Location
all page content
all page content
Main body page content
LATEST ARTICLES
-
While incumbent Italian banks have seen profits surge thanks to higher rates, the shrinking size and profitability of the non-performing loan market has hit illimity hard. Unperturbed, founder and chief executive Corrado Passera believes the original premise for an SME-focused neobank is more valid than ever.
-
Nearshoring has become a topic that is discussed so often – and applied to so many issues – that it seems to be everywhere, and nowhere at once. Euromoney talks to banks operating in the Mexican market to find specific examples of new business being generated by nearshoring.
-
A small three-month issue from one of the bond market’s most frequent issuers shows the potential for on-chain delivery versus payment in central bank money. But the obstacles to widespread use of blockchains remain.
-
Having taken a hammering following Mexico’s election results and the Brazilian president's comments on fiscal consolidation, the prospects for the key Latin American currencies over the remainder of 2024 are unclear.
-
Proponents of banking-as-a-service will be hoping that UniCredit’s decision to acquire Aion Bank and Vodeno marks a turning point in a sector that has experienced considerable volatility.
-
Investing in Latin America’s payment fintechs is having a moment – but will the region’s central banks kill off their revenue model by adopting their own version of Brazil’s PIX?
-
New institutional investors are providing liquidity to longstanding Revolut employees and giving a valuation proof point to its stunning revenue and profit growth.
-
Its acquisition of Citi’s retail banking business in the Philippines has proven to be a challenge. It has put pressure on the bank’s capital buffers, while Citi’s high-end customers have shown a preference for international players.
-
Transaction banks in Asia will have to up their game to satisfy corporates who now view a strong digital offering as a prerequisite to maintaining relationships.
-
National champion banks should worry that the latest surveys commissioned by the Competition and Markets Authority might prompt loss of more primary accounts.
-
Falling inflation has sparked an early surge in credit demand, which offers the prospect of banking normalization – a potential boon given the negative real interest rates banks are earning on their government securities portfolios.
-
Guidelines published by China’s cabinet pledged to boost the quality of its capital markets. But they neither understand nor trust the vibrant-yet-turbulent nature of that financial system.
-
BDO Unibank has worked on sustainable finance in the Philippines since 2010.
-
BDO Unibank, the Philippines’ largest bank, turned in an exceptional financial performance in 2023, cementing its position as the country’s best bank.
-
New transition bond includes step-down, as new ‘green infrastructure’ bond issued.
-
Bank of Cyprus’s decision to shift its listing back to Athens also shows how far Greece has recovered.
-
The bank's new CEO has posted his first market-beating quarterly results, but the firm's exposure to lower-income segments could limit longer-term upside.
-
A report from Citi asks if Mexican banks must increase interest rates on their deposit base.
-
Huge international debt capital market issuance in September and October is forecast as investors may seek to take any US Treasury benefit through wider spreads.
-
A perfect storm – triggered by the Sahm Rule, AI-driven transactions and the unwinding of the yen carry trade – sent the Japanese and global stock markets on a wild ride. While the Bank of Japan gains more flexibility to raise rates after the unwinding, investors remain optimistic about the long-term prospects of Japanese equities.
-
India’s first international financial services centre was created by premier Narendra Modi in 2008. Today, Gift City is a flourishing hub near Ahmedabad in the country’s arid northwest. K Rajaraman, chair of the International Financial Services Centres Authority, tells Euromoney why the zone is vital to India’s financial and economic aspirations.
-
When Piyush Gupta was named chief executive of DBS in 2009, the Singapore lender was going nowhere in particular. He gave it drive and direction, buying assets around Asia and transforming it into the world’s best bank. A series of tech outages put him in the spotlight for the wrong reasons, but Gupta will leave DBS in March with his head held high and his legacy intact. His capable and charismatic successor Tan Su Shan, the first woman to run southeast Asia’s largest bank, has big shoes to fill.
-
Senior Indonesian officials have floated the idea of transforming the island paradise into a private-wealth hub to rival Hong Kong and Singapore. Jakarta certainly needs to do something to ensure that more of the wealth created onshore stays onshore.
-
New highways, bridges and tunnels make travelling in Mumbai easier than it has been in decades. A new metro line is set to open in late 2024, but the city can still be gruelling to navigate. If it wants to be a global financial hub, there is still so much more to do.
-
As multinationals navigate the complexities of developing Asian businesses – amid supply-chain reconfigurations, the rise of sustainable financing and the penetration of e-commerce – treasurers are playing a bigger role in strategic decision-making.
-
Buying Axa IM would be BNP Paribas chief executive Jean-Laurent Bonnafé’s biggest acquisition. It has been a long time in the making.
-
Alongside UniCredit’s recent acquisition of Polish financial technology company Vodeno, the US private equity takeover of VeloBank is another sign of renewed optimism in Poland.
-
The spike in bitcoin after the shooting at a Donald Trump election rally was a reminder that for all the claims of increased maturity, the world’s largest cryptocurrency remains unpredictable.
-
Revolut is strongly profitable while growing fast, diversifying revenues and finally being admitted to the banking club. Watch out.
-
The role of Mediobanca adds to the similarities between BBVA’s hostile bid for Banco Sabadell and Intesa Sanpaolo’s takeover of UBI Banca in 2020. But there are stark differences of institutional character, politics and timing.
-
Wholesale banking head Andrew Bester explains the renowned retail bank’s ambition to win new revenues building on its expertise in sustainable finance.
-
Despite Asia boasting the world’s highest mobile payment penetration rate, digital banks in the region have failed to meet expectations. Traditional banks in many Asian markets no longer view them as serious competitors. What explains this underwhelming performance and are there any exceptions?
-
Political instability in France, coupled with better EU-UK relations, could threaten Paris’ ability to rival London as a financial centre. But a focus on institutional clients among French and other EU banks is already helping London’s resilience – a trend that shows little sign of abating.
