ING Bank Śląski SA is ready to seek settlements with CHF mortgage holders and believes there is no other alternative to resolve the CHF mortgage problem in the Polish banking sector, news agency PAP reported Feb. 24, citing the lender's CEO Brunon Bartkiewicz.

Poland's Financial Supervision Authority proposed in December 2020 that banks offer borrowers attractive settlements on foreign currency mortgage disputes, with zloty-denominated mortgages to serve as a reference point. Local lenders are currently considering potential implications of the proposal.

ING Bank Śląski recently changed assumptions of its model for calculating legal risk provisions regarding its CHF mortgage portfolio, taking into account the FSA's proposal as well as a forecasted increase in the number of court disputes that may end in the cancellation of CHF mortgage agreements. Bartkiewicz noted that the FSA's proposal serves as a baseline scenario for the bank's provision calculations.

Following an increase by 239.9 million zlotys in the fourth quarter, the total value of provisions on legal risk stemming from ING Bank Śląski's CHF mortgage portfolio amounts to 311.8 million zlotys, equivalent to 33.6% of the portfolio, PAP noted.

ING Groep NV is the ultimate parent of ING Bank Śląski.

As of Feb. 23, US$1 was equivalent to 3.71 Polish zlotys.