Best bank
Bank Austria/HVB
Best at investor services
Bank Austria/HVB
Best loan house
Citigroup
Best M&A house
Citigroup
Best at risk & cash management
Citigroup
Best bond house
UBS
Best equities house
CSFB
Award for innovation
Raiffeisen Zentralbank
In deciding the awards for excellence this year, one fact became apparent – some banks have had a great year, posting growth of well over 50%. “Best result ever” was a phrase encountered more than once – for Turkey’s Akbank, for example, whose consumer loans business grew by over 300%; or for OTP, whose 2004 first quarter figures were the best in the history of Hungarian banking; or Russia’s MDM Bank, which reported 76% net income growth.
Other banks have had a good year too. In Poland and the Czech Republic, for example, banks have emerged from the bad old days of loan provisions and negative profit figures, and are making healthy profits of between 10% and 30%.
And some banking sectors have just had OK years. In Slovenia, Romania and the Slovak Republic, for example, growth has been in the single digits.
The countries where banks have put in amazing results – Russia and Turkey – tend to be those where the fixed-income markets have had a very good year, so the banks have made excellent profits on proprietary trading.