Czech bank Moneta's CEO expects higher interest rates, says loan growth has peaked (updated)

MONETA Money Bank

24/07/2026 11:46

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By Jan Lopatka

    PRAGUE, July 24 (Reuters) - The Czech central bank is likely to tighten its monetary policy fairly soon and, combined with higher longer-term interest rates, market developments mean that the pace of credit growth in the economy has peaked, Moneta Money Bank MONET.PR Chief Executive Tomas Spurny said on Friday.
Commenting on the bank's first-half earnings, Spurny told Reuters and Bloomberg the bank had come near its full-year target for capital build-up and would take its customary look after this quarter at a potential distribution to investors, but stressed he was not making any commitments.
Moneta reported a 1.76 billion crown ($83.02 million) net profit for the second quarter, above a Reuters poll forecast of 1.71 billion crowns, and raised its full-year guidance by 200 million crowns to 6.8 billion. 
Spurny said in an online interview that the country would have to get used to higher interest rates due to the ongoing normalisation of markets from an era of low credit costs, along with inflation pressures from wages but also increased government borrowing.
"I'm convinced that we will live with higher interest rates in the foreseeable future even if the Middle East conflict is somehow resolved," he said.

        "We've increased mortgage rates this week to reflect the market reality, yields on government bonds, and the cost of money."
Higher rates would cool growth in real estate prices especially in Prague and other prime locations, he said.
He said he saw an 80% chance of the central bank adding another 25 basis-point hike to the previous move in June in a "fairly short timeframe".

        Overall lending growth, a factor for central bankers, has been accelerating with credit expansion to the private sector of 9.5% year-on-year in May, according to central bank data, but Spurny said it had peaked.
"If you believe the yield curve will further shift upwards, which is very likely, then it will certainly impact the volume of new mortgages," Spurny said.

           
  

        ($1 = 21.1990 Czech crowns)

 (Reporting by Jan Lopatka; Editing by Susan Fenton)
 ((jan.lopatka@thomsonreuters.com; +420 234 721 614; Reuters Messaging: jan.lopatka.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))