February 20, 2025

Pursuant to the Rules of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange and Article 17 of the Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, NLB d.d., Trg republike 2, 1000 Ljubljana, announces:

NLB Group Paves the Way to Achieving Strategic Ambitions with EUR 514.6 Million in Net Profit for 2024

Looking back at the 2024, it's clear that it has been yet another strong year for NLB Group - one that will play a crucial role in shaping not only its future, but also in the development of the Southeastern European region in which the Group operates.

It was a year that, amongst others, marked the successful acquisitions of SLS Group and Generali Investments AD Skopje, dynamic activity on regional financial and international capital markets, several enhancements in clients' user experience, a substantial dividend payout of EUR 220 million in two tranches, and kicked off a new period in the Group's transformation with the introduction of its new business strategy.

The financial year concluded with a strong profit after tax result at EUR 514.6 million, with pre-provision profit up a respectable 9% YoY (EUR 51.2 million). Profit after tax was, however, still down EUR 36.1 million or a 7% decline compared to the previous year, which was positively influenced by the booking of deferred tax assets (EUR 61.9 million) and negatively by the booking of WHT (EUR 9.6 million), with 2024 also showing a moderate, but still positive cost of risk of 14 bps (2023 still had a negative cost of risk).

You may find key highlights of the NLB Groups' business operations in the fourth quarter and full year 2024, investor presentation and NLB Group factsheet on the links below.

·      Key Highlights of the Q4 and the Full Year 2024

·      Investor Presentation

·      NLB Group Factsheet

"Global economic development that held up well in the first half of the year, albeit being more moderate later, nevertheless supported NLB Group's performance. All our banking members in our home region of SEE strengthened their market positions, with subsidiaries delivering solid net earnings and contributing 58.2% to the Group's after-tax result. This further underscores the importance of diversified operations - not only in banking but across the broader financial sector, which ultimately remains a key pillar of the Group's vision for the future," commented NLB's CEO Blaž Brodnjak upon publication of the 2024 unaudited results. "NLB Group is firmly positioned for further growth and development, continued delivery on shareholders' expectations - indeed, we expect this year's dividend payout to reach 50% of 2024's profit - and the ability to continue supporting all the markets, societies, and communities in our home region where we operate," he added. 

The Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Primož Karpe, reflecting on both past and future periods of the Group's operations, added: "The Supervisory Board is satisfied with the Group's strong baseline performance, exemplifying that even in a dynamic environment, the Group maintains its resilience and prudence in decision-making. Our operating model is future-oriented, focused on end-to-end process optimisation and subsequent digitalization, allowing scalability, understanding of technology and data, and the talent required to utilise it productively, investing in it to help transform the bank. The end game is to serve the clients better and with more tailor-made solutions, enhancing their user experience. That said, we are confidently looking ahead towards our communicated strategic ambitions and our ability to deliver on long-term growth targets and the creation of lasting value for all stakeholders."

You are Kindly Invited to the Webcast Presentation

We kindly invite all interested stakeholders to the presentation of the NLB Group's Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024 results, hosted by the NLB Management Board. The call will take place on Thursday, 20 February, 2025, at 16:00 CEST/15.00 UK and will be available at https://www.nlbgroup.com/int-en/investor-relations/investor-relations-events.

Members of the Management Board will, as usual, receive and address your questions live during the

webcast. If you already know what you wish to ask them, you may submit your questions in advance. If you register for the event, you will be able to send them via the web app, or you may simply send them to the email address [email protected].

This announcement will be available on the NLB d.d.'s website (https://www.nlbgroup.com) as of 20 February 2025.

Investor relations

NLB d.d., Ljubljana