Credito Emiliano (CE) Q1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Net profit reached €139.5 million, up 2.9% year-over-year, excluding the prior year's €93.7 million one-off gain from the merchant acquiring business sale.

• Operating income hit a five-quarter high, exceeding €500 million, reflecting strong business diversification and revenue growth, with a 5.8% YoY increase to €502.9 million.

• Customer loans grew 2.8% year-over-year to €36.4 billion, with notable expansion in consumer credit and residential mortgages.

• Over 51,000 new clients were acquired, and total customer funding reached €112.8 billion, up 8.4% YoY.

• Annualized ROE was 12.8% and ROTE 14.4%.

Financial highlights

• Net interest income increased 4.3% year-over-year to €244.4 million, despite a seasonal decline from the previous quarter.

• Non-interest margin reached €258.6 million, its highest since 2024, with core NIM up 9.5% year-over-year and non-interest margin up 7.2%.

• Operating costs rose 3.8% YoY to €243.6 million due to headcount and IT investments but declined sequentially; cost/income ratio improved to 48.4%.

• Gross operating profit was €259.3 million (+7.7% YoY); net operating profit €231.3 million (+8.0% YoY).

• CET1 ratio at the holding level stood at 16.24%, with a 770 bps buffer over SREP requirements.

Outlook and guidance

• Management expects continued resilience in profitability and asset quality, supported by strong capital and liquidity positions.

• Asset quality expected to remain strong, with cost of risk stable and no significant credit deterioration anticipated.

• Banking operations expected to cushion impacts from geopolitical tensions and energy price volatility, especially if disruptions are short-lived.

• Ongoing investments in digital transformation, IT infrastructure, and workforce expansion to support strategic positioning.

• ESG targets reaffirmed for short, medium, and long term.