It is in times of market turmoil that the investment and commitment made by banks to their business lines over previous years become most apparent. For those banks that better dodged the sub-prime bullet, the past 12 months have afforded them this recognition. For these banks, avoiding the inevitable navel-gazing and restructuring to which less fortunate competitors have had to succumb has meant they can continue to do what they are supposed to do – focus on clients. Three banks on Wall Street stand out as having gained yet greater credibility as they navigated through the volatile market conditions and tightening credit environment that dominated the second half of 2007 and beginning of 2008: JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank.
It will come as no surprise that JPMorgan Chase wins this year’s award for best bank in North America. Under Jamie Dimon, chief executive since the beginning of 2006, the firm has expanded without disadvantaging its business lines in retail, commercial and investment banking. As other US banking franchises’ balance sheets have taken a beating over the past 12 months, JPMorgan has maintained a steady tier 1 capital ratio of around 8.5%.