Banks' domestic lending expanded by 7.6% in 2021, accelerating from 4.9% growth the previous year, according to the NBS. Household sector liabilities (mostly loans, of which 77% are mortgages) continued to advance, rising by 8.3% to €49.3bn, a deceleration from 9.1% growth a year before. Meanwhile, corporate liabilities, of which around a third are loans and half equity, fell by 6.5% to €123.1bn, a sharp reversal from 1.3% growth in 2020.
According to the World Bank's Findex database on financial inclusion, about 96% of the population above 15 years of age had an individual or shared account at a formal financial institution in 2021, up from 84% in 2014 and 77% in 2014. According to the 2021 survey, 89% of participants had a debit card, but only 31% owned a credit card. Of the respondents, 79% had used a mobile phone or the internet to access an account, a figure that jumped significantly from the 49% recorded in 2017. Pandemic-driven lockdowns in 2020-21 forced economic activity online, including the opening of accounts. Institutional investors are moderately well developed in Slovakia but are still far smaller relative to the economy than in developed west European markets. The principal pools of funds include pension funds, which amounted to €14.5bn in 2021, according to the NBS, and mutual funds, which amounted to €9.4bn, according to the European Fund and Asset Management Association. The stock market, the Bratislava Stock Exchange (BSSE), based in the capital, is small and illiquid. It is not a significant source of new capital. This is unlikely to change over the forecast period, as Slovak companies are more likely to seek a listing on one of the larger and more dynamic regional exchanges, such as Vienna or Warsaw (the respective Austrian and Polish capitals). The stock market, the Bratislava Stock Exchange (BSSE), based in the capital, is small and illiquid. It is not a significant source of new capital. This is unlikely to change over the forecast period, as Slovak companies are more likely to seek a listing on one of the larger and more dynamic regional exchanges, such as Vienna or Warsaw (the respective Austrian and Polish capitals).