Trust in youngsters nowadays and personalized financial planning

‒    12 ZBOR hubs opened in Constanța, Iași, Cluj, Brașov, Ploiești, Târgu Jiu, Baia Mare, Vaslui,  Timișoara, Craiova and Bucharest (Academy for Economic Studies and Polytechnic University). Just one and a half years after its launch, ZBOR ecosystem has reached over 120,000 young people nationwide, with more than 5,500 activities and events created specifically for them.

‒    More than 3 million Romanians educated through BCR's financial education programs – Money School and Financial Coaching

‒    Over 1.9 million people benefited from a personalized financial plan through Financial Coaching, of which 175,000 in Q1 2026 alone. At the same time, the George Benefits Program, Romania’s first banking loyalty program, is available to 1.86 million BCR clients. Structured across 5 benefit levels – Go, Advanced, Pro, Max, and Max Invest – the program encourages responsible financial behaviour by supporting portfolio diversification and reducing banking costs.

‒    To date, more than 1.4 million BCR clients have received discounts through the George Benefits Programme, of which over 470,000 customers accessed loans and deposits at preferential interest rates. Financial planning is a key pillar of the programme, and by the end of Q1 2026, over 640,000 clients set a financial goal, actively working towards achieving it through tailored protection and savings solutions.

‒    In the past 10 years, more than 1 million children, teenagers, young people and adults have participated in Școala de Bani courses and projects, including over 64,000 in Q1 2026 alone. In addition, during Global Money Week, BCR mobilised Romanians in a national initiative that generated 111,952 hours of financial education within 7 days.

Accelerated digitalization and customer experience transformation

‒    2.37 million active George app users, up by 7% year on year.

‒    95% of products for individual clients (current account openings, mortgage and consumer loans, savings accounts, deposits, insurance, and investment products) sold through a fully digital flow. In Q1 2026, over 500,000 BCR products were accessed directly via George, through a simple and fast digital experience.

‒    In Q1 2026, more than 30% of BCR customers took out a mortgage through a fully digital flow in George, up from 17% in the same period last year. BCR is the only bank in Romania to have fully digitised the most complex retail lending product, offering a 100% digital approval flow in George for both home purchases and refinancing, including from other banks. Customers start from a concrete offer, generated within minutes in George, which they can customise and secure for up to two months. All property documents can be uploaded directly from a mobile phone, with immediate validation, ensuring predictability across all steps and full control over the timing of the home purchase.

‒    BCR continues to accelerate the democratisation of access to investments: 98% of retail investment transactions in Q1 2026 were executed through a fully digital flow in George. The number of customers holding at least one investment product increased by 26% vs. Q1 2025, while recurring investment plans (Capital Plan) grew by 57% year on year. In addition, in Q1 2026, BCR launched a fully digital investment advisory service in George, available to all customers. The program represents a BCR investment education initiative, designed to help each investor understand the mechanisms and specific features of the products they invest in. To date, over 65,000 customers have completed the Investment Knowledge and Experience questionnaire.

‒    Financial protection across the lifecycle, by supporting adoption of insurance and private pension products:

o   The total insurance portfolio increased by 15% vs. Q1 2025, while the number of customers holding at least one insurance product rose by 11%. BCR combines commercial efforts with financial education and prevention initiatives: 71% of customers with unsecured loans also hold life and unemployment insurance, while 99% of customers with secured loans have life insurance. The share of new digital insurance sales reached 92% of total sales.

o   97% of customers joined digitally to the BCR PLUS Optional Pension Fund (Pillar III) directly through George. The digital experience led to a 17% increase in new subscriptions in Q1 2026 versus the same period in 2025. The BCR PLUS Optional Pension Fund has surpassed 180,000 participants building their financial future with BCR Pensii.

‒    BCR customers benefit from the George Moneyback loyalty programme, which rewards card payments with cashback. With approximately 1.5 million users and over 120 partners, the programme spans a wide range of product and service categories.

‒    BCR continues to strengthen its portfolio of strategic partnerships supporting the growth of its digital ecosystem, through collaborations with leading brands in retail, e-commerce, mobility and services, such as Uber, Freshful, OMV and Kaufland. At the same time, the George Store offering is continuously updated, integrating new partnerships across key areas such as health, entertainment, mobility and shopping.

BCR’s impact on economy and society

In the retail banking business, BCR granted new loans to individuals and microenterprises totaling RON 3.8 billion in Q1 2026, up by 15.7% year on year. The stock of unsecured consumer loans (including credit cards and overdrafts) increased by 11.2% year on year. At the same time, the mortgage loan portfolio grew by 16.8% year on year, of which standard mortgage loans (Casa Mea) recorded a 39.5% year on year increase, partly offset by repayments of Prima Casă loans.

In the corporate banking business, BCR approved new loans worth RON 3 billion in Q1 2026, nearly half of which are allocated to investments. The corporate loan portfolio grew by 10.1% year on year.

Out of total financing granted, RON 1.2 billion was directed to strategic sectors of the economy (energy, agriculture, real estate, infrastructure, and construction), reflecting the BCR’s support to the real economy and to projects with long-term structural impact.

BCR continued to strengthen its leading position in the syndicated lending market, with total participation of approximately RON 3.4 billion (EUR 672 million). At the same time, the bank allocated RON 270 million to public and local infrastructure projects, supporting modernization programs that contribute to the development of a connected and competitive economy.

At the end of Q1 2026, BCR launched George Business, the intelligent banking platform for SMEs and large companies, providing entrepreneurs with real-time access to financial data, support in strategic decision-making, and enhanced operational control. Currently, approximately 11,000 BCR corporate customers, SMEs and large companies, use George Business, with the platform counting over 24,000 active users who upload more than 15,000 payment files each month. Through George Business, monthly transactions totaling EUR 12 billion are processed, equivalent to approximately 3% of Romania’s annual GDP, generating over 1.2 million bank statements, with an average of 40,000 statements per day.

