Bank lending in Montenegro reached EUR 5.892 billion at the end of August 2026, up 9.8% year on year, the Central Bank of Montenegro reported. The regulator assessed aggregate systemic risk as moderate, while preparing additional safeguards for borrowers.
The central bank’s latest macroprudential assessment said strong lending supports consumption, home purchases and business investment. Banking-sector assets stood at EUR 8.331 billion at the end of August, up 7% from a year earlier, while capital rose 12.9% to EUR 1.111 billion. The figures indicate continued financial intermediation and a solid balance-sheet base.
At the end of June, household credit had increased 17.8% year on year and lending to non-financial companies had grown 14.5%, according to the assessment, released on 3 November. Mid-year indicators included a total capital adequacy ratio of 21.1%, non-performing loans equal to 2.5% of loans and deposits of about EUR 6 billion.
The regulator has kept its countercyclical capital buffer at 1% and is preparing broader borrower-based safeguards for January 2027. The measures are designed to address excessive payment-to-income burdens, loan-to-value ratios and loan maturities.
The safeguards could affect household borrowing decisions and residential mortgage underwriting, but the assessment did not indicate an immediate banking crisis. It warned that credit growth could become a vulnerability if wage growth lags inflation or asset prices reverse. Banks will focus on debt-service affordability, property-collateral assumptions and the mix of new loans as regulators assess whether existing cushions remain proportionate to credit expansion.
