Average interest rates for families rose 7 percentage points (pp) in 2025, reaching 60.1% per year in December, according to Monetary and Credit Statistics, released this Thursday (29), by the Central Bank (BC). The highlight is the greater share of the revolving credit card portfolio, whose operations operate with higher interest rates than the segment average.
Despite a decline of 13.6 pp in the year, the average revolving rate reached 438% per year.
Even with the limitation of collection of revolving interest ─ in force since January 2024 ─ interest rates continue to vary. This is because the measure aims to reduce debt, but does not affect the interest rate agreed upon when taking out the credit.
Revolving credit lasts 30 days and is taken by the consumer when they pay less than the full amount of the credit card bill, paying the minimum installment, for example. In other words, you take out a loan and start paying interest on the amount you were unable to repay.
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After 30 days, financial institutions pay the credit card debt in installments, using the installment card method. In this case, the increase in interest rates was also significant in 2025, of 17.9 pp, reaching 189% per year.
Another highlight was the 13.4 pp increase in non-conducted personal credit contracts, which rose to 116.8% per year.
In the case of operations with companies, the average rate stood at 25% per year at the end of 2025, an increase of 3.3 pp in the year. The highlight is the increase of 30.6 pp in working capital with a term of up to 365 days, reaching 50.3% per year, and 24.7 pp in special checks, reaching 355.7% per year.
These are the free credit rates, that is, banks have the autonomy to lend money raised in the market and define the interest rates charged to customers. Directed credit ─ with rules defined by the government ─ is basically intended for the housing, rural, infrastructure and microcredit sectors.
In the case of targeted credit, the rate for individuals was 11.2% per year and at the end of 2025, an increase of 1 pp per year. For companies, the rate remained stable during the year, at 12.2% per year.
Rising interest rates
As a result, considering free and earmarked resources for families and companies, the average interest rate for credit concessions reached December 2025 with an increase of 3.9 pp, reaching 32.4% per year.
As expected, the rise in bank interest rates follows the cycle of increasing the economy’s basic interest rate, the Selic, set at 15% per year by the BC Monetary Policy Committee (Copom). Selic is the main instrument used by the Central Bank to control inflation.
By increasing the rate, the BC aims to cool demand and contain inflation, because higher interest rates make credit more expensive and encourage savings, causing people to consume less and prices to rise less. The basic interest rate is at its highest level since July 2006, recorded at 15.25% per year.
THE spread banking interest rates stood at 21.4 pp, an increase of 3.9 pp in 2025, after a decrease of 1.9 pp in 2024. It measures the difference between the cost of raising funds by banks and the average rates charged to customers. THE spread It is a margin that covers operational costs, default risks, taxes and other expenses and thus results in banks’ profits.
Balance slowdown
In 2025, credit concessions reached R$786.4 billion, an increase of 9.1% in the year, showing a slowdown compared to 2024, when they increased 15.5%.
As a result, the stock of all loans granted by banks in the National Financial System (SFN) stood at R$7.122 trillion, a growth of 10.2% in 2025, with a deceleration compared to 2024, when it increased by 11.5%. The slowdown in credit expansion in 2025 occurred both in the segment for legal entities (8.1% in 2025, compared to 9.9% in 2024), and in that intended for individuals (11.6% compared to 12.6% in the same comparative periods).
Credit portfolios for legal entities and families, respectively, closed 2024 with balances of R$2.699 trillion and R$4.423 trillion, in the same order.
Credit extended to the non-financial sector ─ which is the credit available to companies, families and governments, regardless of the source (banking, securities market or external debt) ─ reached R$ 20.790 trillion, an increase of 11.4% in the month, reflecting increases of 19.1% in public debt securities and 10% in SFN loans.
Family debt
According to the Central Bank, defaults ─ delays over 90 days ─ were 4.1% in December, an increase of 1.1 pp compared to the end of 2024. In the business segment, the default rate stood at 2.5%, after an increase of 0.5 pp in the year. In family credit, default increased by 1.5 pp in the year, reaching 5%.
Household indebtedness ─ the relationship between the balance of debts and income accumulated over 12 months ─ stood at 49.8% in November, increase of 0.5 pp in the month and 1.5 pp in 12 months. Excluding real estate financing, which takes up a considerable amount of income, debt was 31.3% in the penultimate month of the year.
Income commitment ─ the relationship between the average value for paying debts and the average income calculated in the period ─ was 29.3% in November, with stability throughout the month and an increase of 2.2 pp in 12 months.
The last two indicators – debt and income commitment – are presented with a greater lag from the month of publication, as the Central Bank uses data from the National Household Sample Survey (Pnad), from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
