Jio Financial to build secured loan book before entering unsecured credit

Jio Financial Services Ltd (JFSL) will focus on secured lending backed by property and securities before expanding into unsecured credit, with managing director and chief executive Hitesh Sethia saying the company will consider entering that segment only after achieving critical scale.

In his message to shareholders in the company's annual report for fiscal year 2026 (FY26), released on Monday, Sethia said JFSL is building a technology-led financial services platform spanning lending, payments, insurance, investments and digital distribution, with the goal of making financial services “simpler, smarter and accessible to every Indian”.

“We will initially focus on secured products, including loans against property and loans against securities. We will evaluate unsecured products in due course once we reach critical scale,” Sethia said.

Sethia also outlined the company's growing use of artificial intelligence (AI), saying JFSL has developed the Jio Finance AI Neural Agentic Marketplace, an AI-driven platform built on advanced neural models that delivers personalized recommendations and supports customer journeys across lending, payments and investments.

“We have embedded AI across the organisation to enhance customer experience, improve operational efficiency, strengthen risk management and deliver personalized engagement,” he said.

The annual report also highlighted progress across the company's investment and insurance businesses. Assets under management (AUM) at Jio BlackRock Asset Management stood at ₹16,712 crore at the end of FY26, while Jio Credit Ltd's AUM reached ₹25,711 crore.

Sethia said the BlackRock joint venture crossed ₹16,000 crore in assets within its first year by broadening access to institutional-quality investment solutions.

In insurance, Jio Insurance Broking facilitated premiums worth ₹982 crore during the year through a combination of digital and assisted distribution channels.

JFSL also signed definitive agreements with Allianz Group to establish a reinsurance joint venture. Announced in March this year, the venture marks the company's entry into the reinsurance business and is expected to strengthen its presence across life, general and health insurance, subject to regulatory approvals.

The move comes as competition in the segment intensifies.

Last week, Bajaj Finserv's board approved its entry into reinsurance through a wholly owned subsidiary, joining a market that has expanded rapidly since liberalisation. Gross reinsurance premiums written from GIFT City's insurance offices rose more than fourfold to $607.96 million in FY26.

The company's operating businesses also gathered momentum during the year. Core income from business operations jumped 272% year-on-year to ₹1,390 crore in FY26, while consolidated income from operations, excluding dividend income, rose 78% to ₹3,274 crore.

Momentum has continued into FY27. Jio Financial Services reported a consolidated net profit of ₹325 crore in the June quarter. Jio Credit also expanded its funding base, issuing ₹1,500 crore of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) in June. Its board has approved raising up to ₹15,000 crore through NCDs during FY27, providing additional headroom to fund future loan growth.