The 5+1 bank deals of 2026

Greek banking groups listed connected the Athens Stock Exchange continue to leverage their resilient profitability and excess capital.

Despite the prolonged uncertainty successful the planetary concern environment, which has slowed the gait of concern deals, the country’s fiscal institutions are proving peculiarly agile successful the tract of acquisitions, seeking caller ways to diversify gross streams beyond lending income and grow into profitable non-banking activities.

Although the precocious valuations often brought to the negotiating table enactment arsenic a deterrent to the completion of respective transactions, the assemblage has nevertheless embarked connected a wave of acquisitions implicit the past months, pursuing the large deals of 2024 and particularly 2025.

This trend has go peculiarly evident during the archetypal 5 months of 2026, a play successful which 5 large transactions — positive 1 further important woody — person already been acceptable successful motion.

The plus and wealth absorption assemblage is acting arsenic a cardinal catalyst successful this trend, attracting the highest interest. This improvement is people linked to the broader prospects of the Athens market, including the anticipated upgrade to Developed Market status and, supra all, the planned integration of the Athens Stock Exchange into Euronext.

The archetypal large determination came successful March, when Optima Bank announced a non-binding statement for the acquisition of 80.84% of Euroxx Securities for up to 65.5 cardinal euros. This was followed by Alpha Bank’s afloat acquisition of Alpha Trust Holdings, valued astatine 63.6 cardinal euros. The third statement was CrediaBank’s acquisition of a 70% stake in Pantelakis Securities for 8.7 cardinal euros. Notably, the transaction is expected to person a constricted interaction connected the bank’s superior position, fixed that it successfully completed a 300-million-euro stock superior summation successful March.

Another assemblage attracting strong involvement from banks is insurance, arsenic past year’s woody between Piraeus Bank and Ethniki Insurance triggered a domino effect of changes crossed the market. In this context, National Bank of Greece responded a fewer days agone by entering into an exclusive concern with Allianz. Under the agreement, the slope led by Pavlos Mylonas intends to get a 30% equity stake successful the Allianz–European Reliance entity (Allianz Greece).

Meanwhile, Piraeus Bank proceeded with the merchantability of a 49-million-euro existent property portfolio to Premia Properties successful April. The bundle includes 34 properties that had travel into the bank’s possession chiefly done auctions oregon indebtedness restructuring arrangements.