Avant Money, the Irish unit of Spanish banking group Bankinter, has reported pretax profit of €12m for the first quarter of 2026, a 12% increase year-on-year, as strong mortgage growth drove its Irish loan book to €5b, up 23% over the period.

The Irish Independent reported that net interest income advanced 22% to €33m, as loan book growth more than offset the impact of declining interest rates. Operating costs rose 15% to €15m, with Avant Money's cost-to-income ratio standing at 45%, compared to 35.4% for the wider Bankinter group.

Avant Money's mortgage book stood at €4bn at the end of March, up 27% year-on-year, while its consumer credit portfolio amounted to €1bn, recording 8% growth. The non-performing loan ratio remained at a very low 0.3%.

The Irish results form part of Bankinter's wider Q1 2026 group performance, in which the Spanish banking group reported net profit of €291m, up 8% year-on-year, achieving a return on tangible equity of 20% and a cost-to-income ratio of 35.4%.

Bankinter chief executive Gloria Ortiz said the group's geographic diversification across Spain, Portugal, and Ireland continues to provide stability and quality to our earnings profile, adding that these markets are expected to perform better than the European average.

Ireland represents the fastest-growing of Bankinter's three markets by percentage, with loan volumes up 24% to €5bn in Q1 2026 compared to 8% growth in Spain and 20% growth in Portugal.

Bankinter has previously indicated it expects Avant Money's Irish loan book to be almost fully funded by local deposits within eight years of its savings product launch, as competition for Irish retail deposits intensifies in 2026.

Read the full Avant Money Q1 results report on the Irish Independent.