-
India’s wealth-management sector is growing fast, with new advisory firms constantly springing up. This is catnip to private equity firms keen to invest in the best growth-oriented private banks. But who will win this race and who will fall short?
-
UK pension schemes have made clear their opposition to reduced investors protections, while the FCA may come to regret pushing through its new listing regime.
-
Citi saw impressive growth over 2023 with revenue growth of 16% year on year.
-
OCBC wins the award as Singapore's best digital bank this year for enhancing its digital banking service through a series of initiatives designed to deepen engagement and improve the user experience across its platforms.
-
Hana Bank accounted for 13% of system loans and 15% of system deposits in South Korea by the end of 2023. The bank enjoys a strong domestic franchise, particularly in corporate banking, which has driven a sustained improvement in profitability despite the challenging economic backdrop.
-
Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI) – established in 2021 following the merger of Bank BRI Syariah, Bank Syariah Mandiri and Bank BNI Syariah – is a leader in Indonesia’s shariah banking system. It had reached 19 million customers by May 2023, and is Indonesia's sixth-largest bank.
-
For its range of initiatives and substantial investment in supporting social and environmental issues in the special administrative region, Bank of China (Hong Kong) wins the award this year.
-
Citi secures the award for Korea’s best investment bank in recognition of its comprehensive range of activity across M&A advisory, debt capital markets and equity capital markets.
-
In 2023, Citi saw operating revenues reach around ¥139 billion ($860 million) and total assets climb to ¥6,097 billion.
-
Citi saw impressive growth across its corporate banking services in Hong Kong in 2023. It saw year-on-year growth in its loan portfolio and funded several significant environmental, social and governance (ESG) financing transactions.
-
Banks are refining their single-dealer platforms to replicate the price comparison benefits of the multi-dealer model while accentuating the former’s unique features.
-
Cathay United Bank improved its digital customer service last year and employed artificial intelligence and big data tools to better understand its customers’ credit metrics. This resulted in record digital growth for the bank, with digital user penetration up by nearly 50% over 2022.
-
RCBC launched its new RCBC Pulz digital banking app in 2023 and continued to support for digital inclusion.
-
RCBC expanded its digital offering for small and medium-sized enterprises and saw impressive growth in the segment in 2023. The SME loans portfolio grew by 16.6% to P125.3 billion ($2.15 billion) over the year.
-
Newly onboarded corporate customers at HSBC grew by 21% last year. It introduced Smartserve, which reduces the number of days required to open an account, and Omni Collect, which simplifies the way businesses collect payments.
-
In 2023, HSBC saw its market share of foreign investment into Malaysia reach 30% of total assets under management, making it the leading custodian and clearing bank for foreign institutional investors investing in country’s capital markets. HSBCnet Get Rate, which provides its Malaysian customers with automatic preferential FX rates, was upgraded to allow 24/7 FX booking for companies with EU and US headquarters.
-
HSBC grew profit before tax by 188% in 2023 to SLR38.2 billion ($126 million).
-
HSBC had a good year in India in 2023, with profits up by 19% to $1.51 billion, from $1.27 billion the previous year.
-
HSBC achieved robust growth in 2023 with net profit growing 26% to total $566 million, with growth coming from its commercial, wealth and personal banking businesses.
-
Throughout 2023, HSBC expanded its presence in the mainland Chinese market, strengthening its operations and advancing strategic initiatives across many sectors.
-
HSBC introduced initiatives to tackle parental leave, diversity in its hiring process and to improve support for its transgender employees in Hong Kong last year.
-
In 2023, HSBC further solidified its position as Hong Kong’s best bank under the leadership of Luanne Lim, HSBC Hong Kong’s chief executive. HSBC Group’s market profit before tax soared to $10.7 billion, representing 80% year-on-year growth and contributing 35.3% to the group’s overall pre-tax profit.
-
HSBC helped Singaporean companies like Next Gen Foods and Multiplier Technologies expand overseas in 2023. It also scaled up its support for local businesses expansion in the region by introducing a $1 billion ASEAN (Association of southeast Asian Nations) growth fund for digital platform businesses and a $150 million venture debt offering aimed at scaling high growth companies.
-
OCBC had a busy 2023, launching new FX features, application programming interface (API) integration and improvements to its online platform.
-
OCBC NISP proved an invaluable partner to its small and medium-sized enterprise clients in Indonesia throughout 2023 with the launch of its Nyala Bisnis 2.0 platform and initiatives to empower women-owned SMEs.
-
The banking environment in Tunisia worsened last year due to the absence of a financing package to meet the government’s funding needs. This led to Moody's downgrading four banks in January 2023 because of the sovereign downgrade. The agency changed its outlook on the sector to stable in January 2024.
-
Banks in Ghana have faced a difficult couple of years thanks to the government of Ghana’s debt default and domestic debt exchange programme announced in November 2022.
-
Goldman Sachs has been the preeminent mergers and acquisitions advisory firm for almost as long as the business has existed in its modern form. Its performance in the difficult environment of 2023 showed how resilient its franchise is, and it once again wins the award for North America’s best bank for advisory.
-
Raiffeisen Bank is Albania’s best bank this year in recognition of its retail, corporate and treasury banking services, and its strong financial performance during the year. This was demonstrated across product and service enhancements in its main three banking businesses.
-
The banking sector in DR Congo is undergoing transition. The central bank has proposed new ownership requirements for banks in the country, stipulating that they must have at least four unrelated shareholders. At the same time, large banks outside the country, such as Kenya’s KCB and Equity Bank, are eyeing the market as a potential growth opportunity – hardly surprising when less than a third of the DR Congolese population has a bank account.
-
North America’s Best Digital Bank: Bank of America
-
Lithuanian banks successfully shrugged off a stagnating economy and the government’s windfall tax last year to double net profits.
-
The recent move by Greek lender Eurobank to establish a majority stake in Hellenic Bank, Cyprus’ second largest bank, is a potentially transformational deal for the island’s banking sector. During the awards review period, however, it was still unclear when or if Eurobank would be able to merge its existing Cypriot business with Hellenic, but if it does, it could become the largest bank in the country.
