These are the largest banks in Bulgaria by assets

The text is part of the larger RATE project, in which we present rankings of the leading companies in various sectors of the Bulgarian economy, analyze the dynamics in the relevant industries and present market trends - research, analysis.

In 2024, banks in Bulgaria reported double-digit growth in their assets, with their total value exceeding BGN 195 billion (or about 100 billion euros). The amount approaches the size of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), which emphasizes the stability and importance of the banking sector for the Bulgarian economy.

A key factor behind the nearly 12 percent growth in assets reported is the acceleration of credit expansion, especially in mortgage and consumer loans. An additional stimulus is the democratization of finance, driven by the digitalization of services, which further facilitates access to financing.

Leading banks in terms of assets

Data from the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) showed that United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) remains the leader in terms of assets in 2024. It took the top position in the second quarter of 2023, after the merger with KBC Bank – the successor to Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria – was finalized. UBB consolidated its leadership position, reporting a 10% annual growth in assets to 19.2 billion euros.

The second position this year belongs to DSK Bank, whose assets increased by over 11% to 18.6 billion euros. Although it is still behind the leader, compared to the previous year, DSK, which is a subsidiary of the Hungarian OTP Bank, has managed to shrink the difference by nearly 150 million euros.

In third position this year is UniCredit Bulbank, which used to be the largest bank in Bulgaria for decades before losing that crown in 2022. At the end of 2024, its assets were estimated at 17.84 billion euros and grew by 8.6% per year.

Thus, the assets of the three largest banks in Bulgaria are already approaching 55.7 billion euros – over 56% of the total assets of the sector (98 billion euros) and over 50% of the value of the entire Bulgarian economy in 2024 (103 billion euros according to preliminary data).

The fourth largest bank by assets is Postbank. It also reported the largest increase among all banks - over 16% to 11.5 billion euros. The data shows that the growth is driven by the steady increase in consumer and corporate loans.

In fifth place is the largest bank with predominantly Bulgarian ownership – First Investment Bank (FIB) – with assets worth 8 billion euros.

The banks in the Top 5 manage assets that are estimated at nearly 77% of the entire banking system and 73% of the country's economy.

Central Cooperative Bank (CCB) occupies sixth position with assets of 4.6 billion euros. Seventh place goes to ProCredit Bank, which reports one of the largest growth rates for the year in the business segment.  

Allianz Bank occupies the eighth position. The only shift in the top 10, compared to the previous year, is represented by tbi bank. It managed to attract significant attention and business thanks to its higher deposit interest rates - a policy that helped it to garner resources with which to accelerate its lending services.

Thanks to this approach, at the end of 2023, tbi bank entered the top 10 in terms of assets in Bulgaria, and at the end of 2024, it took the ninth place with assets of 1.78 billion euros.

The last bank in the top 10, Investbank, is another one with majority Bulgarian ownership and a focus on corporate lending. It also holds assets worth 1.78 billion euros.

Translated by Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov