The National Bank of Poland has held its reference rate at 3.75% for a fifth consecutive meeting, keeping monetary policy on hold at the September gathering of its Monetary Policy Council. The decision, taken at the two-day meeting held on 8 and 9 September 2026, leaves the reference rate at its lowest level since 2022.
Alongside the main policy rate, the council left the lombard rate unchanged at 4.25% and the deposit rate at 3.25%, according to information published on the central bank's monetary policy pages. The unchanged corridor extends a period of stability in Polish borrowing costs following earlier easing steps.
STEADY POLICY STANCE
The decision to hold rates at 3.75% marks the fifth consecutive meeting at which the Monetary Policy Council has chosen to pause, following the moves that brought policy rates down to their current level. The council has repeatedly signalled a preference for gathering additional evidence on the inflation trajectory before considering any further shift in the stance.
Poland has been navigating a mix of moderating headline inflation, resilient wage growth and elevated fiscal expenditure, a combination that has kept the Monetary Policy Council cautious about the pace at which core inflation is normalising. The unchanged stance reflects the council's assessment that current settings remain appropriate for now.
The reference rate at 3.75% remains the anchor for interbank lending and mortgage pricing in Poland, with the deposit and lombard rates defining the corridor within which the central bank operates its liquidity management. The steady setting provides visibility to banks, borrowers and depositors as they plan for the remainder of the year.
Keeping the lombard rate at 4.25% and the deposit rate at 3.25% preserves the standard symmetric corridor around the reference rate, providing consistent parameters for standing facilities. Polish commercial banks manage their short-term liquidity within this corridor, and its stability supports predictable money market functioning.
OUTLOOK FOR POLICY
The Monetary Policy Council's fifth consecutive hold builds the longest pause since the current easing cycle began, signalling that the majority of members are content to observe incoming data rather than push rates lower in the near term. The current level, described by the bank as the lowest since 2022, still stands well above the pre-tightening lows recorded before the global inflation surge.
Poland's central bank operates against the backdrop of the wider European monetary policy landscape, in which several central banks have paused after cutting from prior peaks. The National Bank of Poland's next scheduled decision will be delivered in line with its published calendar of Monetary Policy Council meetings.
Full details of the September decision are available on the National Bank of Poland's interest rates page, alongside the council's communication accompanying the meeting. The bank did not signal any change to its operational framework at the September gathering.
Holding the reference rate at 3.75% for a fifth consecutive meeting keeps Polish borrowing costs at the lowest level since 2022, while the unchanged 4.25% lombard rate and 3.25% deposit rate ensure the corridor around the policy rate remains stable. For banks intermediating credit to households and non-financial companies, the extended pause offers the kind of predictability that supports steady loan pricing and treasury planning through the fourth quarter.