4.1 Adjusted net debt
PostNL Adjusted net debt in € million
At 31 December | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|
Short- and long-term debt | 674 | 868 | |
Long-term interest bearing assets | (13) | (12) | |
Short-term investments | (150) | (101) | |
Cash and cash equivalents | (303) | (515) | |
Net debt | 208 | 241 | |
Pension liabilities/WGA self-insurance | 40 | 43 | |
Lease liabilities (on balance) | 299 | 300 | |
Lease liabilities (off balance)1 | 9 | 1 | |
Deferred tax assets on WGA and operational lease liabilities2 | (81) | (83) | |
Adjusted net debt | 474 | 501 | |
| 1 | The lease liabilities (off balance) are the net present value of the Off balance sheet commitments relating to leases from note 3.7 of €1 million (2024: €11 million). | ||
| 2 | The deferred tax assets relate for €11 million (2024: €10 million) to the WGA self-insurance provision, for €72 million (2024: €69 million) to on balance lease liabilities, see note 3.6 Deferred income taxes and for €0 million (2024: €2 million) to off balance lease liabilities. | ||
As at 31 December 2025, adjusted net debt amounted to €501 million (2024: €474 million). The increase of €27 million was mainly explained by new leases and lease modifications/reassessments of €82 million in total and dividend payments of €15 million, partly offset by positive net cash from operating and investing activities (excluding the change in short-term investments) of €74 million.
Reference is made to note 3.4 Leases, note 3.5 Other provisions and note 3.7 Commitments and contingencies for more detailed information on leases (on and off balance) and provisions.
Long-term interest bearing assets
As at 31 December 2025, long-term interest-bearing assets of €12 million (2024: €13 million) mainly included a lessor loan of €9 million (2024: €11 million) relating to the finance lease of a sorting machine by Bol.com. The expected credit loss amounts to €0 million.
Short-term investments
Short-term investments of €101 million at 31 December 2025 (2024: €150 million) relate to time deposits and repos with a lifetime at investment date longer than three months. The decrease mainly relates to the expected repayment amount of the €300 million eurobond 2026 being decreased to €105 million due to an early repayment in 2025.
PostNL Short-term investments in € million
At 31 December | Nominal amount | Average amount | Effective interest rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total short-term investments 2024 | 150 | 79 | 3.4% |
| Total short-term investments 2025 | 101 | 141 | 2.6% |
Cash and cash equivalents
PostNL Cash and cash equivalents in € million
At 31 December | Nominal amount | Average amount | Effective interest rate |
|---|---|---|---|
Cash at bank and in hand | 98 | ||
Bank deposits | 30 | 154 | 3.7% |
Money Market Funds | 175 | 268 | 3.8% |
| Total cash and cash equivalents 2024 | 303 | ||
Cash at bank and in hand | 58 | ||
Bank deposits | 210 | 70 | 2.1% |
Money Market Funds | 247 | 191 | 2.2% |
| Total cash and cash equivalents 2025 | 515 |
As at 31 December 2025, included in cash and cash equivalents was €0 million (2024: €0 million) of restricted cash. The fair value of cash and cash equivalents approximated the carrying value.
Debt
As at 31 December 2025, the total of debt-related liabilities consisted of long-term debt of €969 million (2024: €884 million) and short-term debt of €199 million (2024: €88 million).
PostNL Total borrowings - maturity schedule in € million
| At 31 December 2025 | Debt | Lease liabilities | Other loans | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 105 | 84 | 10 | 199 |
| 2027 | 61 | 10 | 71 | |
| 2028 | 75 | 51 | 10 | 136 |
Thereafter | 621 | 104 | 37 | 761 |
Total borrowings | 801 | 300 | 68 | 1,168 |
Of which included in long-term debt | 696 | 215 | 57 | 969 |
Of which included in short-term debt | 105 | 84 | 10 | 199 |
In 2025, the other loans of €68 million included the liability of future (legal) lease payments for land, buildings and machinery of four Parcels' sorting centres and sorting machines with an effective interest rate of 1.3% up until 3.9%.
The following table presents the cash and the non-cash changes in debt during 2025.
PostNL Reconciliation debt in € million
| Debt | Lease liabilities | Other loans | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balance at 1 January 2025 | 596 | 299 | 77 | 972 |
Proceeds | 398 | 1 | 399 | |
Repayments/lease-incentives | (195) | (89) | (10) | (293) |
Total cash movements | 203 | (89) | (9) | 105 |
New leases | 43 | 43 | ||
Lease modifications/reassessments | 47 | 47 | ||
Amortisation and other | 1 | (1) | 1 | |
Total non-cash movements | 1 | 90 | 0 | 91 |
| Balance at 31 December 2025 | 801 | 300 | 68 | 1,168 |
The increase in debt in 2025 is due to the placement of €100 million of Schuldschein loans 2028/2030 and the issuance of a €300 million eurobond 2030 with an annual coupon of 4.000%, partly offset by a €195 million buyback of the €300 million eurobond 2026. Refer to note 4.5 for more details on the current outstanding eurobonds.
The following table presents the cash and the non-cash changes in debt during 2024.
PostNL Reconciliation debt in € million
| Debt | Lease liabilities | Other loans | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balance at 1 January 2024 | 651 | 320 | 88 | 1,059 |
Proceeds | 297 | — | 297 | |
Repayments | (353) | (84) | (11) | (448) |
Total cash movements | (56) | (84) | (11) | (151) |
New leases | 47 | 47 | ||
Lease modifications/reassessments | 18 | 18 | ||
Disposal of leases | (1) | (1) | ||
Commencement of lease financing | 4 | 4 | ||
Settlement of pre-financing | (4) | (4) | ||
Amortisation | 1 | 1 | ||
Total non-cash movements | 1 | 63 | 0 | 64 |
| Balance at 31 December 2024 | 596 | 299 | 77 | 972 |
The decrease in debt in 2024 is due to the repayment of a eurobond of €353 million and the issuance of a €300 million sustainability-linked eurobond with an annual coupon of 4.750% in June 2024.
In 2024, a pre-financing balance during the building phase of a sorter of €4 million was replaced by a finance lease from a bank.