-
Scotiabank has long championed a variety of environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities in its business and considers walking the talk to be crucial in its home region. For its continued commitment to doing things right, Scotiabank is North America’s best bank for corporate responsibility.
-
In 2023, central and eastern Europe’s M&A markets held up relatively well, with a total deal value of more than $30 billion according to Dealogic. Lazard, CEE’s best bank for advisory, was involved in many of the most important advisory situations in the region.
-
In a year (very) short on equity capital markets activity, it was in the debt and the loan market that Standard Bank shone brightest in 2023.
-
For HSBC, 2023 was an important year at its UK ring-fenced bank. This delivered its strongest set of results since it was created in 2018, with revenue coming in 36% higher than in 2022. That was in part thanks to higher rates and fat net interest margins, but also to key strategic decisions, such as to make growing market share in mortgages a priority.
-
Despite the overbearing presence in Hungary of national champion OTP – and the emergence in 2023 of a much larger government-owned lender in the form of MBH Bank – international firms continue to compete in the domestic market. The biggest of these international players is K&H Bank, owned by Brussels-based group KBC.
-
The 100th anniversary of Isbank, Turkey’s biggest private-sector lender, has come after some challenging years for the country's economy and financial sector.
-
Banco Angolano de Investimentos (BAI) posted impressive financial results for 2023. Profit before tax stood at AKz220 billion ($250 million), almost double its 2022 result (AKz115 billion), and the bank achieved a return on equity of 36%, up from 26% the year before.
-
CTBC Bank has cemented its position in Taiwan’s best bank over the past year. Driven by its dual track digital innovation and environmental, social and governance (ESG) based transformation, the bank achieved a record net profit of NT$41.3 billion ($1.3 billion) in 2023, with a cost-to-income ratio of 55.16% and a return on equity of 11.9%, the highest among its peers. Revenue and pre-tax profit grew by 16% and 12%, respectively.
-
Access Bank made profit before tax of N569 billion ($380 million) in 2023, a big improvement on the previous year's N163 billion. This was in part due to the devaluation of the naira in 2023, but was also driven by the bank’s aggressive expansion strategy, which has seen its footprint in Africa expand and the establishment of its first branch in France.
-
BofA Securities faced tough competition to retain the award for Latin America’s best investment bank. Deal flow in international capital markets transactions was disappointing and local markets absorbed a larger proportion of financing than normal; a trend that played to strong local franchises rather than the US firm. Nevertheless, BofA’s strength – especially in the Andean region, where the bank won best investment bank awards in Chile, Colombia and Peru – saw it fend off the local challenge.
-
Banca Intesa Beograd had standout year in 2023, launching a number of key initiatives and delivering another set of record results.
-
For the volume of sustainable finance being provided to the Turkish economy, as well as innovation in sustainability products, Akbank wins the award as best bank for environmental, social and governance this year.
-
Millennium bim, Euromoney’s best bank in Mozambique this year, has focused its efforts on technological improvements during the period under review.
-
By far the biggest bank by assets in the country and boasting nine million account holders, ING is also the best bank in the Netherlands this year.
-
Despite the Estonian economy experiencing a severe recession last year, the country’s banking sector remained robust and continued to generate stellar growth, supported by the resilience of companies and households facing higher interest rates.
-
HSBC is a powerhouse in sustainable finance in Asia: a multiple winner of this award and for good reason.
-
Overall 2023 was a challenging year for Colombia’s economy and most of its large banks would have felt reasonably happy with their static performance. But BBVA managed to outperform the market in most banking segments. The firm ended last year as the leading foreign bank in the country and the fourth largest in the financial sector, with an 11.2% market share in terms of assets. However, it was the growth in the difficult conditions that sealed the award for Colombia’s best bank. BBVA grew total loans by 6.4% in the year and increased its market share by 50 basis points to 11.6%, led by an 8.5% increase in loans to individuals, which took market share of that segment to 14.9%, a 106bp rise.
-
Tourism is central to the economy of the Bahamas and the country continued to recover from the pandemic-enforced lockdowns with strong GDP growth of more than 4% in 2023. Scotiabank’s business in the country similarly continues to improve from the Covid years and, in 2023, the bank achieved its highest profitability for 15 years with net income of $70.3 million, up by almost 46% year on year. The bank’s management attributes this to a range of initiatives executed in previous years, such as the branch network optimization strategy and revenue enhancement strategies to progressively lower operating costs and boost revenues.
-
Slightly later than expected, early 2023 saw the legal completion of OTP’s takeover of Nova KBM, Slovenia’s second-biggest bank, first announced in mid 2021. OTP announced in mid April 2024 that it planned to merge Nova KBM with SKB banka – which it bought from Societe Generale in 2019 – in the second half of 2024, subject to regulatory approvals. OTP said the merged entity’s brand will be OTP banka and it will be the country’s biggest bank, overtaking national champion NLB.
-
The economies of central America have been growing rapidly since the end of the pandemic. Some of this is the natural rebound of economic activity among countries that have outsized tourist sectors; and increased spending in this sector is one of the leading themes of the past couple of years.
-
Stanbic Bank Uganda (SBU) turned in a strong performance over the review period. Net profit was USh421 billion ($110 million), up 18% from USh357 billion in 2022. Net loans increased to USh4 trillion, while deposits ended the year at USh6 trillion, both up 3% on 2022.
-
As the equity capital markets remained sluggish across Europe last year, financing activity was all about debt. So, it is perhaps no surprise that western Europe’s best bank for financing this year is the one that dominated the debt capital markets league tables working on 509 deals worth $128 billion equivalent for a 7% market share: BNP Paribas. Even in ECM, the French firm ranked number five behind sector leaders BofA Securities and Goldman Sachs.
-
For a global lender, Citi’s investment-banking presence in Africa is hard to compete with. The US firm has an onshore presence in 16 countries and covers 38 markets, with a dedicated team in Johannesburg supported by corporate bankers across the region.
