Loans: demand for holiday loans rises to 10 per cent

Perhaps too little for an in-depth sociological analysis, but enough to identify at least one trend: people are taking on debt less to make purchases that will remain in their homes or garages for most of their lives, and more to cover short-term expenses – urgent health-related costs, or to finance one’s lifestyle, but also to invest in human capital, with a slight increase to 8 per cent in the number of people using the funds for training and study.

Giuseppe Piano Mortari, deputy secretary-general of Assofin, is less categorical in his interpretation of the data. “The overall picture,” he says, “is one of a much broader approach to consumer credit, with Italians increasingly recognising the benefits of better planning of their budget for the purchase of goods and services, as evidenced by the fact that the penetration of consumer credit in Italia has reached levels in line with the European average”.

Further information can be gleaned by examining the trend in lending flows disbursed by Assofin member organisations in the first six months of 2026, broken down by broad product type. Personal loans continue to account for the lion’s share, with the value of transactions exceeding 17.5 billion euros (up 4.2 per cent), followed by special-purpose loans for cars and motorbikes (over 5 billion, up 6.8 per cent) and other special-purpose loans, i.e. those taken out to purchase a specific good or service, typically at the point of sale. The credit card segment saw a slight decline (-0.9%) to €2.6 billion, relating to cards for which a credit line has been granted that can be used with the card itself (revolving or instalment). The salary-backed loans segment rounds off the figures with just under 4 billion in transaction value (+6.7 per cent), typically characterised, due to the technical nature of the financing, by a higher average amount (equal to 26,728 euros).

The following does not fall within the scope of what has been discussed so far: emerging ‘buy now pay later’ (BNPL), a form of short-term financing that allows consumers to purchase goods immediately and spread the cost over a few instalments, usually via an app. At present, BNPL is not classified as consumer credit. ‘But it is expected to be included between late 2026 and early 2027”, explains Piano Mortari. “As soon as the Bank of Italy issues the implementing decrees to bring the new Consumer Credit Directive into force. In practice, the scope will change and it will be included”. The expected outcome is greater protection for consumers. “The directive stipulates an obligation to provide information during both the contractual and pre-contractual phases. Essentially, all contracts and advertising messages must specify that the credit has a cost, even in zero-interest transactions”. There will therefore be greater obligations in advertising communications, “as well as in creditworthiness assessments, because intermediaries will be required to carry out more checks on those receiving the credit, in accordance with what the directive defines as ‘creditworthiness assessment in the specific interest of the consumer’, thereby safeguarding against the risk of over-indebtedness’.

To date, the impact of ‘buy now, pay later’ schemes is not therefore reflected in Assofin’s statistics, but the indications emerging from the sector are in line with broader trends in consumer credit. Indeed, as we have seen, whilst 10 per cent of those taking out a loan do so for travel or holiday purposes, a similar trend has also been highlighted in recent days by Confcooperative Research Centre: at least 2 in 10 Italians finance their holidays through ‘buy now, pay later’ schemes. A tool that, in just a few years, has gone from being a niche service to becoming widespread practice. According to the Research Centre, credit granted via BNPL has grown by 127 per cent over the last three years, marking a 23 per cent increase in the last year alone.