Credit on record high: Banks report strong growth!

Credit on record high: Banks report strong growth!

Vienna, Österreich - The first Group recorded a remarkable increase in lending in 2024. The loan volume rose by 4.9 percent to an impressive 218.1 billion euros, mainly due to increasing customer demand. The deposits also increased by 3.8 percent to 241.7 billion euros. These developments resulted in an increase in interest surplus by 4.2 percent to 7.5 billion euros, while the commission surplus climbed by 11.3 percent to EUR 2.9 billion. Nevertheless, the bank emphasizes that the quota of the needy loans (NPL) has slightly increased from 2.3 percent in the previous year to 2.6 percent, which is considered in the context of expectations, as the First Group reported.

In the context of the entire banking landscape, the banking barometer 2024 shows that the mortgage claims with a share of 37.8 percent represent the largest asset position in Swiss banks, which shows a new increase. The mortgage claims increased by CHF 25.7 billion compared to the previous year, while the liquid funds also grow by 2.4 percent, which represents stabilization compared to the significant decline in the previous year. Despite slow growth due to higher interest rates, real estate demand remains strong. This trend is borne by the expectation that the proportion of mortgage claims in the total active of the banks, despite the balance sheet-technical changes, will continuously increase, as the evaluation of the Bankenbarometer

credit growth and liquidity adjustments

The Credit Suisse may have had a higher liquidity requirement at the beginning of the year, which contributed to stabilizing the liquid means. The invoice shows that the claims towards customers decreased by CHF 77.4 billion (–13.8%), mainly abroad. This could be in the context of corporate changes after taking over the Credit Suisse. While the declines in domestic banks were moderate, the large banks showed clearer decreases, which can be attributed to the targeted reduction of claims and risk adjustments.

Overall, it can be seen that both the first Group and the banking barometer 2024 report on continuing growth in the lending business, even if there are challenges due to rising interest rates and market unconcursions. The expectations for 2025 are optimistic, with a loan growth of around 5 percent in the first group and a stable real estate market in Switzerland, which connects both markets and indicates a persistently strong demand.