Employment in the banking sector increased by 10% last year, a historic record

2026-02-16 07:20:00, Ekonomi CNA

Employment in the banking sector recorded strong growth last year and reached its highest historical level.

Data from the Albanian Banking Association show that at the end of 2025, commercial banks in the country reported 7,856 employees, an increase of almost 10% compared to the previous year.

Employment in the banking sector has increased for the sixth consecutive year.

The main effect on the increase in the number of employees for the past year is estimated to have come from the absorption of the non-banking financial institution NOA by the American Investment Bank (ABI Bank). However, even beyond the effect of transitory factors, the increase in employment in the banking sector is a continuous trend in recent years, linked to a new cycle of growth of the system. In particular, the years after the pandemic have been characterized by rapid expansion of the sector's assets, accelerated growth in lending, improved financial performance and increasing competition between banks.

This has influenced the continuous expansion of employees, a growth that accelerated significantly last year.

The increase in digitalization is bringing less need for employees in branches, but this is being offset by the expansion of staff related to technology-based services, as well as the increase in employment in administrative positions, also following a natural cycle of business growth. In addition, good financial performance is supporting a continued expansion of activity and employment.

But a fundamental impact seems to have been the increase in the number of branches. At the end of 2025, the number of bank branches increased to 443, from 405 the year before. Here too, the main effect was the merger of NOA with ABI Bank.

The increase in employment, together with market pressures for wage increases, led to a further increase in personnel expenses. According to parallel data published by the Bank of Albania, for 2025, commercial banks' personnel expenses amounted to approximately 20.2 billion lek, an increase of 13.6% compared to the previous year.

According to INSTAT data, the financial sector has the highest average salary in the economy. In the third quarter of 2025, the average gross salary in this sector reached more than 152 thousand lek per month, an annual increase of 9.7%.

In addition to the expansion of the branch network, the banking sector itself is embarking on a new cycle of structural expansion, with the increase in the number of market players. During 2025, two more banks are expected to start operating, having received prior approval from the Bank of Albania, namely the branch of Ziraat Bank and Jet Bank. The increase in the number of banks is expected to bring about a further expansion of employment in the banking sector./ Monitor