From once reaping huge profits by relying on traffic and backing banks, to now with both customer acquisition and capital costs soaring simultaneously, the loan assistance industry is facing unprecedented pressure, and a profound transformation is underway.
The so-called loan assistance refers to the business where commercial banks issue loans through external Internet platforms, mainly serving personal consumption and the production and operation of small and micro enterprises and individual business households. In April this year, the State Financial Regulatory Commission issued the “Notice on Strengthening the Management of Internet Lending Assistance Business of Commercial Banks and Improving the Quality and Efficiency of Financial Services” (hereinafter referred to as the “New Lending Assistance Regulations”), which will come into effect on October 1st. The aim is to promote the standardized and orderly development of Internet lending assistance business of commercial banks. In the continuous competition between regulation and market demand, it has become an inevitable trend for the lending assistance industry to shift from “traffic-driven” to “compliance-driven”. Under the pressure of layer-by-layer transmission, the industry is undergoing a major transformation.
At present, the high customer acquisition cost in the loan assistance industry has become a prominent issue. A senior figure from a loan assistance institution with nearly a decade of experience disclosed: “Over the past five years, the customer acquisition cost for loan assistance institutions has increased sixfold. The conversion cost for new customers can reach up to nearly 3,000 yuan at its peak. Our platform’s annual customer acquisition expenses alone amount to over a billion yuan.” ” This trend can also be seen from the financial reports released by leading loan assistance enterprises. The first-quarter reports of 2025 of Qifu Technology, Xinye Technology and Lexin show that although their net profits increased year-on-year, the cost of customer acquisition and the pressure of transformation have become prominent. Take Qifu Technology as an example. In the first quarter, the user acquisition cost (for users with approved credit lines) rose to 384 yuan, a significant increase from 285 yuan in the same period last year. Sales and marketing expenses increased from 416 million yuan in the same period last year to 592 million yuan, an increase of more than 40%, and a quarter-on-quarter growth of nearly 13%. Behind the high cost of acquiring customers, on the one hand, the customer base is gradually sinking, making it more difficult to discover new customers. On the other hand, there is insufficient effective demand for loans. Some small and medium-sized loan assistance institutions have even experienced a break in their capital chains, with users withdrawing loans to repay their debts. In addition, the industry also faces the chaos of incomplete protection of financial consumers’ rights and interests. Some online lending platforms charge extremely high interest rates and hidden fees, causing borrowers to fall into a “debt trap”, with actual interest rates exceeding 36%.
In the face of industry chaos, the introduction of new regulations on loan assistance has become a crucial turning point in the industry’s development. The new regulations for the first time propose “list-based management”, requiring the head offices of commercial banks to implement list-based management for platform operation institutions and credit enhancement service institutions, and disclose the lists through official channels. Based on the disclosed information, leading platforms such as Ant Group, ByteDance, Baidu and WeBank remain the top choices for commercial banks. Several institutions, including Yilian Bank and Shangcheng Consumer Finance, have already publicized their cooperation lists on their official websites. Hu Xu, the head of the research department of the China Institute of Inclusive Finance, pointed out that the new regulations emphasize that commercial banks should carry out differentiated risk pricing and keep track of the actual charges of lending assistance platforms, providing necessary protection for borrowers. However, although the new regulations do not set an upper limit on the revenue-sharing ratio, some small and medium-sized banks have suspended the supply of funds for the loan assistance business. The supply of funds in the loan assistance industry has tightened, the number of cooperative banks has decreased, and competition has intensified, further pushing up the cost of funds for loan assistance platforms.
Against this backdrop, major lending assistance institutions are all actively exploring their transformation directions. Wang Pengbo, a senior analyst of the financial industry at Broadcom Consulting, believes that the new regulations on loan assistance have driven the industry to shift from “traffic driven” to “compliance driven”. Requirements such as including credit enhancement service fees in the comprehensive financing cost, prohibiting platforms from charging additional fees, and emphasizing differentiated pricing have prompted banks to recalculate cooperation costs and reduce the space for unreasonable fees. Meanwhile, lending assistance institutions must pass the access approval at the head office level. Regional small and medium-sized institutions are facing elimination due to insufficient qualifications. Xu Jiayuan, the Chief Financial Officer of Xinye Technology, stated that the new regulations will help enhance business transparency and standardization, and encourage lending assistance platforms to strengthen compliance management. Platforms with sufficient capital, strong risk management capabilities, and high compliance standards will have more advantages. At present, the lending assistance institutions are exploring compliance plans with banks. It is expected that after the new regulations are officially implemented, further adjustments will be made based on regulatory feedback.
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