Bank of Finland financial statements confirmed with 2024 audited profit at EUR 0 and operating loss of EUR 1,027 million

The Parliamentary Supervisory Council, on a proposal from the Bank of Finland Board, confirmed the Bank of Finland’s audited 2024 financial statements. The Bank reported an audited profit of EUR 0 after using provisions to cover an operating loss that it attributed to monetary policy operations and, in particular, the interest paid on central bank deposits. The operating loss of EUR 1,027 million was covered by fully using the remaining general provision and reducing the provision against real value loss by EUR 241 million. Interest paid on commercial bank deposits totalled EUR 3,697 million in 2024, exceeding income from assets and resulting in net interest income of EUR -1,108 million, EUR 64 million lower than in 2023. Monetary policy-related securities holdings, mainly Finnish government bonds, declined to EUR 82 billion from EUR 90 billion; with purchases no longer being made, the long-term bond holdings remain on the balance sheet for an extended period. The release also pointed to structural interest rate risk from differences in fixed and variable rate exposures, against a backdrop of the European Central Bank deposit facility rate peaking at 4.0% in September 2023 and averaging 3.73% in 2024 despite cuts beginning in June 2024. The financial statements, including the income and expenses of the Financial Supervisory Authority (FIN-FSA), were published in Finnish, with Swedish and English versions due in April.