The Indian market for unsecured and secured loans including credit cards has exploded over the last seven years. Access to low cost loans has fueled the growth in consumer spending but has also resulted in "exuberance" and resulted in rising defaults.
As more consumers traverse the rocky path of increasing interest rates and as newer customers enter the credit fold there is an ever growing need for education and advise at the right time!
A movement that has gathered momentum are Internet based communities that facilitate members to exchange notes and also advise on how loans should be managed and repaid in effective manners. Wesabe offers both a forum and a set of tools that help customers make better financial decisions!
This leads us to another question/ opportunity? Perhaps there is an opportunity for lending institutions to play a consultative / advisory role in guiding clients on the quantum of loans that they should take?
Your views?..........................
If the high interest rates throttle your dreams for that new LCD TV or the holiday in Goa ( as you await your bonus of course!), then make way for Peer to Peer (P2P) Lending.
Yes its back to the good old days when chaps in your community, this time on the Internet, can actually bid to lend you money!
The rates would be lower for you of course vis a vis the mainline banks, and the lenders too can make more money than in a classical bank deposit.
This phenomenon has also been used to a good cause , check out kiva.org 
So, is it goodbye to banks and financial institutions...may be not just yet..... :)