Erste Group Bank (EBS) Q2 2025 (Media) earnings summary

Executive summary

• Announced acquisition of a 49% stake in Santander Bank Polska, marking entry into Poland, the group's largest market to date, with 6 million customers and nearly 10,000 employees.

• Strong top-line performance led to a guidance upgrade, with net interest income and fees both rising year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter.

• Net profit for the first six months of 2025 reached EUR 1,665 million, up 2.2% year-over-year, with a 24% sequential increase in Q2 25.

• Operating expenses increased, mainly due to higher personnel, IT, marketing, and consulting costs.

• Risk costs remained moderate, with only a slight increase due to lower overlay releases.

Financial highlights

• Net interest income rose 2.7% year-over-year to EUR 3,786 million, with net fee income up 8.3% to EUR 1,542 million.

• Net profit for Q2 25 reached €921m, up 24% sequentially and 8.9% year-over-year.

• Operating income increased by 2.7% to EUR 5,668 million, while operating result slightly decreased by 0.4%.

• Cost/income ratio stood at 45.1% in Q2 25 and 47.7% for H1 2025.

• Total assets rose 2.1% to EUR 361.1 billion; customer loans and deposits both increased by over 2%.

Outlook and guidance

• 2025 guidance upgraded: loan growth >5%, NII >0%, fee growth >5%, cost increase ~5%, CIR <50%, risk costs ~20bps, ROTE >15%.

• CET1 ratio target raised to >18.25% ahead of Santander Polska consolidation; 2026 target confirmed at >14.25%.

• Dividend payout capped at up to 10% of net profit for 2025, with a return to usual policy planned thereafter.

• Risk cost guidance lowered to 20 basis points for the year, reflecting improved asset quality.

• Confident in achieving a CET1 ratio above 13.6% post-acquisition.