NLB Group Publishes its Annual Report – Inspiration for Success

In 2025, the world witnessed no shortage of challenges, leaving a global, regional and local footprint. Banking operated in an environment of lower interest rates and gradual disinflation, while the ECB's key rate cuts stimulated significant growth of credit activity. Risks remained present but in the NLB Group prudently managed, ensuring operational stability and strong asset quality. The demand for banking services remained robust, positively impacting NLB Group’s performance, resulting in EUR 503.1 million in profit after tax at the end of 2025. ROTE remained solid (at 15.2%), and normalised ROE is still attractive.

As NLB d.d. Management Board emphasized in its introductory statement, the result reflects the Group’s unwavering commitment to justifying the trust of NLB’s shareholders, who in 2025 received dividends in two tranches, totalling EUR 257.2 million, or 50% of NLB Group's net profit for the year 2024. The combined dividend of EUR 12.86 per share paid in 2025 corresponds to a 7.0% dividend yield based on the year-end share price. This level of shareholder remuneration ranked NLB among the top dividend payers both in the domestic index and across sector indices.

Financial bottom-line outperformance, strong strategic execution, and a focus on sustainable operations resulted in recognition for the Bank and the Group. In June 2025, the rating agency S&P raised NLB’s long-term issuer credit rating by one notch to BBB+ from BBB with a stable outlook, while in early 2025 the NLB Group received an improved ESG Rating of 10.5 by Morningstar Sustainalytics and later in the year also achieved an improved S&P Global ESC Score of 59. In March 2026 the rating agency Moody’s raised NLB’s long-term issuer credit ratings by one notch to A2/P-1 from A3/P-2 and its long-term senior unsecured ratings to A3 from Baa1. These ratings confirm the strength of the financial performance, resilient risk profile and strong capitalization.

These, however, were not the only welcoming NLB-related news connected to international capital markets. In January 2025, NLB issued new 4NC3 senior preferred notes of EUR 500 million to meet its MREL requirements. Later, in November, NLB successfully concluded the bookbuilding process for its pioneer perpetual NC5 Additional Tier 1 notes in the benchmark amount of EUR 300 million with significant oversubscription, resulting in a very reasonable yield of 6.5% p.a. and signalling strong investor confidence. The notes, which obtained a credit rating of BB- by S&P Global Ratings, are strengthening and optimising NLB Group’s capital position, ensuring that NLB is now well established for the next period of growth, which will be organic and potentially M&A driven as well.

Full text of the Annual Report is available on FCA's National Storage Mechanism and on Ljubljana Stock Exchange website, as well as on the Company's website.