At the same time, he noted that Estonia's economy is gaining momentum.

Coop Pank reported €7.9 million in net profit for the first quarter of 2025 (Q1 2025), a 24 percent year-on-year increase.

Speaking to "Esimene stuudio," Rink said: "Since autumn, the economic trend has been upward. We can't say it's soaring, but slowly — clear facts show it is gaining momentum. This is mainly due to significantly lower financing costs, i.e., loan interest rates. Euribor was at 4.2–4.3 percent at its peak; now it's around 2.1–2.2. That's a two percentage point drop."

Estonia's loan portfolio stands at about €30 billion, most of which is tied to the Euribor. February's rate drop means €600 million that banks earned during the high-interest period has moved to clients — into the economy, Rink explained.

He also said energy prices are now stable, inflation is lower, and the government's tax policy is set. "This is what entrepreneurs are basing their business plans on today," he said.

Rink noted that while business is optimistic, the Trump tariffs and trade wars cause uncertainty.

"It's understandable that these concerns arise, but just as Estonia's economy was picking up — I hope it doesn't kill that momentum. I've told entrepreneurs that we focus on local business here at Coop Pank. Perhaps we're overestimating the impact of trade wars on Estonia," he said.

Bank profits are currently declining, he added.

Rink said declining profits can be offset by business growth. As the economy grows, new business can help fill the gap from falling interest rates.
He said bank profits will eventually grow again after two to three years, driven by enough business to close the gap.

Rink added that money is unevenly distributed in Estonia and predicted a likely decline in purchasing power this year, as forecast by both the Bank of Estonia (Eesti Pank) and Ministry of Finance, with inflation around 6 percent and tax increases slowing wage growth.

Rink will step down as Coop Bank CEO in May after over eight years in the role. He appreciated the government's initiative to listen to entrepreneurs, but warned that regulatory changes could face resistance from officials.

He said his decision to step down came earlier than expected, but there were no conflicts, and leadership changes are part of the supervisory board's duties.

"Esimene stuudio" host Andres Kuusk noted that competitor LHV's profits fell by 28 percent over the year, and that LHV Bank CEO Madis Toomsalu is also stepping down.

"That did make things a bit easier. I thought, okay, I'm not the only one — the heads of two domestic banks are changing in 2025," Rink responded.

Coop Pank ended the first quarter with strong profits

Coop Pank recently reported €7.9 million in Q1 net profit, up 24 percent from the previous quarter and down 13 percent year-on-year.

The bank said its Q1 2025 profit was supported by business volume growth, strong loan portfolios, and cost control.

The bank stated: "In the first quarter, Coop Pank grew its business volumes twice as fast as the market growth – the number of clients, as well as the deposit and loan portfolios, grew significantly.

By the end of the quarter, Coop Pank held 6.3 percent of Estonia's deposit market and 6.6 percent of the loan market.

During the quarter, Coop Pank's net loan portfolio grew by €44 million (3 percent), reaching €1.81 billion euros. Deposits increased by €29 million (2 percent), totaling €1.91 billion.

Coop Pank also reported a 49 percent cost-to-income ratio and 14.7 percent return on equity in Q1. Its overdue loan portfolio remained stable at 2.1 percent, down from 2.4 percent a year ago.

Coop Pank, based on Estonian capital, is one of five universal banks in Estonia, with 213,000 customers. Its strategic shareholder is domestic retail chain Coop Eesti.

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