-
For a small economy, Luxembourg boasts many banks: 120 were authorized in 2023. Many of these primarily serve international clients, in particular providing securities services to institutional investors from across Europe and beyond.
-
Until recently investment banking in central America and the Caribbean was about having the best debt offering. The few international debt capital market mandates were obviously crucial to gain this credibility, but a presence in dollar and local-currency loans was also critical. Today it’s more complicated. The equity capital market still doesn’t really feature, but sustainable finance is crucial to the region. Moreover, the growing cross-border presence of many companies active in these countries means that transaction and treasury services are now areas of true competitive differentiation.
-
Khan Bank, Mongolia’s largest bank with a 30% market share, receives the award as the country’s best bank in recognition of its solid growth and the successful completion of its initial public offering.
-
Standard Bank successfully implemented innovative digital products across all banking segments in 2023 while also making important philanthropic contributions in Malawi.
-
Even its rivals in Spain admit to feeling the impact last year as CaixaBank moved on from integrating Bankia to concentrating more exclusively on developing its business organically. This is evident, for example, in the savings market, where its customer funds increased by 3.1% in 2023. In insurance, a vital part of the group’s activities, there was also healthy growth, with a 7% volume growth in general and life risk premiums.
-
The awards period marked a triumphant return to performance for Allied Irish Banks (AIB), Ireland’s best bank. Putting behind it its involvement in the years-long industry-wide tracker mortgage scandal in Ireland, for which it was fined €100 million in 2022, the bank posted a very strong recovery in 2023, with record profits that nearly tripled versus the previous year. Revenues rose 62%, driven by net interest income that was up more than 80%.
-
Ecobank Gabon delivered strong growth over the awards period while also expanding its product suite.
-
First Bank of Nigeria (FirstBank) wins the best bank for corporates award this year for its investment in digital, support of sustainability and the financial performance it has delivered.
-
It has been a great time to be a Greek banker. Rating agencies returned the sovereign to investment grade in 2023 and the country’s lenders, having reduced non-performing loans and cost of risk while rebuilding capital ratios, also delivered improved profits.
-
Banreservas’ president Samuel Pereyra would argue that as a state-owned bank, all of its activities are led by a sense of corporate responsibility. Its loan portfolios are directed towards providing credit to industries targeted as crucial for the Dominican economy’s growth and its recent international expansion has been developed to facilitate financing flows between the country and its large international diaspora.
-
Equity Bank continued to grow its total assets in 2023, surpassing the KSh1 trillion ($7.7 billion) mark at the end of the year. The bank maintained a third of its consumer loans to salaried civil servants, teachers and private-sector employees at 13% interest, despite the central bank hiking rates much higher.
-
NLB Banka is Montenegro’s best bank, having demonstrated strong growth and development last year, which in turn contributed to its record bottom line.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management operates across 17 countries, serving a client base of entrepreneurs, family offices and high net-worth individuals.
-
Despite the Latvian economy dipping into recession last year, the banking sector delivered impressive bottom-line growth, with total profits almost doubling year on year to €622 million.
-
Prospects for the Azerbaijani banking sector continue to improve as bank balance sheets strengthen and tighter regulatory oversight is established. Nowhere is this more evident than at Bank ABB – International Bank of Azerbaijan – which has made good progress since the decisive resolution of its legacy risks in 2022.
-
While one of the smaller banking markets in Latin America, Uruguay has some excellent banks that generate some exceptionally strong financial results. Part of that success is due to a consistently strong economic backdrop – and in 2023 significantly higher interest rates also helped. However, individual management teams can also take a large part of the credit and this year Banco Santander’s chief executive Gustavo Trelles repeats his success of last year by retaining the award for Uruguay’s best bank.
-
Paraguay continues to prove that a raft of business-friendly economic policies can pay off in Latin America, with the small landlocked country enjoying GDP growth of 4.5%. Part of that bump was due to the recovery from the previous year’s drought, but economists are confident of another year of growth above 3% in 2024.
-
In 2023, HSBC further solidified its position as Hong Kong’s best bank. Under the leadership of Luanne Lim, HSBC Hong Kong’s chief executive, the bank’s profit before tax soared to $10.7 billion, representing 80% year-on-year growth and contributing 35.3% to the group’s overall pre-tax profit.
-
Peruvian banks had a difficult time in 2023, with zero GDP growth and a material contraction in domestic demand. However, inflation did begin to subside during the second half of the year, which led the central bank to reduce the reference interest rate for Peruvian soles by 100 basis points, ending the year at 6.25%. This reduction had a mixed impact for banks, lowering the average net interest margin but improving the country’s economic outlook.
-
Societe Generale Côte d’Ivoire is again named the best bank in the country after a year in which profit before tax was up 32% at CFEFr120 billion ($42 million) from CFEFr91 billion in 2022. The bank has shown strong commitment to the Ivory Coast despite exiting other African markets such as the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania and Chad. Indeed, Societe Generale deputy CEO of the group Pierre Palmieri visited Abidjan last year to reinforce this.
-
Market doubts, three years ago, about whether Andrea Orcel’s management of UniCredit would be sufficiently orientated to shareholder value have proven to be far from the mark. Orcel might have shied away from a deal with the Italian government to buy Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena in 2021, but this has not prevented UniCredit from remaining a large and growing part of the European banking story.
-
Nothing shows BBVA’s ability to harness what was once viewed as a disparate set of national banks around Latin America into a cohesive, integrated banking institution better than the success of its transaction services business.
-
If there was ever a time that demonstrated JPMorgan’s credentials as the country’s best bank, it was the crisis in March and April 2023 when US regional banks suddenly faced a balance sheet reckoning triggered by the rapid change in interest rates.
-
It was a mixed year in Austrian banking in 2023. Higher eurozone interest rates bolstered banks’ net interest margins, but at the end of the year the bankruptcy of Austrian real estate group Signa shone the spotlight on what Moody’s said was €2.2 billion of lending by Austrian banks to Signa.
