Banks of the Spanish Banking Association (AEB) maintain loans amounting to 1.7 trillion, representing a 7.1% increase compared to the previous year and an all-time high. The growth of the credit balance in Spain was 5.5%. All this occurred in an environment marked by geopolitical events that contributed to an intense rise in inflation and the return to normalcy of central bank monetary policy.
Member entities redoubled their support for families and businesses with an increase in financing of 113,000 million euros, key to driving economic and social progress in the countries where they operate and develop their retail commercial banking model, characterized by the heavy weight of customer loans and deposits.
In the current context, AEB banks record increasing levels of highest-quality capital (CET1) with a ratio of 12.3%, well above regulatory and supervisory requirements. In stress tests, Spanish banks are among those that would lose the least capital in an adverse scenario.
Despite the complexity of the environment, the non-performing loan ratio remains at 3.4%, the lowest level since the financial crisis, with a coverage rate of 70%, near recent highs.
Consolidated profit for the year increased by 12.5% to 19,524 million. 42% of the pre-tax result comes from international activity. This improvement in results is due to the recurrence of the main margins, representative of typical banking activity, which supports structural costs, a significant increase in provisions for insolvency, and the growth of tax expenditure.
The efficiency ratio of 46.4% and a return on equity (ROE) of 10.95% are better than the European average. These metrics reinforce the sector’s capacity to provide credit and generate wealth and employment, while allowing it to remunerate its more than 5 million shareholders and pay taxes to contribute to the welfare state.
Thanks to their strength and social commitment, AEB banks have provided solutions to the challenges facing the country, with measures to improve care for the elderly or guarantee full financial inclusion in rural Spain, or with the agreement to alleviate the mortgage burden of households with the most difficulty facing the interest rate hikes decided by the European Central Bank.
Member entities face society’s major challenges from a position of strength, accompanying their clients in the digital transformation and energy transition.
