Loans provided to businesses increased by 1.2% in number and 19.3% in value in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year, the financial sector federation Febelfin reported on Tuesday.
Febelfin attributed this spike to a single bank granting significant lines of credit in the first quarter of 2025.
As at the end of March 2025, the total value of loans used by businesses, including commitment loans, stood at €195.9 billion, marking a 3.0% increase year-on-year.
The rate of loan refusals was slightly higher in the first quarter of 2025 than in the corresponding period in the previous two years, but it was still low, according to the federation.
Business loan applications decreased by 8.2% in the first quarter compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
