Nicosia, Cyprus. The Central Bank of Cyprus said credit conditions for businesses and households remained stable in the fourth quarter of 2025, despite a significant increase in demand for residential and consumer loans.
Survey findings on lending criteria
The Central Bank of Cyprus said its January 2026 Bank Lending Survey found that lending criteria for all categories remained unchanged during the final three months of 2025.
Criteria for loans to enterprises have remained at their strictest levels since the second quarter of 2024. For households, credit standards have stayed at the tightest levels reached in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The bank said underlying factors related to credit standards across all categories had a neutral impact during the quarter under review.
Central bank note on survey responses
“The results reflect the perceptions and expectations of the participating banks and do not reflect any perceptions, expectations or estimates of the Central Bank of Cyprus,” the report said.
Loan conditions and terms
The bank said overall credit conditions and terms for new loans or credit lines to businesses and households remained unchanged in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared with the previous three months.
For enterprises, terms were stable overall, although the survey recorded a continued decrease in interest rates for new business loans and in bank margins for standard lending. The easing in specific terms was attributed to competitive pressures from other banking institutions and a perception of reduced risk regarding the general economic situation and outlook.
For households, both individual terms and the factors shaping overall conditions for new housing and consumer loans had a neutral effect during the period.
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