Poland Delays €600 Billion Wibor Loan Benchmark Phase-Out to 2036
Updated
Updated · Bloomberg · May 18
Poland Delays €600 Billion Wibor Loan Benchmark Phase-Out to 2036
2 articles · Updated · Bloomberg · May 18
End-2036 is the new deadline for phasing out Wibor in existing Polish loan contracts, giving banks about 10 more years before legacy loans would need conversion to the Polstr benchmark.
GPW Benchmark and Poland’s financial regulator said the delay followed criticism from commercial lenders, which had warned against a forced switch from the long-used interbank rate.
Much of the legal risk came from converting outstanding Wibor-linked loans; officials said postponing the change should ease that pressure because many of those loans will be repaid by then.
The decision slows Poland’s benchmark reform for legacy lending while preserving the broader shift toward Polstr over a longer timetable.
With legacy loans extended to 2036, can Poland's new benchmark ever truly escape the shadow of WIBOR?
Has Poland’s rate reform delay just kicked a ten trillion złoty legal crisis a decade down the road?