German banks followed stricter guidelines for corporate lending in the last quarter of 2022. This is shown by the current “Bank Lending Survey” published by the Bundesbank. The reason for this is the increased credit risk in all segments, according to the banks. This is caused, among other things, by the poorer economic situation, for example due to the Ukraine war, and increased energy costs.
In line with this, the banks have also tightened their conditions: the margins have widened. According to the report, the reason for this is also the ratio of non-performing loans (NPL). For the first half of this year, the banks surveyed assume that the NPL ratio will have an even stronger restrictive influence on banks’ lending policies.
The most recent Treasurer Panel from November 2022 also showed that financing has now become a concern for treasurers. Almost 60 percent of those surveyed stated that their financing conditions had deteriorated in the past three months.
