Cypriots put just over €4 billion in bank deposits in 2025, more than the €3.85 billion they managed to save in 2024, despite deposit interest rates being the lowest in the eurozone.
In an era when deposit rates are particularly low and returns are meagre, banks continue collecting money from the market, significantly raising their liquidity.
Central Bank data for December 2025 reflects what happens each month—deposits increasing significantly. The figures show total deposits in December 2025 recorded a net increase of €877.1 million, compared to a net increase of €330.6 million in November and €977 million in December 2024.
The Central Bank clarified in its announcement that the size of the December deposit increase was affected by seasonal factors. Seasonal factors may include the payment of the 13th salary to employees and pensioners, which as expected raises the deposit balance and creates a positive environment for saving.
Cyprus residents’ deposits in December increased by €948.3 million, of which €622 million belongs to households, €51.2 million to businesses and €157.5 million to general government deposits.
The large flow of deposits resulted in the annual rate of change reaching 6.5%, compared to 6.7% in November 2025 and remaining at the same level of 6.6% as December 2024. The total deposits balance in December 2025 reached €58.7 billion.
Loan disbursement
Banking logic dictates that with the increase in deposits, the necessary “stock” is created to boost lending, and bank managements emphasise at every opportunity that they want to increase lending significantly.
The data shows total loans in December 2025 recorded a net increase of €587.2 million, compared to a net increase of €71.5 million in November 2025.
The overall picture shows loans given in 2025 amount to €2.78 billion. However, the Central Bank data does not separate net new loans from loans that resulted from renegotiation of loan agreement terms.
The annual rate of change for total loans reached 10.7%, compared to 10.5% in November 2025 and 2.8% in December 2024. The total loans balance in December 2025 reached €27.1 billion.
Cyprus residents’ loans showed an increase of €250.5 million. More specifically, loans to households and non-financial companies increased by €113.0 million and €150.1 million respectively. Loans to other domestic sectors showed a total decrease of €12.6 million.
An important element based on European Central Bank analyses: Cypriot banks (latest available data for the second quarter of 2025) have the lowest loan-to-deposit ratio in Europe, at 50.3%, followed by the Greek system with 60.4%.