Czech National Bank (ČNB)
ČNBThe central bank of the Czech Republic. It sets monetary policy, above all the two-week repo rate (3.75 % since 19 June 2026), and supervises banks and the financial market. Since 2022 it has been able to limit mortgage parameters under §§ 45a–45c of the Act on the ČNB. As of October 2026 the only binding limit on owner-occupier mortgages is an LTV of 80 %, or 90 % for applicants under 36.
Example
The ČNB deactivated the DSTI limit in July 2023 and the DTI limit in January 2024, so each bank now sets its own income-based thresholds. Since April 2026 it has recommended stricter parameters for investment mortgages: an LTV of 70 % and a DTI of 7. For a CZK 5,000,000 flat bought to let, that means a loan of up to CZK 3,500,000 instead of CZK 4,000,000.
In practice
Bank Board decisions on the repo rate feed into mortgage rates indirectly and with a lag; interest rate swaps react faster. The next meetings are on 5 November and 17 December 2026. The ČNB also keeps a register of regulated entities, credit intermediaries included, and takes complaints about banks, though disputes between clients and banks go to the Financial Arbitrator. Putting off a purchase while you guess when the ČNB will cut rates rarely pays.
How it differs
Unlike commercial banks, the ČNB does not lend to individuals and does not set the rate on any particular mortgage. The repo rate is the price of money between the ČNB and banks, not your mortgage rate. Hypomonitor, with average rates on new mortgages, comes not from the ČNB but from the Czech Banking Association, built on data from its member banks.
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