www.ecb.europa.eu
3 February 2026
- Banks tightened credit standards for firms, citing higher perceived risks amid lower risk tolerance
- Credit standards eased slightly for housing loans, but tightened further for consumer credit
- Small increase in demand for loans to firms, while demand for housing loans grew moderately
- Trade tensions and related uncertainty added to tighter credit standards and dampened loan demand
According to the January 2026 bank lending survey (BLS), euro area banks reported an unexpected net tightening of credit standards (banks’ internal guidelines or loan approval criteria) for loans or credit lines to enterprises in the fourth quarter of 2025 (net percentage of banks of 7%; Chart 1). Banks reported a small net easing of credit standards for loans to households for house purchase (net percentage of -2%), whereas credit standards for consumer credit and other lending to households tightened further (net percentage of 6%). For firms, the net tightening in the fourth quarter…