In the first quarter of 2026, total assets of credit institutions decreased by 1.2% from the end of 2025 and stood at EUR 90.0bn. Assets decreased in most credit institutions.
Total loans and advances fell from the end of 2025 by EUR 0.7bn or 1.0%. Highly liquid assets (assets with the central bank and other demand deposits) declined the most, while lending to households and non-financial corporations continued its upward path. Non-performing loans and advances (hereinafter referred to as ‘NPLs’) declined by 0.5%, influenced by the decrease in the portfolio of loans to non-financial corporations, with a slight increase in the portfolio of loans to households.
The share of NPLs in total loans and advances at the end of March 2026 remained unchanged from the end of 2025, at 2.3%. The quality of loans to non-financial corporations continued to improve, with the share of NPLs going down from 3.7% to 3.4%. The share of NPLs in the household sector held steady at 3.3%.
The profit of credit institutions grew by 12.0% from March 2025, entirely due to the one-off effect of the income generated by the sale of equity holdings in one bank. As a result, profitability indicators increased: return on assets (ROA) to 1.9% and return on equity (ROE) to 17.2%.
The key indicators of banking system capitalisation remained high, with the total capital ratio edging down from 22.9% to 22.5%. All credit institutions had total capital ratios in excess of the prescribed minimum of 8%.
Banking system liquidity measured by the liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) was high. At the end of 2025, all credit institutions met the prescribed minimum liquidity requirement of 100%, with the average LCR standing at 199.7%.