How Many Banks are Registered in the EU in 2023

The banking system of the European Union shows a high level of stability year after year. This is despite the decline in the total number of financial institutions in the EU over the past 13 years. Based on 2023 data from the European Central Bank (ECB), the statistical publication provides users
with unique information on the structure of, the performance, lending and deposit trends in European banking, as well as a country overview.

Although European banks have proven their resilience and resilience, structural transformation of the sector continued in 2021 to improve efficiency and profitability. The total number of banks in the European Union in 2021 was 5,263.

The rationalization is linked to the digitalization of banking services, as well as to the transformation programs of European banks to respond to changing customer behaviour and improve process efficiency. Bank branches were also affected by this restructuring: their number dropped to
about 139,000, a 5.5 percent decrease from the previous year. By comparison, in 2019, the European Union had 5,981 active banks and 163,270 branches. Every year, about 10,000 branches of banks are closed down, which clearly reflects the trend of banking services to become online.

As of July 2022, the European Union had a total of 5,171 banks operating in 27 member countries, according to Statista. Around 2.15 million people worked in credit institutions across Europe, with some bank employees serving more than 200 customers each.

European Union Countries with the Largest Number of Banks

In 2022, there were almost 1,427 more banks in Germany than in any other European country. This is despite a steady downward trend over the years. The German banking industry has total assets of more than €9.2 trillion.

Europe’s largest banks in 2023

The top 7 largest banks in Europe by the number of total assets (billion euros) at the beginning of 2023:

• HSBC Holdings PLC, UK – 2597 billion euros BNP Paribas SA, France – 2554 billion euros
• Crédit Agricole Group, France – 2 352 billion euros
• Barclays PLC, UK – 1 648 billion euros
• Banco Santander SA, Spain – 1 596 billion euros
• Groupe BPCE, France – 1516 billion euros
• Société Générale SA, France – 1 464 billion euros Deutsche Bank AG, Germany – 1 324 billion euros
• Intesa Sanpaolo SpA, Italy – 1 069 billion euros Lloyds Banking Group PLC, UK – 1 055 billion euros

European System of Central Banks

The European System of Central Banks (ESCB) includes the European Central Bank and the national central banks of all 27 EU member states.

Separately, the Eurosystem unites the main banking structures of the 20 EU member states that have adopted the euro currency.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is the core of the ESCB and the Eurosystem. It was established on 1 June 1998. The ECB is independent in the exercise of its powers and is a legal person under public international law. Its headquarters are in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

The ECB has three decision-making bodies that also manage the ESCB and the Eurosystem:

• The ECB’s Governing Council is the main decision-making body. It formulates the monetary policy of the euro area and adopts the guidelines necessary to ensure that objectives are met.
• The Executive Council is an operational body of the ECB and the Eurosystem that implements the monetary policy of the eurozone in accordance with the decisions of the Governing Council and manages the current operations of the European Central Bank. It is composed of the President, the
Vice-President and four other members.

• The General Council was established as the third decision-making body of the ECB. It is a transitional body that will remain in place until all EU member states have adopted the euro, after which it will be dissolved.

There is also a Supervisory Board established after the ECB was given specific responsibilities for the supervision of credit organizations under the Single Supervisory Mechanism (ESM) to promote the reliability and stability of the banking system.

If you intend to open a business account with a bank in one of the European countries, experienced consultants of Regulated United Europe  will be happy to help you. Over the past eight years we have developed a wide network of trusts in the European banking industry, which will simplify the processing of your
application to open an account with the selected bank.