In 2024 K&H delivers exceptional performance: K&H Bank reports HUF 129 billion and K&H Insurance reaches HUF 4.2 billion net profit

Peter Roebben, CEO of K&H Group, highlighted “In 2024 we delivered exceptional performance, our profit after tax reached HUF 129 billion. At K&H we put the customer in the center of everything that we do. This drives our results which we see in the continously growing client base, client investments and loans as well. We now serve over 1 million customers which is 5% up yoy.  We are also leading in digital innovation in the Hungarian market, well reflected by the fact that 8 out of 10 of our customers are digitally active. Besides having been awarded the title of Best Bank in Hungary in 2024 we are also honoured to have our efforts recognised as Best Digital Bank in Hungary in 2024 by Euromoney and just recently by Mastercard – Bank of the Year in Innovation award. Also, for the third time we have won the Top Employer Hungary recognition again. We received this due to our comprehensive training practices, digital HR solutions, and commitment to innovative initiatives that strengthen environmental and social sustainability.”

Growth: excellent financial results in 2024

K&H Bank reported a HUF 129 billion after-tax profit. The Bank’s income increased by 10 percent. The total loan portfolio grew by 9 percent year-on-year to HUF 3089 billion, while the volume of new corporate and retail loans reached HUF 560 billion in 2024. Deposits expanded by 7 percent yoy and the assets managed in investment funds rose by 31 percent to HUF  1773 billion by the end of 2024. Due to pressure on costs caused by inflation and expenditures on new digital solutions operating costs increased by 13 percent. Government securities portfolio increased by 42 percent yoy to HUF 1427 billion by the end of 2024.

„Corporate loan demand in the banking sector remained subdued, with its 7 percent yoy volume growth K&H was able to further strengthen its market position in corporate lending.  K&H remains actively involved in state-subsidised financing schemes that support the daily operation and development expenditures of businesses: we have concluded contracts worth almost HUF 290 billion in total under the Széchenyi Card Program. We reached remarkable expansion in project financing: our project financing outstanding volume reached some 30 percent growth rate in 2024.We can also be proud that our leasing portfolio exceeded HUF 100 billion by the end of 2024. The volume of new sales in our leasing portfolio exceeded HUF 42 billion” - said Attila Gombás, Chief Financial Officer of K&H Group.

 „While the retail loan portfolio increased by 9 percent in the banking sector overall, K&H registered 13 percent growth compared to last year. The volume of retail mortgage disbursements more than doubled compared to a year ago.  Despite the tightening of the age criteria for baby boom loans, the amount of loans disbursed increased by 4 percent.  On the savings side the volume of deposits placed by customers reached HUF 3986 billion, 7 percent higher than in the previous year. Retail deposits expanded by 13 percent, exceeding the 11 percent growth in the banking sector. Thanks to the volume of sales and the positive performance of its investment funds, assets under management in mutual funds at the end of December was up  by 31 percent year-on-year. We also managed to build a sufficient product offering among regular savings customers, regular savings increased by over 6 percent compared to 2023” - added Attila Gombás.

Nik Vincke, CEO of K&H Insurance, said: „In 2024 net profit reached HUF 4.2 billion (incl. HUF 6.6 billion windfall tax). In the corresponding period of 2023, the entire year’s windfall tax resulted a HUF 1.1 billion net profit. In non-life, premium income grew 10 percent yoy to reach HUF 74.9 billion and all business lines are growing permanently. Life also brought strong business performance in targeted product lines and increased 14 percent yoy driven by regular unit-linked pension and regular risk business lines.”

Transformation: digitalisation and innovation

“Our innovations are all aimed at making it faster, easier and more convenient for customers to make their financial transactions. Our mobile application reached a significant milestone in January: there are already 700,000 people actively banking in our mobile app.  8 out of 10 clients are digitally active and 7 out of 10 clients use the mobile app. On average, more than two million money transfers are made on the app every month. 60 percent of total new retail accounts are now opened online. Almost half of regular investments were started on mobile bank last year.

The range of services that are available digitally is expanding continuously such as buying transportation tickets, parking and the income and expenditure monitor. As of this month we introduced a new cash-back coupon that will make it much easier for customers to spend abroad. With the activated coupon, customers can pay up to HUF 500,000 per month at the mid-market exchange rate. More than 200,000 clients have already registered to the K&H cashback service.  We are the first and only issuer in the market that offers digital SZÉP cards which can be used for payment with a mobile phone and other smart devices, just like a bank card. We have also reached yet a new milestone with our digital developments: all our 550 ATMs are now NFC-enabled. In practice, this means that cash transactions can now be carried out using a smartphone without a physical card at ATMs”- claimed Balázs Németh, Head of Innovation at K&H Group.

”In one year, more than one million conversations were made with Kate, the country’s only voice and chat-based digital financial assistant powered by artificial intelligence, which already knows more than 300 functions and 12 percent of mobile banking customers already use it regularly. We continue to develop digital services to improve customer experience for our business banking clients too, for example with the extension of digital signature acceptance capability to loan documentation, which earlier was available only for daily banking products. In terms of digitization insurance service is permanently improving as well: customers can acquire green card and insurance coverage certificate for their insurance policies in our mobile bank with the assistance of Kate. Digital pension insurance was launched in our mobile bank in September and 1 out of 5 new pension insurance policies were made out in the mobile app. Almost all of MTPL is digitally contracted “- added Balázs Németh.

Sustainability

“We became a top player in the Hungarian green financing market: we have a market share of over 20 percent in both corporate and retail green loans. K&H corporate green loan outstanding by MNB taxonomy reached HUF 128 billion. In 2024 we disbursed HUF 12 billion green housing loans, which is 6 percent of total housing loan disbursements. The total volume of green housing loans increased from HUF 37 billion to HUF 47.7 billion. In the area of savings, 55 percent of client assets are concentrated in responsible investment funds, which is an outstanding proportion in the domestic fund management sector. The share of responsible investment funds has increased not only in terms of holdings but also in terms of sales volume, with more than 59 percent of gross sales flowing into responsible investment funds last year. In casco insurance there was 25 percent share of electric cars in new casco policies, and we reached 19 percent share of electric cars in new K&H green car leasing contracts “- announced Peter Roebben, CEO of K&H Group.

K&H’s unaudited, consolidated results according to the international financial reporting standards (IFRS):