NBP forecasts consolidation in banking sector
Polish central bank (NBP) pointed out to growing development disparities between banks in its cyclical report on the stability of the country's financial system. For the first time, however, the report included conclusions from a survey on expenses on technological innovation in the banking sector. NBP found "significant disproportions" related to investment in innovations. Although the share of expenses on innovations in the operating costs of banks is growing, investments are highly concentrated in the largest and most profitable banks, the survey showed.
"In the medium term, this may lead weaker banks, with a lower level of efficiency, to consolidate or become the driving force behind acquisitions of weaker entities by the largest entities," the central bank wrote in the survey summary. In the long run, this will result in increased concentration in the banking sector, the report forecasted.
