Loan books steady among banks, but growth momentum fades

Analysis from Agile Market Intelligence found that the combined housing loan books of the top 10 authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADIs) reached $2.24 trillion in February 2026, increasing from the previous month. However, the pace of growth across lenders has slowed compared to January.

While the major banks continue to dominate, accounting for 79 per cent of total loan book share, their growth rates have moderated.

Monthly growth across the majors sat within a narrower range of 0.20–0.35 per cent in February, down from a stronger 0.31–0.45 per cent range recorded in January.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) maintained its position as the largest lender, with a loan book valued at $621.4 billion, contributing 27 per cent to the total market.

Among the majors, Westpac recorded the fastest growth at 0.37 per cent, alongside the second-largest loan book expansion of $1.88 billion. However, this too marked a slowdown from its January growth rate of 0.42 per cent.

Non-major lenders continued to outperform on growth metrics, though they were not immune to the broader deceleration trend. Macquarie posted the highest growth rate at 1.60 per cent, down slightly from 1.66 per cent in January, while also delivering the largest loan book expansion of $2.69 billion, surpassing all major banks.

ING followed with growth of 0.59 per cent, also easing from 0.97 per cent the month prior, and recorded a $0.43 billion increase in its loan book.

Across the top 10 ADIs, eight lenders recorded positive growth in February, indicating that expansion remains broad-based, albeit at a slower pace. However, two lenders – BOQ and HSBC – posted contractions of -1.00 per cent and -0.16 per cent, respectively.

Among mid-tier institutions, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (0.18 per cent) and Suncorp (0.15 per cent) maintained modest growth. Notably, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and ANZ (both at 0.18 per cent) were the only lenders to improve on their January growth rates.

The data points to a moderation in momentum across the housing lending market, with loan books continuing to expand but at a slower rate than seen at the start of the year.

The figures are based on APRA’s monthly ADI statistics to February 2026, with Agile Market Intelligence mapping publicly available data to track movements in loan books and market share across the top 10 lenders.

[Related: Business confidence collapses despite resilient conditions]

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