Overview
- Mid‑2026 data show about 20.6–21.0 million Argentines carry debt, roughly 5.6–5.9 million are over 90 days past due, and about 3.5 million have been unpaid for more than a year.
- Arrears are concentrated in personal loans and credit cards, with irregularity rates near 16% for personal loans and 12% for cards while mortgages remain low.
- The surge traces to a May 2024–Oct 2025 lending boom when banks more than doubled real peso loans and many were issued at very high nominal rates, which pushed monthly payments far above household incomes.
- Banks, fintechs and retail lenders have started restricting new credit and many borrowers are moving into high‑risk or 'irrecuperable' categories, leaving millions effectively excluded from fresh financing.
- Analysts warn that recent government use of short‑term rates to defend the peso increases the chance of episodic liquidity stress before the 2027 vote and that reported mora may only improve later if large-scale refinancings are recorded under current BCRA rules.