-
BNP Paribas has enviable sustainable finance credentials globally, but Latin America has become a particular area of strength for the French bank. In 2023, it led on some truly landmark transactions for clients throughout the region and can claim to be leading the evolution of sustainable finance in Latin America.
-
While Mexico is at the centre of the nearshoring debate, Costa Rica is quietly getting the job done. In 2023 the country attracted foreign direct investment inflows equal to 12% of its economy, which in turn drove economic growth above 5%. Costa Rica has long been an appealing place to develop service companies that sell into the US, including 170 shared service centres that perform back office and strategic operations for parent companies.
-
Banco Angolano de Investimentos (BAI) posted impressive financial results for 2023. Profit before tax stood at AKz220 billion ($250 million), almost double its 2022 result (AKz115 billion), and the bank achieved a return on equity of 36%, up from 26% the year before.
-
It is not normally thought of as one of the banks with a large stronghold on central and eastern Europe. Nevertheless, BNP Paribas still owns relatively large banks in what are, in effect after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the region’s two biggest markets in terms of banking: Poland and Turkey.
-
Zambia National Commercial Bank (Zanaco) is again Euromoney’s best bank in Zambia. Profit before tax increased 44% year on year to KK1.74 billion ($65 million), including a 109% boost in the third quarter driven by income earned on government securities, trading and an uptick in net fees and commission.
-
Commerzbank has seen a remarkable bounce back in its profitability and share price over the past four years, something that was particularly apparent in 2023. The year began with its re-inclusion in the DAX in February, five years after it was ejected from the index of German blue-chip stocks. This was thanks to a dramatic recovery in its share price from the depths it hit during the early Covid-19 period.
-
The fourth-biggest bank in Portugal, which has been fully owned by Spain’s CaixaBank since the end of 2018, saw an exceptional performance in 2023. After record results for the firm across the board, Banco BPI is clear winner of the award for Portugal’s best bank.
-
The fourth-biggest bank in Portugal, which has been fully owned by Spain’s CaixaBank since the end of 2018, saw an exceptional performance in 2023. After record results for the firm across the board, Banco BPI is clear winner of the award for Portugal’s best bank.
-
There are many ways in which banks can demonstrate their commitment to social responsibility and some come amid the most challenging times. The devastating earthquake in southern Turkey at the beginning of last year triggered an immediate response in support for the affected communities from the country’s corporate and banking sectors.
-
Kasikornbank (KBank) receives the award for Thailand’s best bank in in recognition of its commitment to enhancing asset quality in a challenging market and its dedication to sustainability initiatives.
-
While political protests in Tbilisi introduced some additional risk to the Georgian economy last year, economic growth remained robust thanks to strong domestic demand and capital inflows from tourism and exports.
-
Life for small and medium-sized enterprises is rarely comfortable. Even when your business is faring well, the capricious nature of policymakers and markets can upend carefully laid plans.
-
CAC International demonstrated a robust financial performance last year, with assets growing by 8% to $536 million and profit before tax reaching $2.374 million, a 38% increase year on year.
-
SEB, a regular winner of this award, certainly did not rest on its laurels in 2023, posting strong financial results and was able to boast a host of developments across its franchises. For its consistently dominant performance, it is once again Sweden’s best bank.
-
Banco Santander CIB’s steady progress in Brazil – by far Latin America’s biggest market for financing – coincided with a greater emphasis on local markets financing in 2023. The bank’s sweet spot, straddling local and international debt capital markets, as well as loan financing, meant that it had a very strong year across various debt segments. According to Dealogic, Santander CIB – which is led in the region by Rafael Noya, global head of global debt financing – was the leading underwriter of domestic DCM throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, helped by a second place in Brazil, where it took a 9% share of local issuance. Santander’s local strength was also supported by a strong showing in international DCM.
-
Under group chief executive Andrea Orcel, UniCredit has reaffirmed its commitment to central and eastern Europe – highlighted by its announcement of the €300 million purchase of Alpha Bank Romania, part of a deal that also involved it taking a stake in the Athens-based group.
-
-
In a difficult economic landscape, Eastern Bank has once again proven its mettle, delivering impressive growth and financial performance in 2023. The bank’s net profit surged by 19.6%, while its assets rose by 11.5%. This is particularly noteworthy considering the high base set in 2022. Return on equity improved to 16.3% from 15.5% in 2022.
-
International banks inevitably capture a large share of international debt issuance from Poland, notably the sovereign and large commercial banks. But Trigon remains a national success story in investment banking as a purely Polish and private-sector player. It has a large local team that includes one of the country’s most extensive equity research capabilities.
-
HSBC was the standout candidate in this award this year, dominating transaction banking in Asia.
-
While Honduras has shifted its political allegiance to China – it ended diplomatic relations with Taiwan in an attempt to win investment from the Asian superpower – its real problems lie closer to home. The economy is stuck in a remittances trap, with annual payments from its diaspora back to the country worth almost 30% of GDP, which is the highest ratio in the region.
-
Morocco-based Bank of Africa boasts a long and storied history as a leading lender to regional small and medium-sized enterprises. Last year, it secured a €50 million credit line from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to increase financing for SMEs across the continent.
-
Even its rivals in Spain admit to feeling the impact last year as CaixaBank moved on from integrating Bankia to concentrating more exclusively on developing its business organically. This is evident, for example, in the savings market, where its customer funds increased by 3.1% in 2023. In insurance, a vital part of the group’s activities, there was also healthy growth, with a 7% volume growth in general and life risk premiums.
-
Giving state-owned lenders awards for commercial banking is typically something Euromoney is reluctant to do, especially in former Communist countries. But anyone who knows Ukraine knows that PrivatBank is not your average former Soviet state-owned bank.
-
As in so many other areas of the bank’s franchise, JPMorgan’s wealth management performance in 2023 was a good illustration of the unique qualities of the US’s preeminent banking institution. It is North America’s best bank for wealth management.
