December saw a slight decline in the corporate loan portfolio, which decreased by 0.2% due to large repayments in foreign currency. Despite this, corporate lending grew by 17.9% throughout 2024, a figure comparable to that of 2023. Over half of this growth was attributed to sectors less affected by interest rate increases, such as investment projects and housing construction.
Unsecured consumer lending fell by 1.9%, influenced by macroprudential requirements and higher interest rates. Nonetheless, these loans showed an annual gain of 11.2% by the end of 2024, driven by rapid growth during spring and summer.
Mortgage lending experienced a moderate monthly increase of 0.4%, with subsidised mortgages making up more than 80% of new loans. The annual growth slowed to 13.4%, considerably lower than in 2023 when the market was heated by extensive government-subsidised mortgage programs. The volume of loans issued in 2024 was similar to that in both 2020 and 2022.
Household funds with banks increased significantly by 7.2% in December due to advance payments of social benefits like pensions and child benefits, along with annual bonuses. By year-end, household funds rose by 26.1%, aided by increasing household income and high deposit rates.
The banking sector's net profits saw a steep drop to ₽187 billion in December due to losses from foreign exchange revaluation and higher operating expenses. For the year, banks earned ₽3.8 trillion (excluding subsidiaries’ revenues). After accounting for negative securities revaluation recognized directly in equity, the aggregate financial performance declined to ₽3.4 trillion.
Further information can be found in the analytical material titled "Russian Banking Sector Development in December 2024."