Lending grows across all segments in March
The corporate portfolio of the banking sector increased by 1.8% after moderate 0.6% growth in February: companies’ high demand for loans may be associated with large tax payments.
According to preliminary data, mortgage growth sped up to +1.2% vs +0.8% in February. Growth was mostly observed in government subsidised mortgage loans. Family Mortgage remained the most popular programme. According to assessments, consumer lending increased faster — by 2.0% (vs 0.9% in January—February) amid high consumer activity and rising expenses.
An active inflow of household funds into banks is still observed (+1.9% vs +2.5% in February) with ruble-denominated time deposits growing the most. Such deposits remain popular owing to high interest rates. The value of corporate funds contracted by 1.6% after growth in February (+1.0%), driven by large tax payments.
The sector’s profit remained almost unchanged in March vs February amounting to ₽270 billion (the return on capital reached 22% in annualised terms) vs ₽275 billion in February.
More details are available in the information and analytical material Russian Banking Sector Development in March 2024.