Croatian households owed banks €29.6 billion at the end of September 2026, with housing loans growing faster than deposits, according to Croatia Week.
Croatian households had accumulated €29.6 billion in bank loans by the end of September 2026, which is €2.9 billion more than a year earlier, according to Croatia Week, citing figures from the Croatian National Bank (HNB). Annual growth in household lending stood at 10.9%, compared with 11% at the end of June. Of the total, €15 billion were housing loans and €11.6 billion were cash and other non-purpose loans. Housing loans grew by 12.5% year-on-year, slightly slower than the 13% recorded in June. Cash loan growth accelerated from 9.2% to 10.2%, while other household loans slowed from 8.2% to 6.3%. Household deposits reached €43.9 billion at the end of September, up €2.2 billion, or 5.2%, on the year. Overnight deposits accounted for €34.1 billion and fixed-term deposits for €9.9 billion. Households therefore still hold considerably more in deposits than they owe in loans, although borrowing is growing at more than twice the pace of deposits. The HNB also reported that total loans to domestic sectors (households, businesses and the government) reached €53.9 billion. Loans to non-financial companies stood at €18.5 billion, up 9.7% year-on-year, while total domestic deposits rose 6.8% to €73.8 billion. According to Croatia Week, the figures suggest that credit demand in Croatia remains strong, particularly for housing and cash borrowing.