Rising Credit Debt: NFO Calls For Greater Consumer Vigilance
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Guest – Kwanda Vabaza, Manager - Adjudication at the NFO’s Banking and Credit Division
With the dramatic shifting of credit from a tool for upward mobility to a survival mechanism for basic necessities like food, rent, electricity and transport, alarm bells are being sounded about unsustainable debt levels of consumers.
The National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa (NFO) is concerned about high levels of debt exposure in the wake of the release of TransUnion’s Q1 2025 Industry Insights Report which confirms a troubling trend: credit products commonly used by lower- and middle-income consumers are experiencing rapid growth in both uptake and default rates.
With the dramatic shifting of credit from a tool for upward mobility to a survival mechanism for basic necessities like food, rent, electricity and transport, alarm bells are being sounded about unsustainable debt levels of consumers.
The National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa (NFO) is concerned about high levels of debt exposure in the wake of the release of TransUnion’s Q1 2025 Industry Insights Report which confirms a troubling trend: credit products commonly used by lower- and middle-income consumers are experiencing rapid growth in both uptake and default rates.
