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| Debt Traps, Consumer Concerns and What's Ahead |
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| Dear Moneylifers, |
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| We continue to receive a large number of requests for help from people struggling with debt, particularly borrowers who have taken loans through digital lending apps. Many of these cases raise the same questions: How does a manageable loan turn into a debt trap? What should borrowers look out for before taking a digital loan? And what happens when one loan leads to another? |
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| Our credit counselling work has brought us a growing number of cases involving digital loans, multiple borrowings and difficulties with repayment. The problems are often not limited to the size of a single loan. Borrowers may take fresh loans to repay earlier ones, while interest, processing fees and other charges can cause the overall cost of borrowing to rise rapidly. |
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 These concerns were also the starting point for our recent study, "Digital Credit without Limits," which examined the experiences of borrowers using multiple digital lending platforms and the gaps in existing safeguards. |
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| We are now considering making this the focus of a talk and discussion, drawing on the experiences emerging from our credit counselling work as well as the issues highlighted in the report. |
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| Would this be a subject that you would find useful? Are there particular aspects of digital lending, borrowing or debt traps that you would like to see addressed? We would be glad to hear from you at [email protected]. |
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| A Cyber-Fraud Victim Gets His Money Back |
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 A recent case that was brought to our attention shows how timely intervention can sometimes help resolve a problem that has otherwise remained stuck. A member approached the Foundation after ₹80,699 was fraudulently withdrawn from his bank account through 10 transactions in December 2025. He reported the fraud immediately through the 1930 cyber-fraud helpline and also approached the police. |
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| In February 2026, the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, directed HDFC Bank to unfreeze the account in which the money had been traced and refund ₹80,699 to the victim's bank account, subject to an indemnity bond. |
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| Despite the court order and subsequent follow-ups by the police, the refund had still not been made. The bank subsequently informed the police that the amount had been credited through its settlement process to a merchant/aggregator and asked the police to pursue the matter further. The case was then escalated to the Foundation, and we wrote directly to the bank seeking resolution. The victim received his entire ₹80,699 back the very next day. |
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| Cases like this are a reminder that even after doing everything by the book, the bank can sometimes fail to pay until matters are escalated! |
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| Practical Guidance for Members |
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 Counselling and guidance remain an important part of the Foundation's work. Members can seek help on a range of issues through our ongoing initiatives: |
- Credit and debt counselling — particularly for those facing difficulties with digital loans, multiple borrowings or debt repayment; conducted online via Zoom with Ms Aparna Ramachandra, founder-director of Rectify Credit.
- Cooperative housing society matters — counselling sessions conducted by Mr Shirish Shanbhag, drawing on his extensive experience with housing society issues.
- Banking, insurance, mediclaim and consumer matters — guidance sessions conducted by Mr Abhay Datar, a retired banker and consumer activist.
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| Members facing problems in these areas can write to us at [email protected] or call +91 7045156415 to find out more about the appropriate counselling or guidance, and to take an appointment. |
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| Recent Videos You May Have Missed |
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| Apart from our research, advocacy and counselling initiatives, Moneylife continues to publish videos on issues that matter to consumers, investors and citizens. Here are some recent videos you may find useful. |
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| Stay Connected – Join Our WhatsApp Channel! |
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| We've launched an official WhatsApp Channel to share updates on our events, seminars, workshops, counselling sessions and any other general updates directly with you. |
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| Join here: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBWAyKGpLHIIk6yYa3t |
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| If you don’t see updates right away, please note that notifications are turned off by default. Just tap the bell icon in the channel to turn them on — that way, you won’t miss any important announcements. You can also continue to follow our Telegram channel for updates: https://telegram.me/moneylife_foundation |
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| Check our Free Helplines and Guides or Templates as well as our YouTube Channel, where you will find a wide repository of videos on various topics. |
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| Video recordings of all our webinars are available on our YouTube channel and will come to your inbox regularly if you hit the subscribe button. But if you want to be notified about future events through our mailing list, you do need to be a member. |
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| Moneylife TV & Helplines |
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| Financial Literacy Videos in Indian Languages: |
- Credit cards
- Online frauds
- Fallacy of gold loans and more in Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi and Tamil, all on our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/moneylifetv).
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| Get guidance and counselling through our Legal Helpline or Credit Helpline. |
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| Sucheta Dalal |
| Founder-Trustee, Moneylife Foundation |
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| Trustees: Walter Vieira, Sucheta Dalal, Debashis Basu. |
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| Moneylife Foundation is registered with the Charity Commissioner of Mumbai, is an Affiliate member of OECD's International Network on Financial Education, is a Supporter Member of Consumers International, Development Partner of Advocates for International Development (A4ID), and is a winner of the 10th MR Pai Memorial Award. |
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| Donations are eligible for tax benefits under Sec 80G of the Income Tax 1961 (50% tax exemption) and MLF is registered under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010.
80(G) Reg No: ITBA/EXM/F/EXM44/2025-26/1086010414(1) dated 13.2.26 effective til AY2031-32 | FCRA Registration No: 08378138
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