Key financial highlights
• 9Μ24 Group core PAT at c€1b (+15% yoy), supported by resilient NII and strong fee income
o 3Q24 NII marginally higher qoq despite lowering Euribor rates (-c40bps since their peak in 4Q23), supported by higher average loan volumes and income from securities, improving deposit mix, and the successful MREL bond refinancing. Thus, 9M24 NII reached €1.8b (+9% yoy), while NIM stood at a solid 322bps, remaining relatively stable during the year
o Fee income growth continued in 3Q24 (+2% qoq), with the 9M24 yoy increase by +14%, driven by the retail business (+17% yoy), while corporate fees were also up by +8% yoy, benefiting from loan origination fees
o Operating expense discipline continued in 3Q24, driving the 9M24 OpEx +4% higher yoy, normalizing for variable pay accruals¹, while 9M24 C:CI remained at c30%, well inside our FY24 target of <33%
o CoR at 52bps in 3Q24 (54bps in 9M24) reflecting favorable asset quality trends, also well inside our FY24 guidance of <60bps
o Core RoTE of 17.5% in 9M24 (before adjusting for excess capital)
• Well capitalized and highly liquid Balance Sheet remains a key comparative advantage
o Loan expansion in 9M24 stood at nearly +€1b ytd, reflecting corporate disbursements of over €4b in 9M24 (+15% yoy), while retail maintained a positive momentum (disbursements of over €1b in 9M24)
o Our strong corporate pipeline of over €2b, following corporate new origination of c€1b in October, gives us confidence towards comfortably exceeding the FY24 loan expansion target of +€1.5b
o Exposure to fixed rate assets provides an additional hedge against lowering rates, while our high net cash position supports the NII and NIM, reflecting another comparative advantage of NBG. At the same time, our deposit mix keeps shifting in favor of low-cost core deposits
• Favorable asset quality trends
o Lack of NPE flows in 3Q24 allowed for further normalization in CoR
o NPE stock at €1.2b; NPE coverage at 86%, S3 coverage at 52%, S2 exposure at €2.4b, S2 coverage at 8%
o Our FNPE stock comprises a significant amount of <30dpd exposures (FNPEs <30dpd at €0.3b)
• CET12 at 18.7%, total capital ratio2 at 21.5%
o Strong profitability pushes CET1 ratio2 higher ytd to 18.7% in 9M24, including an accrual for a 40% payout in 2025 out of 2024 profits; Total Capital ratio2 at 21.5%, up by +c130bps ytd
o MREL ratio2 at 26.6%, exceeding the Jan25 requirement of 25.3% by 130bps
• Our Transformation Program is a competitive advantage, supporting rapid and focused change
o We focus on enhancing revenue generation, sales capacity and service quality in both our Corporate and Retail business. In Corporate, we have implemented a new centralized middle-office so as to improve time-to-market and introduced innovative offerings, e.g., acting as an intermediary between renewable energy producers and large industrial consumers of energy. In Retail, we continue to grow our market share in new loan disbursements, cards and investment products on the back of improvements to our service model for high-potential customers, and the launch of new products and embedded banking solutions
o We solidify our leading position in digital banking, with digital active users exceeding the 3m mark as of 3Q24 and cumulative digital sales reaching 1.5m units in September 2024 (market share in digital: cards 42%, consumer 34%, insurance 33%)
o We strengthen the efficiency of our operating model through simplification and optimization of key processes, while upgrading our technology infrastructure. Notably, the implementation of our new, cloud-native Core Banking System (CBS) remains on track, while we are already working on the introduction of GenAI use cases
o We continue to pursue our ESG business strategy with strong offerings for Corporate (e.g., transition financing) and Retail customers (e.g., home energy upgrades). Parallel to our commercial efforts, we are on track to meet requirements in line with CSRD/ ESRS reporting and EU Taxonomy adoption
“Growth in Greece remains strong, with GDP gaining momentum in 2Q24. Business has been leading activity so far, including sizable, fixed capital investment, with a strong labor market having followed suit. It is important to note that the solid fiscal performance results in further risk re-rating of the economy, increasing its attractiveness, despite the challenging external environment.
Our recent placement of a 10% stake of our share capital attracted strong and broad-based demand from high quality investors. The success of the transaction reflects the confidence investors have in the Greek economy, as well as in NBG’s strong fundamentals, clear strategy, and credibility in executing.
In 3Q24, we delivered a solid set of financial results, with our strong capital position and highly liquid balance sheet remaining key comparative advantages. Core PAT reached c€1b in 9M24, up by +15% yoy, tracking well with respect to the FY24 guidance. This performance was due to NII displaying resilience to lower market rates, as the impact was offset by strong loan volumes, with disbursements exceeding €5b in 9M24. The solid results also reflect mid-teens growth in fees as well as continued normalizing of credit risk charges, complemented by cost discipline.
Our very strong capital ratios kept increasing, with CET1 reaching 18.7%, while Total Capital ratio stood at 21.5%, up +130bps ytd, post a 40% accrual. Our strong organic capital generation provides us with significant strategic flexibility, including with regards to returning capital to our shareholders.
As we look into the future, our advanced investments in technology and our dedicated people remain at the heart of our strategy, enabling us to enhance efficiency and responsiveness in an ever-evolving market, and to deliver on customer experience. We remain dedicated to playing a pivotal role in supporting the Greek economy, as well as to actively invest in community development initiatives and sustainability projects that promote growth and stability.”
Pavlos Mylonas
Chief Executive Officer, NBG