-
Societe Generale’s global reputation as a driver of green and sustainable principles and investment, plus its long presence across Africa, combine to make the Paris-based lender a clear winner of this award on the continent.
-
The Bolivian financial system has been facing dollar scarcity for more than a year now and the impact on the economy has been predictably negative, with Fitch recently downgrading the country to CCC from B-. It has been a long running crisis, with the strongest and best bank in the system Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz (BMSC), playing an important role in providing much-needed liquidity. One of the peaks of the liquidity crunch came in March 2023 and BMSC played a systemically important role by meeting dollar demand when it had evaporated from many other banks.
-
For its range and quality of corporate banking services, investment in digital, and financial performance, Kotak Mahindra Bank wins the award of India's best bank for corporates this year.
-
Banco Santander’s wealth management proposition has been resonating in Latin America in recent years. It has been one of the big engines of growth for Santander’s wealth management and insurance division in 2023, which contributed €3.3 billion in profit to the group, up 21% year on year. The bank’s strong regional footprint – as well as its presence in the US and Europe – gives it a perfect competitive proposition for wealthy Latin Americans, who are increasingly interested in diversifying their portfolio into international assets and currencies.
-
A spike in Armenian bank M&A this year has underscored the growth opportunity for banks in the local market. The country’s best bank, Ameriabank, was bought by Bank of Georgia earlier this year, and Ardshinbank is in the process of acquiring HSBC Armenia.
-
Techcombank further solidified its leadership in Vietnam’s banking sector in 2023. This has been driven by its five-year transformation journey focusing on investments in digital, data and talent under chief executive Jens Lottner, who took the helm in 2020.
-
BBVA achieved impressive momentum in Latin America during 2023, winning individual best bank awards in Colombia and Mexico, and coming close in Peru. Its bank in Argentina also posted respectable growth and is poised to take advantage of a potentially more benign economic outlook. The Spanish firm also capitalized on its market leading position in Mexico to win the award for the country’s best investment bank and is also Latin America’s best bank for transaction services – a landmark win in an sector that has traditionally been dominated by US banks.
-
In recognition of multiple market-leading developments in its banking business and an impressive financial performance last year, maib is Moldova’s best bank.
-
Bank SinoPac has long focused on initiatives to promote responsible and inclusive finance, primarily by channelling loans to small businesses. The total outstanding of such lending to small and medium-sized enterprises was NT$325 billion ($10 billion) at the end of 2023.
-
El Salvador’s economy is performing poorly considering that its president Nayib Bukele recently won a landslide presidential election. His popularity belies an economy that has been blighted by high inflation, rising poverty and low growth.
-
First National Bank of Botswana delivered significant improvements in financial performance last year and made good progress in digital transformation, customer retention and social responsibility.
-
Under the steady leadership of chief executive Kjerstin Braathen, Norway’s biggest bank continues to perform strongly and is far from relaxing its efforts just because of its size. DNB faces an surprising array of competition in such a small market, with more than 100 banks operating in the country, but its progress ensures it remains Norway’s best bank for another year.
-
It is hardly surprising that an Italian bank should excel at lending to small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the backbone of the industrial strategy of the country. SMEs are at the heart of UniCredit’s UniCredit per l’Italia strategy, which has seen a further €10 billion of support extended to individuals and corporates this year – including a special assistance package for Emilia Romagna in May in response to widespread flooding.
-
After being knocked back by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Kazakhstan’s economy rebounded last year, notching up over 5% growth on strong levels of consumer and public spending.
-
Things could not have gone much worse in 2023 for Islandsbanki, the bank that won this award in the past two years. A long-awaited regulatory report into the sale of part of the government’s holding in 2022 found that Islandsbanki itself had committed various violations during the process. Islandsbanki was fined Isk1.2 billion ($8.6 million), a record for Iceland.
-
Techcombank further solidified its leadership in Vietnam’s banking sector in 2023. This has been driven by its five-year transformation journey focusing on investments in digital, data and talent under chief executive Jens Lottner, who took the helm in 2020.
-
Most banks focus their corporate responsibility agendas on environmental, social and governance metrics and the drive to net zero, as well as on diversity and inclusion in terms of their customers and their own workforces. Banco Santander, western Europe’s best bank for corporate responsibility, has for many years looked beyond these core aspects of responsibility and found other ways to contribute to society.
-
Equity Bank Kenya claims its mission is to empower clients and stakeholders, both socially and economically.
-
Often this award goes to the bank that has done a particularly good job of providing useful digital features through a smartphone app to retail customers. This year we recognize a wholesale bank, most renowned for the technology behind its CashPro offering for payments, receivables, liquidity and FX management. Bank of America is western Europe’s best digital bank.
-
Transaction services are a vital part of UniCredit’s rationale as a pan-European bank, and its leadership in this area is particularly evident in central and eastern Europe, where the bank’s regional head of transactions and payments is Riccardo Madinelli.
-
Benefiting from robust economic growth in the country, Uzbekistan’s banking sector continued its rapid expansion last year and one bank led the pack, SQB, the country’s second largest lender.
-
Dominican Republic president Luis Abinader’s election win was good news for state-controlled bank Banreservas because it ensures stability in senior management, led by the bank’s president Samuel Pereyra, at a time when it is on something of a roll.
-
Since its foundation in 1885 as a cooperative and mutual bank, social usefulness has been central to Crédit Agricole’s business model. It was an early pioneer of sustainable finance. It was one of the first banks to commit to exiting the thermal coal industry by 2030 in OECD countries and by 2040 for the rest of the world.
-
The Czech Republic has long been considered one of the most attractive banking markets in central and eastern Europe in terms of the risk-return dynamic. All the top five banks are foreign-owned, and the sector has been relatively consistent in terms of its earnings. The higher interest-rate environment, so far, has reinforced the sector’s good profitability, despite a new tax on bank profits, not least because asset quality has remained healthy.
-
Yet again, DBS stands head and shoulders above the field in Asian wealth management.
