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India’s banking system has never looked healthier on paper. The Reserve Bank of India’s Financial Stability Report released in June 2026 placed the gross non-performing asset (GNPA) ratio of scheduled commercial banks at 1.8% as of March 2026 — a multi-decadal low — with capital adequacy at 17.7% and stress tests showing banks comfortably above regulatory thresholds even under severe scenarios.
Yet behind that headline number sits a very different reality for the individual borrower. The same report flagged that fresh accretions to NPAs are trending higher and that write-offs are growing meaning accounts are still being classified, still being handed 13(2) notices under the SARFAESI Act, and still being auctioned. A low system-wide ratio does not help a family whose home is listed under Rule 8(6), or an MSME promoter whose personal guarantee has been invoked.
It is precisely this gap that NPA Experts — India’s dedicated NPA resolution and stressed-asset advisory platform announced today it is scaling to close, with expanded coverage across 35+ cities, 16+ banks and every major DRT bench in the country.
“The system recovered. Individual borrowers did not.”
“India solved its bank balance-sheet problem. It has not solved its borrower problem,” said Sharad Wardhan, Chartered Accountant, former Deputy Vice President (Banking) and Managing Director of NPA Experts. “A 1.8% GNPA ratio means the banking system is strong enough to negotiate. Banks today have the provisioning cushion and the profitability to approve sensible settlements. The tragedy is that most borrowers walk into that conversation unprepared, quote a number with no evidentiary basis, and get rejected by the OTS committee often permanently damaging their negotiating position.”
Wardhan notes that outcomes in One Time Settlement cases are rarely about desperation and almost always about documentation. “An OTS proposal is not a request for mercy. It is a commercial submission benchmarked against realisable security value, ageing bucket, recovery cost and the lender’s own board-approved policy. When it is built that way, sanction rates change dramatically.”
The 60-day window most borrowers miss
The single most common and most expensive mistake, according to the firm’s case data, is the lapse of the statutory representation window. Borrowers who receive a Section 13(2) demand notice have 60 days to file a written representation under Section 13(3A) of the SARFAESI Act. Once that window closes and the lender proceeds to symbolic or physical possession under Section 13(4), the borrower’s remaining route is a Securitisation Application before the Debts Recovery Tribunal under Section 17 slower, costlier and considerably harder to win.
“Most people spend those 60 days hoping the problem goes away, or waiting for a relative’s advice,” Wardhan said. “By the time they reach us, we are not negotiating a settlement — we are contesting a possession. Those are very different fights, with very different price tags.”
To address this, NPA Experts has made a set of diagnostic tools freely available to borrowers, including a SARFAESI timeline calculator that maps every statutory deadline from the date of the 13(2) notice, an OTS eligibility checker, and an indicative settlement-range calculator.
A six-stage resolution framework
NPA Experts operates a defined six-stage engagement model — confidential case review, document assessment, strategy planning, structured negotiation with bank/NBFC/ARC committees, settlement sanction, and closure with No-Dues Certificate and credit-bureau follow-through.
The platform’s advisory bench combines senior ex-bankers, chartered accountants and empanelled tribunal counsel practising before DRT, DRAT and High Courts. Coverage spans public-sector banks including SBI, PNB, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India and Indian Bank; private lenders including HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Kotak; and leading NBFCs and asset reconstruction companies.
Six resolution tracks are offered: NPA settlement, loan settlement, One Time Settlement, SARFAESI defence, DRT representation and loan restructuring — with the firm emphasising that restructuring, not settlement, is frequently the correct answer for a still-viable business.
“Settlement closes an account at a discount but marks the credit file as ‘Settled’,” Wardhan said. “Restructuring keeps the borrower alive on revised terms. A good advisor tells you which one you actually need — including when the honest answer is that you should not settle at all.”
Transparency on fees and on credit impact
The firm has publicly committed to accepting no commissions from banks, NBFCs or ARCs, positioning itself strictly on the borrower’s side of the table, with case-specific fees quoted upfront after a free review. It also publishes candid guidance on post-settlement credit impact — that settled accounts are reported as ‘Settled’ rather than ‘Closed’ and typically require 24–36 months of disciplined rebuilding.
“Anyone promising an instant CIBIL fix after a settlement is selling something,” Wardhan said. “What we can promise is a clean closure letter, a No-Dues Certificate, and a documented path back.”
About NPA Experts
NPA Experts is an independent, India-wide advisory platform for the resolution of non-performing assets and stressed loans. Operating under the principle Resolve Today, Grow Tomorrow, the firm advises individuals, MSMEs, companies, guarantors and property owners on NPA settlement, loan settlement, One Time Settlement (OTS), SARFAESI defence, DRT and DRAT representation, loan restructuring, ARC negotiation and distressed-asset resolution. It also runs dedicated institutional workflows for banks, NBFCs, ARCs, investors and law firms managing stressed books. All engagements are handled under strict confidentiality.
Learn more at https://npaexperts.in
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NPA Experts Phone: +91 98782 49029
Website: https://npaexperts.in