the balance, with a strong presence of people under 40.
VIII. What we watch from a regulatory standpoint
Beyond the numbers, the report leaves several points of attention for companies in the sector. What follows is our reading, not part of the report.
The rate cap that applies to non-bank issuers (Law 25,065) remains relevant: because the ceiling is anchored to the financial system's rate, pricing and compliance management call for continuous monitoring of the reference the BCRA publishes. The rise in delinquency, combined with the drop in bank funding, reinforces the weight of the capital markets as a source of financing, which makes the structuring of financial trusts and negotiable obligations, their safeguards, and the quality of the assigned portfolio more important. Finally, the growth of credit in the platform economy raises regulatory questions that do not yet have settled answers: the treatment of digital collateral, financial consumer protection, and the use of labor-behavior data for credit decisions.
At JFC we advise fintechs, credit providers and card issuers on their regulatory framework before the BCRA, on the structuring of their funding, and on compliance with reporting and interest-rate regimes. To assess the impact of this report on your operations, you can reach us at contact@jfcattorneys.com.