Bank loans in the European Union - statistics & facts
Bank lending is one of the most common ways for households, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and other organizations in the European Union (EU) to finance their large purchases or to expand their operations. In fact, in most member states of the EU, the total value of loans represented over 70 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) as of late 2024. The value of loans granted by banks in some of those countries, including Denmark, Sweden, France, Spain, and the Netherlands, was greater than the overall size of their economy. Furthermore, loans and advances accounted for roughly 63 percent of bank assets in the EU in 2024, with mortgages being the segments with the highest market share among household loans.
