ECB chief economist Lane said in a Financial Times interview that financing for
AI projects accounts for roughly one quarter of euro-area corporate bank loan
growth. He said credit creation across 21 euro-area members has remained
resilient despite higher rates and an oil-price shock. Lane estimated corporate
loan annual growth would be about 3% without AI lending versus roughly 4%
currently, while noting AI’s overall share of the economy remains small. He
reiterated a preference for more equity rather than debt financing to allow
native AI firms to scale faster.