-
Belgium-based KBC’s Bulgarian unit formally merged with former Raiffeisen International Bank subsidiary United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) in 2023, creating the country’s biggest bank. KBC had completed the legal acquisition of RBI’s operations in Bulgaria in 2022. Most of the synergies of the merger were, therefore, far from being realised in 2023 as the operational integration was only just beginning.
-
Nedbank wins the best digital bank in Africa award for the second year in a row, courtesy of its push to reform and re-engineer its IT system, with the aim of cutting costs, attracting new business and favouring an approach that focuses on evolution rather than revolution.
-
MUFG, Japan’s largest bank, had an excellent financial year in the 12 months to March 2024, setting new records for the group.
-
In each of equity and debt capital markets, syndicated loans and M&A advisory, Truist Securities ranked higher than its super-regional peers in 2023, according to Dealogic. For its consistency and the progress it has made since the merger of SunTrust and BB&T that created the firm at the end of 2019, Truist wins the award for the US’s best super-regional investment bank this year.
-
DemirBank is Kyrgyzstan’s best bank in recognition of an impressive performance last year.
-
Scotiabank is delivering on the promise of its 2018 acquisition of BBVA’s bank in Chile by consolidating its position as the third-largest private sector bank and is now closing in on second place. The bank closed 2023 with a 14% market share and, according to Fitch Ratings, the best risk rating in the industry. In Chile, Scotiabank enjoyed the highest income growth in the financial system. A combination of fierce cost control and increased digital penetration enabled the bank to generate a 41% efficiency ratio and significant savings. The other side of the balance sheet was also strong: revenues grew 10%. The bank’s operating income grew 9% and its return on equity rose to 12.3%.
-
‘Being there’ is one of Citi’s many skills. It is always there for clients: underwriting stock offerings, printing bonds and taking the lead on bridge loans to support complex acquisitions.
-
Ecobank Guinea rolled out its Xpress Loan service in Guinea last year, which enables customers to obtain short-term micro credit loans using their mobile phones. The service was launched in partnership with Dubai fintech Optasia and pan-African telecommunications giant MTN.
-
Once again, Morgan Stanley is Asia’s best bank for advisory. The investment bank was the undisputed leader in region-wide advisory during the awards period, notching $172 billion in completed and $117 billion in announced transactions.
-
Citi stands head and shoulders above its rivals in this category. The products it generates are designed to help day-to-day business for all its clients, be they global corporates working in and across Africa, or African firms scaling up their regional and international presence.
-
The Belgian government’s retail bond programme last year, which pressured lenders to raise deposits, was just one element of a relatively tough environment for banks in Belgium. The country also sits at the opposite end of the spectrum to southern Europe in terms of the proportion of loans on floating-rate deals, meaning local banks benefit less from higher eurozone interest rates.
-
Romania was the place of perhaps the most important bank M&A deal to be announced in 2023: the merger of the local units of Italian group UniCredit and Greece’s Alpha Bank. The deal promised to allow UniCredit, as the owner of 90% of the merged entity, to supplant Societe Generale-owned BRD as the country’s third-biggest bank.
-
Nerves were jangling hard in Europe last year, when the panic that had seen many tens of billions of dollars’ worth of deposits flee large US regional banks in a matter of hours suddenly began emerging in Europe.
-
Nearly all banks today make claims to be helping to save the planet in one way or another. One that has consistently done more than most when it comes to shifting the balance within the financial services industry is Bank of America, and it wins the award for North America’s best bank for sustainable finance.
-
Croatia’s entry into the euro in January 2023 was a landmark event for the country’s banking sector, which is dominated by banks from elsewhere in the European Union.
-
Western Europe is the most competitive region in the world for investment banking. The big five US firms, with the ambition and capability to claim global leadership, all lead transactions for the continent’s biggest companies as well as for US and Asian multinationals acquiring and raising capital in Europe.
-
Transaction banking clients faced many challenges in 2023, mostly as a result of the rapidly shifting interest rate environment. That made it vital to have a banking partner that could supply reliable advice on liquidity management.
-
For the second year in a row, Standard Bank walks away with the award for the best bank in Africa. And for good reason.
-
Some capital markets franchises make their name for sheer volume, topping the deal rankings by simply being everywhere. Others take a different tack, picking spots where they know they excel and then doing so. For yet again being on some of the most challenging and intellectually demanding deals in the review period, Morgan Stanley is North America’s best bank for financing.
-
In a tumultuous year for China’s investment banks, marked by a muted IPO market and stricter regulatory oversight, CICC has emerged as the undisputed leader. While prominent Chinese investment banks, such as Citic, have faced investigation case filings from the regulator, CICC has solidified its position at the forefront of the industry, particularly in the domestic M&A space.
-
Ecobank Sierra Leone recorded double-digit growth in its commercial banking operations last year, with gross loans to business customers up by 45% to $11.8 million. Customer deposits were up by 3%, reaching $25.7 million.
-
With volumes in the capital markets subdued in 2023, there was increased client interest in private markets and M&A transactions. BofA Securities – led by Augusto Urmeneta, president of Bank of America for Latin America and head of Latin America global corporate and investment banking – embraced this challenge and helped clients tap alternative sources of liquidity. M&A was an important strategic option for many companies and BofA’s deal list featured 26 clients in five countries with both cross-border and domestic transactions, which accounted for a 9.5% market share in terms of fee revenues ($52.2 million).
-
HSBC wins the award for western Europe’s best bank for transaction services thanks to the delivery of an impressive range of services to corporate treasurers that the bank has developed over years of heavy investment.
-
New Zealand’s high interest rate cycle has significantly impacted borrowing demand and funding costs, marking the end of an era of record profits for banks. Despite these challenges, ASB Bank, owned by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, has demonstrated resilience during the awards period and is New Zealand’s best bank.
-
Established in 1947 as Pakistan’s first commercial bank, HBL has consistently been at the forefront of the banking industry’s evolution. Last year, it solidified its position as a trailblazer, delivering impressive financial results while demonstrating its commitment to innovation. In recognition of this it receives the award for Pakistan’s best bank.
