Kiwibank's half-year profit rose 12% as the bank grew revenue, lending and deposits, and its credit impairment charge fell.
The bank's net profit after tax for the six months to December 31, 2025 rose $11 million, or 12%, to $103 million from $92 million in the six months to December 2024.
Total operating income rose $17 million, or 4%, to $478 million, and operating expenses lifted $18 million, or 6%, to $329 million.
Kiwibank's credit impairment charge fell to $5 million from $21 million.
The bank's net interest margin, the difference between what it borrows money at through the likes of deposits and what it lends it out at, dropped 11 basis points to 2.18% from 2.29%, which was attributed to a competitive environment and increased funding costs.
Total lending rose $1.8 billion to $37.6 billion, and deposits increased $1.4 billion to $31.8 billion.
Kiwibank says it grew home lending 1.6 times faster than the overall market, increasing by $1.3 billion. Over the six months to December, the bank says it accounted for 13% of all net new bank mortgage lending growth.
It also says it grew business lending by $400 million, lifting its total business lending to $8.7 billion.
Kiwibank's cost-to-income ratio jumped 137 basis points to 68.8%. The bank says it made "key upgrades" to its digital banking and payments platforms, including rolling out modern digital banking and modern payments technology to about 860,000 customers in November and December. It also says it improved fraud and scam protections including implementing confirmation of payee, and continued developing its new core banking platform.
Kiwibank CEO Steve Jurkovich says the technology transformation is about building a modern, resilient bank that can offer new and competitive products faster and give customers a better experience. He says Kiwibank also maintained the country's biggest physical banking network, providing face-to-face access for customers and communities.
"With lending and deposit growth continuing to outperform the market and business confidence expected to lift, Kiwibank is well positioned heading into the second half of the financial year. This momentum comes as economic activity is forecast to broaden through 2026, with more sectors strengthening despite global uncertainty and cautious household spending," Jurkovich says.
1 Sourced from Kiwibank’s Disclosure Statements
2 Lending growth figures are calculated based on gross loans and advances excluding direct transaction costs, and so will differ from loans and advances per the Disclosure Statement
3 System figures are based on the Reserve Bank’s statistical series for registered banks (loans – S31 series; deposits – S40 series). Market share is Kiwibank’s total divided by System total at period end.
Sourced from Kiwibank’s Disclosure Statements and management information GLA: Gross Loans and Advances.
1 System figures are based on the Reserve Bank’s statistical series S50: registered banks total loans. Figures exclude credit impairment provision on undrawn commitments.
Kiwibank's press release is here, and its presentation is here.
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