CONSUMER CREDIT MARKET: CURRENT STATUS AND REGULATION

Abstract

Consumer credit is one of the indicators that make it possible to judge the real state of affairs in the country's economy. Control over the state of the consumer lending market is entrusted to the Bank of Russia. Control is carried out on a number of indicators and in the context of regions. One of the most important indicators is the level of debt load of the population. The debt burden is influenced by the income of the population, the number of credit institutions in the region. It is possible to identify a certain geographical pattern of regions. Debt ratios are significantly higher in low-income regions, but not always. The level of debt load is also affected by the number of credit institutions in the region, which makes credit more affordable. In addition, the use of Internet resources by banks also increases the availability of consumer credit. In addition to banks, active participants in the consumer credit market in Russia are currently microfinance and microcredit organizations. Since 2010, after the adoption of Law No. 151-FZ “On microfinance activities and microfinance organizations”, their activities have become more regulated. In general, the consumer lending market is currently growing. At the same time, the debt ratio is also growing. All this required the introduction of more stringent rules for the provision of consumer loans. The Central Bank quite justifiably set macroprudential limits for issuing consumer loans for banks with a basic license and for MFIs. The introduction of restrictions should reduce the number of high-risk loans.