Chilean Bad Debt Grew 22.1% in Q3, per Maat and ChileDeudas
Chilean delinquent debt grew 22.1% during the third quarter of 2026 compared to the previous period, driven largely by unpaid corporate obligations, according to a report by Maat and ChileDeudas. Nearly a quarter of the total unpaid amount now exceeds two years of antiquity, highlighting severe structural payment friction across the domestic market.
Corporate Versus Individual Debt Burdens
The third delinquency report revealed stark contrasts between companies and individual debtors. Businesses register average outstanding debts of close to 129 million pesos, whereas individual obligations average 4.08 million pesos.
The study also tracked a distinct shift toward older delinquent obligations. Debts carrying less than six months of antiquity dropped from 47.2% in the first quarter to 34.3% in the third. Meanwhile, balances overdue by more than two years climbed from 17.1% to 24.2% of the total recorded volume over the same timeframe.
Unemployment and High Interest Rates Stress Banking Sector
These figures arrive against a difficult macroeconomic backdrop defined by a national unemployment rate of 9.6% for the June-August moving quarter and a Monetary Policy Rate held at 4.5% through September. The Association of Banks and Financial Institutions, known as ABIF, warned in its ABIF Informa publication that commercial and consumer banking delinquency rates remain above pre-pandemic averages.
Matías Bernier, head of studies at ABIF, pointed to diminished economic activity and labor market slack as direct inhibitors of payment capacity. Comparing current metrics against the historical lows recorded in 2022 offers little representative value given the intervening economic contraction, Bernier noted.
Older Borrowers and Men Hold Most Delinquent Debt
Individual arrears show sharp demographic divides. Borrowers aged 45 to 54 carry the highest average delinquent debt at 6.65 million pesos, followed by adults aged 65 and older at 4.83 million pesos. Guillermo Figueroa, director of ChileDeudas, cautioned that the debt burden among seniors represents a profound social crisis rather than a purely financial metric, given that obligations routinely dwarf pension incomes.
Gender disparities remain equally pronounced within individual consumer portfolios. Men account for 79% of the total delinquent debt volume among natural persons, while women represent 20%. Among young adults aged 18 to 24, male average debt exceeds female figures by 5.2 times. By nationality, Chilean citizens account for 91.4% of the delinquent volume, while foreign nationals represent 7.7%, ticking up two percentage points from the prior quarter.