The latest monitoring of Argentine banks’ financial statements conducted by RankingsLatAm, covering the period from 2019 through September 2025, provides a comprehensive snapshot of how balance sheets and results are evolving in a highly volatile macroeconomic environment.
As of September 2025, total banking system assets reached USD 200.9 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 5.9% compared with September 2024. This expansion, measured in U.S. dollars, highlights a moderate recovery in balance sheet size despite persistent inflation, exchange rate adjustments and regulatory constraints that continue to shape financial intermediation in Argentina
Asset concentration remains high, with Banco de la Nación Argentina consolidating its leadership position with 22.94% of total system assets. It is followed by Banco de Galicia y Buenos Aires with 12.28%, Banco Santander Argentina with 8.58%, BBVA Argentina with 7.84% and Banco Macro with 7.17%, while the rest of the system accounts for 41.20%. This structure underscores the dominant role of a small group of large institutions, particularly the public sector bank, in steering overall balance sheet dynamics.
Credit to the private sector shows a markedly different and far more dynamic trajectory. Total loans excluding the public sector amounted to USD 87.0 billion as of September 2025, posting a sharp annual growth of 43.9% in U.S. dollar terms compared with the same month of the previous year. Banco de la Nación Argentina leads the private-sector loan portfolio with a 19.3% market share, followed by Banco de Galicia y Buenos Aires with 14.2%, Banco Santander Argentina with 10.1%, BBVA Argentina with 9.8% and Banco Macro with 8.4%. The strong expansion of credit reflects both a low comparison base and a gradual reactivation of lending in real terms, particularly in segments linked to consumption and investment.
A closer look at the composition of credit reveals significant divergences across loan types. Advances to companies reached USD 6.0 billion, growing 45.7% year on year, while documented loans totaled USD 20.1 billion with an annual increase of 25.0%. The most striking figure comes from mortgage lending, which, although still relatively small at USD 4.3 billion, expanded by 204.7% in U.S. dollar terms, signaling a tentative revival of long-term housing finance. Secured loans rose to USD 5.0 billion, up 57.5%, and personal loans climbed to USD 13.0 billion, increasing 67.1% year on year. Other private-sector loans, amounting to USD 31.5 billion, also showed robust growth of 51.6%, confirming a broad-based recovery in lending activity.
On the funding side, total deposits stood at USD 132.0 billion in September 2025, up 5.6% compared with September 2024. Banco de la Nación Argentina once again dominates, holding 24.02% of total deposits, followed by Banco de Galicia y Buenos Aires with 12.56%, Banco Santander Argentina with 9.10%, BBVA Argentina with 8.46% and Banco de la Provincia de Buenos Aires with 6.87%. Deposit growth, however, has been uneven across instruments, reflecting changing preferences in a context of high inflation and interest rate volatility.
Public sector deposits amounted to USD 23.6 billion, increasing 3.2% year on year. Current accounts declined to USD 13.4 billion, posting a contraction of 9.0%, while savings accounts fell to USD 46.6 billion, down 3.7%. In contrast, time deposits showed a strong rebound, reaching USD 45.1 billion and growing 26.4% in U.S. dollar terms. This shift toward term instruments suggests a search for yield and protection against inflation, as well as the impact of higher nominal interest rates on depositor behavior.
Despite balance sheet expansion and a strong recovery in credit, capital and profitability indicators reveal mounting pressures. Net worth declined to USD 42.6 billion as of September 2025, representing an annual contraction of 8.6% compared with USD 46.7 billion in September 2024. At the system level, the result for the period showed a slight loss of USD 50 million, underscoring the challenges faced by banks in preserving profitability amid regulatory costs, interest rate mismatches and macroeconomic uncertainty.
Profitability dispersion across institutions remains significant. Banco Santander Argentina led the ranking by result for the period with USD 347.8 million, followed by Banco Macro with USD 134.4 million and Citibank N.A. with USD 87.1 million. Banco de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires posted results of USD 61.2 million, while Banco Provincia del Neuquén recorded USD 53.0 million. These figures indicate that, even in a context of system-wide strain, certain institutions have been able to generate solid earnings, leveraging scale, diversification and operational efficiency.
Overall, the September 2025 data confirm that the Argentine banking system is navigating a complex phase characterized by moderate asset growth, a strong rebound in private-sector credit, shifting deposit structures and increasing pressure on capital and profitability. The ongoing monitoring of balance sheets and results by RankingsLatAm since 2019 provides critical insight into how banks are adapting their strategies in response to Argentina’s volatile economic cycle, offering valuable signals for financial, banking and insurance professionals tracking risk, resilience and future growth potential in the sector.