Indian banks’ loan growth moderated this September, compared with the same month a year ago, central bank data showed on Thursday, as the impact of the Reserve Bank of India’s clampdown on “exuberance” in retail lending continued.

Banks’ credit grew 14.4 per cent year-on-year last month, slower than the 15.3 per cent increase in September 2023, excluding the impact of HDFC Bank merging with parent Housing Development Finance Corp, the RBI said.

Including the impact of the merger, banks’ loans grew 13 per cent last month, compared with 20 per cent a year ago.

Loan growth had moderated in August as well.

Indian banks have consistently reported a double-digit loan growth for a while, helped by healthy economic growth and urban consumption. However, the RBI, worried about the risk of bad loans, imposed higher capital requirements on banks late last year.

Some segments such as personal loans and credit card loans posted strong growth, in excess of 25 per cent, until earlier this year when the central bank governor warned against “exuberance”.