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The truth is that domestic banking of small and medium-sized enterprises is not a core priority for any of the megabanks – it is to a large extent still served on the ground by regional and local banks – but SMBC shows the clearest sense of direction among the top three.

ForteBank neatly encapsulates the ambition of Kazakhstan’s banking sector. It has pushed hard into digital, launching its own online marketplace. It is putting serious effort into expanding its lending to small and medium-sized enterprises. It has used acquisitions to increase its asset base and boost its technology. It is far from the only bank in the country to have such widespread ambitions but, under the stewardship of chief executive Guram Andronikashvili, it has managed to stay a step ahead of the competition.

Corporate social responsibility and sustainability are central to the Bank of America ethos, from the top executives down to the scrupulously regimented office bin policies. The bank’s drive has one of its most important advocates in Reiko Hayashi, the deputy president for Japan and a long-standing figure in the development of the country’s debt capital markets.

There is no financial institution in Kazakhstan quite like Halyk Bank. When Moody’s Investors Service surveyed the country’s financial system in September, it pointed to a common complaint: the system is fragmented. Halyk Bank, which has 34% of total banking assets, is the exception to that rule.

Kazakhstan’s banking system should be understood in the context of its history.

As traditional banks compete to lead the way in digital banking, one internet-only bank has stood out for its innovation, its presence in the market and its offerings to customers: kakaobank.

The last year has been an interesting one for small and medium-sized enterprises in South Korea. According to the government, SMEs account for 99% of the country’s businesses, 88% of its total employment, 38% of exports and 51% of added value. In 2018, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission announced that new rules governing loan-to-deposit ratios would go into effect at the start of 2020 for the country’s banks, encouraging more lending to small businesses. With such support, SME banking has boomed.

As Korea’s top domestic bank, Shinhan is in a position to lead the way for corporate social responsibility in the country. And the bank has done just that, under its motto of ‘Compassionate finance’.

No financial institution better traces Mongolia’s event-rich journey from herding and farming hinterland to thriving frontier economy than Khan Bank.

In 2020, Trade and Development Bank of Mongolia will celebrate both a birthday and a milestone. As the nation’s oldest bank turns 30, its trajectory also speaks to the growing sophistication of a financial sector that has had a decidedly rocky few years. It is only just over two years since a small army of IMF staffers pounced on Ulaanbaatar to remind investors about the risks of boom-and-bust cycles – and the dire need to diversify away from mining.

A few foreign investment banks are smiling in Japan right now, benefiting from a new wave of corporate governance and investor activism that has led to conglomerates starting to hive off non-core businesses and focus on what they are really good at. The result: vibrant M&A opportunities.