ROE of EU banking industry 2007-2022

The return on equity (ROE) of the European Union's banking industry improved in 2021 and 2022, after a sharp decrease in 2020. In 2021, the ROE of the EU's banking industry was 6.77 percent, up from 2.31 percent in the previous year. In 2022, ROE increased even further and stood at 7.22 percent at the end of the year. The ROE of the banking industry is influenced by the overall state of the economy, which can be seen in the drops throughout the year: In 2008, due to the global financial crisis, the ROE reached a record low at negative 2.78 percent. As the economy stabilized, so did the ROE, up until the euro area recession in 2011 and 2012. After several years of relative stability and improvement, the return on equity took another hit during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.