Fino's loan referrals surge 186%. Its payments business keeps shrinking.
May data shows the bank's pivot to lending is accelerating, but at a steep cost to its original payments volume.
— 1 earlier story on Fino Payments Bank Ltd. →What's new
- Loan referral disburseals jumped to ₹210 cr, a 186% YoY surge.
- Transaction volume plummeted 48% YoY, continuing the exit from UPI P2M.
- New partnership with Ezee.ai for lending ecosystem, terms undisclosed.
Why this matters
Fino is trading payments volume for loan referrals. The trade-off is stark: the old business is in freefall, and the new one is growing fast from a small base. The Ezee.ai partnership is the latest move to build a lending infrastructure, but without quantified targets, the pivot's financial viability is still unproven.
What we're watching
- Whether the Ezee.ai partnership translates into actual loan volumes next quarter.
- If the 48% transaction decline stabilises or continues to erode the core.
- The net revenue impact as high-margin referrals offset collapsing payments fees.
The full read
Fino Payments Bank's May update is a pivot in progress. Loan referrals hit ₹210 cr, up 186% year-on-year. Transaction volume fell 48%. The two numbers are two sides of the same coin: Fino is exiting low-margin payments to chase higher-value lending. Deposits grew 10% and digitally active customers rose 19%. The partnership with Ezee.ai for the lending ecosystem, though unquantified, signals the next build-out. This is a routine filing. It adds little to what the market already knew from the Q4 call. But it does cleanly confirm the new shape of the business, even as the old one bleeds out. Three months in a row now.
Questions answered
- Why is Fino's transaction volume falling so fast?
- The bank strategically exited the UPI person-to-merchant (P2M) payments business, a low-margin segment. The 48% YoY drop in transaction throughput is the direct, ongoing result of that decision.
- How significant is the loan referral growth?
- A 186% YoY increase to ₹210 crore in a single month shows strong momentum. However, the number must be judged against the context of a shrinking payments base and an undisclosed partnership with Ezee.ai.
- What does the Ezee.ai partnership involve?
- The filing mentions a strategic partnership with Ezee.ai for the lending ecosystem but provides no financial terms or volume commitments. Its role is to support the bank's shift toward loan distribution.
- Is this update a surprise to the market?
- No. The data largely confirms known trends from the Q4FY26 earnings call and recent disclosures. It is a routine monthly update unlikely to move the stock.
Story so far
All notes on FINOPB →- 8 Jun 2026 · 9:05 PM IST Fino's loan referrals surge 186%. Its payments business keeps shrinking.
- 18d ago Fino Payments Bank MD Rishi Gupta resigns after 20 years