Nordea reported second-quarter 2026 return on equity of 15.9% and earnings per share of €0.36, up 3% year on year, with total income exceeding €3 billion for the first time since 2024, the Nordic banking group said in its half-year results published on Thursday morning through its investor relations channels.
Total income rose 4% year on year while costs excluding regulatory fees were flat when adjusted for foreign exchange effects, and the board announced a decision on a mid-year dividend alongside the interim figures, according to the press release issued via the company's website. The combination of top-line growth and cost discipline underpinned the group's headline profitability metrics for the period.
INCOME BREAKS €3 BILLION MARK
Nordea said quarterly income above €3 billion was a level it had previously reached only during 2024, at the peak of the higher-rate environment. Net fee and commission income rose 11% year on year and the net fair value result rose 11%, while net interest income fell 1%.
The cost-to-income ratio was 44.0%, compared with 45.1% a year earlier. Earnings per share of €0.36 was 3% higher than in the same quarter of the prior year, the bank said in its interim report.
The mid-year dividend decision, disclosed alongside the results, reflects Nordea's previously communicated move to paying dividends twice a year rather than in a single annual payment. The Board decided on a mid-year dividend of €0.34 per share, corresponding to approximately 50% of the group's net profit for the first half of 2026, with payment due on 13 August.
COST DISCIPLINE UNDERPINS RETURNS
Nordea said it grew income faster than costs in the quarter, which chief executive Frank Vang-Jensen described as "always our aim". Vang-Jensen said the bank continued to drive productivity gains and was expanding the use of artificial intelligence in core business processes, while investing substantially in strategic initiatives focused on growth and Nordic scale.
The 15.9% return on equity is above the greater-than-15% return on equity that Nordea targets for 2026. Nordea also tightened its 2026 guidance for the cost-to-income ratio to 44-45%.
The release forms part of a tightly clustered Nordic bank reporting week, following prints from DNB on 14 July and from SEB and Handelsbanken the day before, and preceding second-quarter disclosures from Swedbank and Danske Bank on 17 July.
Nordea's CET1 ratio was 15.7% at the end of the quarter, 1.9 percentage points above the current regulatory requirement.
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