Best Emerging Markets Investment Bank: Citi |
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Also nominated: Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and HSBC |
Citi’s long-standing global presence, strong balance sheet to support key clients and broad array of commercial and capital market products are indelible features of the international banking landscape. Years before US and European bulge-bracket firms pledged to attach themselves to the emerging market growth engine while intermediating trade and capital flows, Citi considered itself to be the leading corporate and investment bank in developing economies.
Its full suite of commercial and investment banking products as well as the authenticity of its local presence in key emerging markets are mantras frequently recited by Citi’s senior bankers. As most Citi executives are quick to point out, the bank boasts a local presence in 100 countries – more than any other global investment bank – while conducting business in 160 in total.
In recent years, emerging markets have formed the central pillar of Citi’s post-crisis rehabilitation. The bank’s structural revenue growth prospects, driven by its consumer and transaction services business in key developing economies, are frequently cited as a key factor in the new-found optimism about the bank.