Axis Bank bets on data centres, gold loans to outpace credit growth

Data centres, renewable energy and urbanisation are driving corporate credit demand, while gold loans and borrowers from smaller cities are fuelling retail growth, its ​chief executive said

Axis Bank, India's third-largest private bank by assets, expects credit growth to expand 300 bps faster than the industry average in the current fiscal year on strong corporate and retail demand, its ​chief executive said.

Demand is coming from sectors including data centres and small businesses as well ​as retail borrowers looking to monetise their gold, Amitabh Chaudhry, the chief executive of Axis Bank, said in an interview ‌at the company's headquarters in Mumbai on Monday.

Credit growth in India's $3.36 trillion banking sector accelerated to 18.3% year-on-year in June 2026, the latest data available, from 9.3% a year earlier, supporting the South Asian economy in a year when business has been sluggish in many countries including the US, China and Brazil amid growing economic and geopolitical challenges.

 

"The headline growth is coming from three places: large corporates, non-bank lenders, and gold loans," Chaudhry said.

Credit is growing at more than 15% even excluding these segments, suggesting broad-based demand, he said.

The credit boom is likely to boost earnings at Axis, which reported a standalone net profit of ₹7,114 crore ($738.89 million) for the three months ended June, compared with ₹5,806 crore a year earlier. Net interest income over the period rose 8% to ₹14,646 crores, aided by a 19% rise in domestic loans.

A central bank window to draw subsidised ‌dollar deposits is likely to further boost credit growth in the banking sector, Chaudhry added.

FROM DATA CENTRES TO GOLD

Data centres, renewable energy, manufacturing and urbanisation are driving corporate credit demand, while gold loans and borrowers from smaller cities are fuelling retail growth, Chaudhry said.

Axis Bank is selectively expanding data-centre lending, focusing on developers with strong equity backing, technical expertise and long-term take-or-pay contracts. Such contracts, where the supplier agrees a minimum quantity of goods that a buyer has to purchase every year, are typically agreed for long, extensive projects.

Chaudhry cautioned the sector was not a "jackpot" and required underwriting discipline.

"It is seen as a huge opportunity and a lot of players have entered ​it," he said. "It might not be such an easy place to play."

Among retail segments, loans against gold surged 94% year-on-year in June.

Chaudhry said ‌the gold-linked demand did not signal economic stress, with borrowers instead taking advantage of higher gold prices and lower rates than those available under unsecured personal loans.

"Earlier, people would use gold to borrow only in extreme circumstances. Now they see it as ​a very legitimate ‌way to walk in and borrow," he said.

IPO PLANS FOR KEY BUSINESSES

Axis Bank, which has units ranging from investment banking to insurance, is preparing ‌two for potential listings, Chaudhry said.

Axis is evaluating an internal restructuring involving Max Financial, its joint venture partner in Axis Max Life Insurance, after a change in regulations allowed non-insurance and insurance companies to merge, he said.

The move could potentially result in the ‌life ​insurer being listed ​within 12 to 18 months.

Axis Finance, which has more than ₹50,000 crore in assets, is likely to list after its assets reach ₹1 trillion, the level at which it would be required to do so under Reserve ‌Bank of India rules, Chaudhry added.

At ​the firm's current pace of growth, that could happen within the next couple of years, he said.