In Q1 2026, BCR Leasing recorded a 28% increase in the number of customers compared to the same period in 2025. Growth was primarily driven by the microenterprise segment, which remains an important engine for portfolio development. Financing for light commercial vehicles advanced by 13%, while financing for heavy commercial vehicles (over 3.5 tons) increased by 11% among SME customers.

Digital transformation in leasing continued to generate a direct impact on operational efficiency and customer experience. In Q1 2026, 51% of early repayment requests were processed through the virtual assistant LEA, integrated into the Self-Service platform. The number of active platform users reached 12,800, while interactions with the LEA chatbot increased by 30% compared to Q1 2025. In addition, approximately 87% of customers who updated their data used a 100% digital flow, regardless of their ownership structure.

These results are part of a 25‑year track record in Romania’s financial leasing market, which BCR Leasing marked in Q1 2026. Since its inception, the company has granted cumulative financing totaling EUR 5.6 billion, signed over 191,000 contracts, and supported more than 71,500 entrepreneurs. Through these financings, over 238,000 vehicles and pieces of equipment have been acquired, with BCR Leasing contributing to the modernization of companies in sectors such as transportation, manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture, and services.

BCR Social Finance supported more than 540 microenterprises, of which 250 are active in the agribusiness sector, through financing totaling EUR 10.6 million, contributing to the preservation of over 800 jobs. In Q1 2026, the institution financed 10 NGOs and social enterprises with EUR 1.8 million, supporting the wellbeing of more than 21,000 beneficiaries and the preservation of 260 jobs. These initiatives support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well‑Being), SDG 4 (Quality Education), and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). At the same time, BCR Social Finance granted 91 StudyUP loans totaling over EUR 170,000 for lifelong learning through undergraduate, master’s, doctoral, or specialization programs, promoting education throughout life.

During the January–March 2026 period, BCR Social Finance continued to develop and expand its programs dedicated to strengthening Romania’s impact ecosystem.

o   Youth Agri Scaling (YAS), the initiative dedicated to young agribusiness entrepreneurs, entered its initial implementation stages, with approximately 80 beneficiaries from the Central, South Muntenia, and South Moldova regions participating in training sessions and practical courses. The project benefits from European funding through InvestEU and ESF+.

o   The AmpliFY network brought together more than 700 participants through NGO Nights Out events organized nationwide as well as a dedicated meeting held in Sibiu. Thematic webinars and support provided to independent journalists contributed to expanding the community to over 2,500 organizations.

o   The Marc Impact Program continued to support the 15 companies in the current cohort through mentoring sessions and preparation for re:Marc Budapest, a regional event dedicated to impact entrepreneurs. At national level, the Impact Builders event addressed the development of financial instruments dedicated to businesses with social impact in the fields of social services and education.

Financial highlights of BCR Group in Q1 2026

BCR delivered a resilient financial performance in Q1 2026, recording a net profit of RON 602 million (EUR 118 million). The result was supported by continued growth in customer business volumes across key segments, despite a challenging market environment.

Operating result reached RON 1,044 million (EUR 205 million) in Q1 2026, marginally below the level of Q1 2025. This evolution reflects operating expenses increasing at a faster pace than operating income, driven by ongoing strategic investments and inflationary pressures.

Net interest income slightly declined by 1.4% compared with Q1 2025, reaching RON 1,174 million (EUR 230 million) in Q1 2026, impacted by margin pressure in a highly competitive market.

Net fee and commission income grew by 6.8% year on year to RON 305 million (EUR 60 million) in Q1 2026, supported by stronger transactional activity, lending growth, and higher insurance and investment related fees. This performance confirms the continued relevance of diversified income streams.

Net trading & FV result increased by 4.1% year on year to RON 125 million (EUR 25 million) in Q1 2026.

As a result, operating income edged up by 0.3% year on year to RON 1,609 million (EUR 316 million) in Q1 2026, driven by higher fee and trading income.

General administrative expenses increased by 4.3% compared with Q1 2025, reaching RON 564 million (EUR 111 million) in Q1 2026, reflecting the impact of inflation and increased VAT, as well as continued investments in strategic initiatives, partially offset by ongoing optimization measures.

Consequently, the cost-income ratio remained at a solid 35.1% in Q1 2026, underscoring sustained focus on operational efficiency.

Risk Costs and Asset Quality

The net result from the impairment of financial instruments amounted to RON 182 million (EUR 36 million) in Q1 2026. The allocations were relatively evenly distributed between Retail and Corporate segments, reflecting portfolio dynamics, including NPL formation in the current uncertain macroeconomic context.

The NPL ratio for BCR Group, calculated according to Erste Group methodology, increased moderately to 3.0% as of March 2026 against December 2025. This development reflects regular NPL formation combined with a slight reduction in the loan portfolio. NPL provisioning coverage stood at 129% as of March 2026.

Capital position and funding

Total (Tier 1+2) capital ratio of BCR Group stood at 24.9% as of March 2026 (preliminary, own funds including profit), well above the regulatory requirements of the National Bank of Romania and clearly reflecting BCR’s strong capital and funding positions.

Net loans and advances to customers slightly declined by 2.3% compared with 31 December 2025, reaching RON 71,268 million (EUR 13,977 million) as of 31 March 2026. While both the retail and corporate segments recorded substantial growth, this was outweighed by the maturity of a large short-term loan previously booked under Other segments.

Deposits from customers slightly increased by 1.8% compared with 31 December 2025, reaching RON 94,802 million (EUR 18,592 million) as of 31 March 2026, driven by the increase in corporate deposits.