mumbai the goal loan market which witnessed annual growth rates of between 70 and 90 during the last two fiscals is expected to witness a much slower growth during the current year and may eventually settle at a rate of 20 over the long term regulatory restrictions on loantovalue limits and restrictions on banks lending to nonbanking finance companies nbfcs in the gold loan business are expected to have some moderating effect on the growth of the gold loan business in india a report by icra management consulting services imacs noted however nbfcs will continue to grow their portfolio faster than banks given their inherent advantages the report noted the recent regulatory restrictions will affect the returns on equity for nbfcs and will also lead to a slowdown in the movement of customers from the unorganised money lender segment to the organised nbfc sector in the gold loan market the imacs report said the 20112012 was a defining period for the gold loans segment as it witnessed a complex interplay of a mix of multiple factors related to demand supply and regulations which have to quite some extent transformed the growth competitive landscape and business dynamics of the segment which are expected to continue in the years to come the report said the strong growth in the sector prompted rbi to introduce a series of regulatory restrictions which were also aimed at limiting risks in the gold loan market the changes in the regulatory environment for the gold loans segment and its consequent impact on the relative operational and funding capabilities for banks and nbfcs should prompt all categories of lenders to redefine their growth plans for the segment the report said