The usury rate in July will be 24.78% effective annual, according to the Colombian Financial Superintendency.
The Colombian Financial Superintendency established the current bank interest rate (IBR) applicable to consumer and ordinary loans at 16.52% annual effective rate. This rate will be in effect from July 1 to 31, 2025.
Thus, considering that the Usury Rate corresponds to the maximum limit allowed for remunerative or default interest that entities can charge participants in the economic system, and that it is calculated as 1.5 times the current bank interest rate depending on the type of credit, the rate was set at 24.78% effective annual percentage rate for the month of July. This represents a decrease of 77 basis points compared to the June rate, which was 25.55% effective annual percentage rate (EA).
The Usury Rate is calculated based on the current bank interest (CBI) , certified at 16.52% EA for consumer and regular loans, and then multiplied by 1.5. This process results in the maximum allowable rate of 24.78% EA for July.
Reference image. Photo: iStock
The reduction in the maximum rate implies an immediate decrease in the financial costs associated with products such as credit cards. This represents financial relief for users because the ceiling that banks can charge for credit transactions is lower, although not all institutions adjust their rates instantly.
However, the financial sector has expressed concerns about this scheme, stating that, while it protects consumers, it can also distort access to formal credit. Bankers from traditional, digital, and cooperative banks agree that such regulation can encourage the expansion of informal mechanisms, such as the "gota a gota" (drop-by-drop) scheme , by limiting institutions' ability to assume risk.
Certified rates for other types of credit 
. Photo: Archive. EL TIEMPO
Resolution 1254 of June 27 also established the current interest rates for various types of credit, which are effective from July 1 to 31, 2025:
- Higher productive credit: 27.73% EA
- Rural productive credit: 19.01% EA
- Urban productive credit: 38.04% EA
- Rural productive popular credit: 51.03% EA
- Urban productive popular credit: 59.65% EA
In recent months, the usury rate has shown a continuous downward trend: it was 25.97% in May, 25.55% in June, and reached 24.78% in July. This movement reflects adjustments in banks' lending rates, which, by lowering their average performance, allow the legal limit to also decrease, since the IBC is based on the average of these performances.
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