The Central Bank of Cyprus published updated aggregate data showing that banking sector profits fell by EUR 122 million, or 21.1%, to EUR 456 million in the first half of 2026 from EUR 578 million a year earlier. The decline was mainly attributed to a foreign exchange loss. Total banking sector assets increased by EUR 1.146 billion, or 1.6%, during the second quarter to EUR 71.378 billion, driven primarily by growth in loans and advances and debt securities. The Common Equity Tier 1 ratio rose by 0.4 percentage points from the end of March to 25.5% at the end of June, as higher CET1 capital outweighed an increase in total risk exposure.