The aggregated profits of Romanian banks increased by 5.5% y\/y to RON 3.9 billion (EUR 748 million) in Q2, after the 9.3% y\/y decline in Q1 – resulting in a marginal nominal drop of 1.9% y\/y (to RON 7.3 billion or EUR 1.4 billion) for the entire first half of the year. The profitability ratios improved compared to Q1, but remained the second-weakest in four years along a downward trend that remains in the robust profitability range, however.<\/p>\n
The banking system\u2019s assets rose by 9.7% y\/y to RON 981 billion (EUR 187 billion) at the end of June. The banking assets to GDP ratio has hovered around 50% historically, remaining below the benchmark in recent years, indicating rather modest financial intermediation.<\/p>\n
Despite the nominal stability of the banking system\u2019s profits, the profitability ratios remain the weakest in four years except for the first quarter. Annualised return on assets (ROA) was 1.5% in H1, up from 1.4% in Q1 but below 1.68% in 2024-2025 and 1.8% in 2023. The annualised return on equity (ROE) similarly improved to 15.5% in H1, from 14.1% in Q1 \u2013 while lagging below 17.6% in 2925, 18.4% in 2024 and 20.1% in 2023.<\/p>\n
The non-performing loan (NPL) ratio edged up to 2.9% at the end of June from 2.8% at the end of March, hitting the upper limit of the narrow 2.5%-2.9% band where it remained for the past three years. The moderate deterioration is consistent with the economic slowdown but remains within the manageable region.<\/p>\n