-
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has solidified its standing as Australia’s best bank, driven not only by robust financial performance but also by its disciplined approach to margin management. Under the stewardship of chief executive Matt Comyn, the bank has strategically opted not to compete for less profitable mortgage customers to focus on delivering sustainable returns.
-
Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB) had another good year in 2023 and is again the best bank in the country for the review period.
-
When Scotiabank’s long-serving chief executive Brian Porter stepped down at the end of January 2023, after 10 years at the helm and more than 40 years at the bank, he left an institution that was in better shape than he found it, but one that still had much to do.
-
French banks have not had the net interest margin bonanza that higher interest rates have offered many southern European banks recently. In fact, some French banks saw profit decreases in their domestic retail divisions last year, while areas like markets and vehicle leasing have been less of a support to group profit compared to the immediate post-pandemic period.
-
Despite 2023 not being a year for the record books in investment banking and capital markets, clients still required careful and thoughtful advice even when they were not doing landmark deals. For its consistency and all-round excellence, JPMorgan takes the US award for best investment bank.
-
The M&A advisory rankings for 2023 tell a familiar story in western Europe. JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs rank top both by revenue and by deal value. But Rothschild & Co advised on almost twice as many transactions as either of the bulge bracket pair and it maintained its third place in the revenue league table ahead even of Morgan Stanley.
-
For many banks, sustainable finance is about more than just finance, it is about the quality of advice they provide and what they themselves are doing to be more sustainable.
-
Under the leadership of president Khairussaleh Ramli, Maybank has exceeded the broader industry performance and achieved several milestones this year, for which it receives the award for Malaysia’s best bank. With total assets exceeding RM1 trillion ($212 billion) and a remarkable 17.5% rise in net profit to RM9.35 billion in 2023, the bank has grown while delivering record dividend payouts. Profit before tax was up 5.6% and return on equity rose to 10.8% from 9.6% in the previous year.
-
Despite a local economic slowdown, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s banking sector remained healthy in 2023 for growth, profits and asset quality. It is a market that UniCredit Bank Mostar and Raiffeisen Bank dominate in terms of market share, and this year UniCredit – led locally by chief executive Amina Mahmutović – retains the award for the country’s best bank.
-
To be the best investment bank in the fastest growing continent you can’t just be here or there, you must be everywhere.
-
With economic growth softening in Trinidad and Tobago – this year GDP is expected to come in at 2.2% compared to 2.5% in 2023 – Scotiabank continues to outperform other banks in the local market. Led by country manager Gayle Pazos, Scotiabank’s focus on digital transformation saw improvements in its platform relating to accessibility upgrades and security enhancements. The significant investment from the bank in this area over the past three years is helping to deliver efficiency and, in turn, stronger financial results.
-
Cross-border transactions involving multiple products that combine advisory, equity and debt financing are the bread and butter of a franchise like RBC Capital Markets. The firm’s performance in 2023 makes it a worthy winner of the award for Canada’s best investment bank.
-
Access Bank Gambia impressed this year with its strong financial results, effective support for small and medium-sized enterprises and important philanthropic work.
-
The definition of excellence in these Euromoney awards is multifaceted. Sometimes the best bank is the one that has innovated and changed the market, sometimes the momentum in the market deserves recognition and at other times the player that dominates in terms of scale and profitability is the winner. It’s not often all three, but in Brazil, Nubank has revolutionized the retail banking market while enjoying unprecedented growth that has begun to feed – thanks to its highly efficient operating model – into operational leverage that is driving market-leading profitability.
-
Welcome to the optimistic part of the cycle for Argentina: international investment banks re-rate the outlook for the small cohort of large, listed banks and those banks start to look to consolidate. The last cycle saw equity issuance, but the banks had barely topped up the funds in their M&A war chests before the optimism faded away alongside their newly positive book values.
-
Singapore’s big lenders tend to dominate banking for small and medium-sized enterprises in Asia, and this year is no exception, with UOB beating its domestic rivals to this award.
-
Some analysts were quick to call it the deal of the century. The first takeover of a global systemically important bank that repeated management errors and regulatory failure had brought to the brink of collapse was a rescue by its domestic rival. It was a humiliation for Switzerland that, with customers pulling their money in vast quantities over several months, Credit Suisse was left to carry on to the very brink of insolvency.
-
There is so much to like about Sampath Bank’s approach to corporate responsibility. The Sri Lankan bank spent Rs91.3 million ($300,000) on all corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in 2023. That is small compared to the sums lavished on the space by bigger lenders. Yet the bank, which allocates 1% of net profit to projects that further environmental and social sustainability, manages to squeeze so much out of what it has to give.
-
There are many reasons why Citi wins this year’s award for Asia’s best digital bank. Above all, the bank has no peer when it comes to investing year after year in cutting-edge digital solutions that benefit all of its clients.
-
A strong financial performance together with a series of new initiatives, including in environmental, social and governance, make Standard Bank Euromoney’s best bank in South Africa this year.
-
For its mix of sustainable finance structuring expertise and innovation in retail banking, ING wins the award this year.
-
As India’s second-largest private bank, ICICI Bank has once again demonstrated its ability to outperform its peers. While its formidable competitor, HDFC Bank, has a significant acquisition to digest, ICICI Bank has seized the opportunity to catch up in valuation and surpass market expectations, making it India’s best bank this year.
-
Led by its head of wealth and investment Jacques Els, Standard Bank Wealth & Investment is a private-banking powerhouse in Africa.
-
All banks invest heavily in their digital products and services, but the return on that investment can vary widely.
-
Nicaragua’s economy suffered a rapid deceleration from the 10% growth rate it experienced in the immediate post-pandemic reopening. Political and economic volatility impacted the financial system and there was distinct evidence of a risk-off attitude to loan growth from most of the country’s main banks.
-
NMB Bank is Euromoney’s best bank in Tanzania for 2024. