MADRID, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Spain's Bankinter said on Thursday its fourth-quarter net profit rose 25% from the same period in 2024, helped by a rise in fees. The country's fifth-largest bank by market
Bankinter sees 2026 lending income recovering helped by rising loans
Bankinter's Financial Outlook for 2026
By Jesús Aguado
Fourth-Quarter Performance
MADRID, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Spanish lender Bankinter said on Thursday it expects lending income to grow in 2026, helped by a rise in loans and "solid economic growth" in its main geographies after it declined last year under pressure from low interest rates.
Market Reactions and Analyst Insights
Spanish banks have benefited from higher costs of loans tied mostly to variable rates. But cuts in European Central Bank interest rates have been squeezing margins.
Future Projections for Lending
FOURTH-QUARTER NET INTEREST INCOME RISES
Spain's fifth-largest bank by market value reported net interest income - earnings on loans minus deposit costs - fell 1.8% in 2025 to 2.24 billion euros, broadly in line with forecasts. Fourth-quarter net interest income rose 4% year-on-year to 570 million euros, ahead of the 566 million euros analysts expected.
However, Bankinter shares were down 1.8% at 0951 GMT, signalling apparent market disappointment that the bank did not provide a more specific income forecast for this year.
The bank's Chief Financial Officer Jacobo Diaz, said he expected growth "across all segments (...) as volumes are expected to grow at similar levels as in 2025, this means lending volumes near single-digit growth."
Diaz expected customer margins to recover, though Nuria Alvarez, analyst at Madrid-based broker Renta 4, said "it is unclear whether this can support the growth of net interest income beyond volumes."
In the quarter, Bankinter's customer spreads, the difference between the interest a bank pays on deposits and the interest it charges on loans, fell to 2.61% from 2.65%, as yields on loans declined by 1 basis point, while deposit costs rose 3 bps.
Net profit in the quarter rose 25% to 278 million euros, above the 272 million euros expected by analysts, boosted by an 11% increase in fees. For the whole of 2025, net profit rose 14% to 1.09 billion euros compared to analysts' forecasts of 1.08 billion euros after loan volumes rose 5%.
($1 = 0.8557 euros)
(Reporting by Jesús Aguado; additional reporting by Emma Pinedo; editing by David Latona and Tomasz Janowski)
