Agnieszka Wachnicka, vice-president of the Polish Bank Association, highlighted that Poland’s financial industry remains disproportionately small relative to the nation’s economic output. Compared to other EU countries, the banking sector ranks around 24th or 25th in size despite Poland being the bloc’s sixth-largest economy. While asset levels offer a slightly more favorable picture, capital reserves remain critically low, limiting the system’s capacity to support major domestic investment initiatives.
This constraint is particularly pressing as Poland seeks to fund extensive infrastructure, digital transformation, defense upgrades, and green energy projects. With investment rates among the lowest in the European Union, the economy’s growth potential is increasingly hindered by insufficient financial muscle within its banking institutions. As Wachnicka noted, even if the entire banking consortium could back a single 50 billion złoty project, the cumulative funding demand runs into trillions, revealing a significant gap.
One key factor undermining capital accumulation has been a series of government-imposed financial burdens. These include costs tied to Swiss franc-denominated mortgage adjustments, loan moratoriums, and proposed new banking levies. Such measures have eroded equity, as losses are typically absorbed directly from banks’ own funds, reducing their resilience and lending capacity. Additional tax proposals could further delay recovery.
Low capital levels also restrict individual banks’ ability to participate in large-scale financing due to regulatory concentration limits. This reduces the sector’s overall stability and diminishes its role as a driver of economic expansion.
Despite these challenges, Poland’s banking system is recognized for its technological advancement. Wachnicka attributed this to the country’s late entry into modern banking, allowing it to skip outdated analog systems and leapfrog directly into digital solutions. Innovations such as contactless payments were pioneered in Poland, and today, 76% of users of electronic banking services operate exclusively through mobile applications.
This digital agility reflects both institutional foresight and strong public acceptance of new technologies. Polish consumers have proven quick to adopt innovations, making the country a testing ground for international fintech firms. Solutions that succeed in Poland often go on to perform well in other markets.
The sector now stands at a pivotal moment. While it excels in digital infrastructure and customer engagement, structural weaknesses in capitalization and regulatory pressures threaten its ability to support national development goals. Strengthening financial foundations will be essential to unlocking long-term growth in energy, technology, and security sectors.
— news from Euronews.com
— News Original —
Poland’s banking sector – still too small to meet economic ambitions?
“The Polish banking sector is today one of the smallest in the European Union when compared to the size of the country ‘s GDP,” said Agnieszka Wachnicka, vice-president of the Polish Bank Association.
Although Poland is currently the sixth-largest economy in the European Union, its banking sector ranks only 24th or 25th in terms of size.
“It looks slightly better when measured by assets, but worse in terms of capital. This means our sector is simply too small to meet the investment needs of the Polish economy,” Wachnicka added.
This is a serious limitation, given that Poland has one of the lowest investment rates in the EU. As the country faces the need to finance massive infrastructure, transformation, digital, and defence projects, the shortage of bank capital is becoming a bottleneck for growth.
“If our banking sector as a consortium is able to finance one project worth 50 billion złoty but the total needs reach trillions, we still have a big job to do,” the expert said.
Fund drain and regulatory uncertainty
According to Wachnicka, one of the main reasons for the sector’s weak capital position lies in costly burdens imposed in recent years. The issue of Swiss franc mortgages, loan holidays, and plans for new banking taxes have all limited banks’ ability to build up their own funds.
“The sector’s equity has been significantly drained. Losses from these measures are typically written off against own funds, which means they shrink. And new proposals for additional taxes will only slow down the recovery process,” noted Wachnicka.
This is not only a problem for the banks themselves. Smaller funds mean less stability in the sector and lower lending potential. As Wachnicka explains, every bank operates under concentration limits that define the size of projects it can finance. When capital is too low, banks simply can’t engage in the largest investments.
Modernity: Poland ‘s strength
Paradoxically, Polish banking has a reputation as one of the most modern in Europe. Wachnicka stressed that this success stems from the fact that Poland started with a clean slate, bypassing the ‘analogue ‘ banking stage that dominated the West for a long time.
“We moved very quickly to modern, electronic payment instruments. We were the first country to introduce contactless cards, and today, as many as 76% of electronic banking customers rely exclusively on mobile apps,” she said.
This success reflects not only strategic decisions by banks but also the Polish public’s openness to innovation.
“Poles adapt to new technologies very easily. Many companies have tested their payment solutions here — and if something worked in Poland, it usually succeeded elsewhere too,” Wachnicka added.
Between ambition and limitations
Experts agree: the Polish banking sector today stands at a crossroads.
On one hand — it’s highly modern, digitally advanced, and supports a fast-growing economy. On the other — it faces limited capital strength and increasing regulatory pressure.
In order to meet the challenges of energy transformation, digitalisation and increased security, the banking sector needs to strengthen its capital base and expand its ability to finance large-scale projects.