Raiffeisen Bank International reported first-half 2026 consolidated profit excluding Russia of €708 million, up 25% year on year, and raised its full-year 2026 net interest income guidance to €4.4-4.5 billion, as the Austrian lender's continuing Central and Eastern European franchise delivered a stronger-than-expected performance and gave management the confidence to lift its forward outlook. The combined signals amount to one of the more constructive updates the group has issued in several reporting cycles.
Main revenues rose 7% year on year to €3,255 million, with customer loans up 6%, according to the disclosure published through the group's investor pages. The bank reported a consolidated return on equity of 9.5% excluding Russia, reflecting the profitability of the operations that remain the primary focus of management's strategic attention and providing a clean measure of the ongoing franchise's earnings power that investors have long sought.
CORE FRANCHISE DRIVES THE UPGRADE
The 25% year-on-year rise in ex-Russia consolidated profit is a striking figure for a bank whose reporting has for several years been dominated by questions around its Russian subsidiary. By highlighting the ex-Russia figure so prominently, RBI is directing investor attention to the earnings power of its continuing CEE and Austrian franchises, and reinforcing the case that the group's underlying profitability trajectory is being obscured by legacy considerations that have weighed on the equity story.
Main revenues of €3,255 million and a 6% year-on-year increase in customer loans point to sustained business momentum across the group's core markets. That combination of volume and revenue growth provides the underlying support for the earnings uplift and for the decision to lift full-year NII guidance, positioning the H1 numbers as an inflection point in the group's communication with investors.
GUIDANCE UPGRADE SIGNALS CONFIDENCE
The revised full-year 2026 net interest income guidance of €4.4-4.5 billion offers a quantitative expression of management's confidence in the second-half outlook. RBI has historically taken a cautious approach to guidance updates, so the upward revision is a meaningful signal to the market about the trajectory of the core business and about the durability of the current revenue trends across the group's CEE footprint, where several markets continue to support the group's profitability.
The 9.5% ex-Russia RoE indicates that returns in the continuing franchise remain in mid-single-digit-plus territory, well below the double-digit metrics posted by some CEE peers but consistent with a group whose capital base still reflects the drag of the Russian legacy position. Management continues to work on strategic options for that exposure, and further clarity on that front remains a key focus area for investors.
In the accompanying investor materials, RBI framed the results as evidence that its continuing operations can deliver a coherent standalone earnings profile. Analysts are expected to probe the pace of the NII trajectory, the outlook for provisions and the timeline for further steps on the Russian subsidiary at the scheduled results briefing, alongside any signals on capital return prospects and the medium-term shape of the group's balance sheet. The 25% ex-Russia profit advance and the guidance upgrade together provide the most constructive interim narrative the group has offered in several reporting cycles.