More corporate loan granted in Finland in August

The stock of corporate loans at banks operating in Finland grew during summer 2026, said the Bank of Finland in a release on Monday.

In August 2026, the stock of corporate loans granted by banks operating in Finland stood at EUR 66.3 billion, compared with EUR 62.2 billion in the corresponding period a year earlier.

In August, the annual change in the loan stock was 7.2%, as opposed to −0.2% in the corresponding period a year earlier.

During the summer, non-financial corporations drew down a large volume of new loans compared with 2025, and the corporate loan stock grew as a result.

In August 2026, non-financial corporations drew down new loans worth EUR 1.4 billion, which is 29% more than in the corresponding period a year earlier.

In June–August, non-financial corporations drew down a total of EUR 11.5 billion in new loans, which is 33% more than in summer last year.

Growth in corporate loans is in part explained by the pension reform that entered into force in July, which also affects the employee pension system.

Subsidiaries of employee pension institutions can use leverage in their real estate investments more extensively than before. In June 2026, too, non-financial corporations drew down a large volume of new loans (EUR 4.0 billion), which was 24% more than in the corresponding period a year earlier.

The average interest rate on new corporate loans rose in August 2026 from a year earlier. The average interest rate on new corporate loans drawn down in August was 4.39%, as opposed to 4.07% a year earlier.

The average interest rate on the corporate loan stock was 3.82% in August 2026, compared with 3.57% in the corresponding period a year earlier.

In August 2026, drawdowns of new housing loans by Finnish households amounted to EUR 1.1 billion, an increase of EUR 20 million compared with the corresponding period a year earlier.

Of the newly drawn housing loans, buy-to-let mortgages accounted for EUR 110 million. The average interest rate on new housing loans increased from July to 3.35% in August.

At the end of August 2026, the housing loan stock stood at EUR 105.4 billion and its annual growth rate was −0.3%.

Buy-to-let mortgages accounted for EUR 9.2 billion of the housing loan stock. At the end of August, Finnish households’ loan stock included EUR 17.4 billion of consumer credit and EUR 18.0 billion of other loans.

Finnish non-financial corporations (incl. housing corporations) drew down new loans worth EUR 1.8 billion in August, including EUR 440 million of loans to housing corporations.

The pension reform also affected new loan drawdowns by housing corporations and the growth rate of the loan stock.

The average interest rate on these new corporate loan drawdowns rose from July and stood at 4.21%. At the end of August, the stock of loans granted to Finnish non-financial corporations totalled EUR 113.3 billion, including EUR 47.0 billion of loans to housing corporations.