New Delhi, Jan. 29 -- Small enterprises continue to rely heavily on informal sources such as friends and moneylenders for small-ticket loans, primarily borrowings below Rs.50,000, highlighting persistent gaps in access to formal credit, the Economic Survey tabled in Parliament on Thursday showed.

The survey, citing analysis of data from the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) 2023-24, points to a sharp divergence in financing patterns by loan size for micro and unincorporated enterprises. Commercial banks are the biggest source of large loans (ticket size above Rs.1 lakh), accounting for 54% of outstanding loans.

By contrast, for loans below Rs.50,000, friends account for 42% of outstanding credit, followed by sup...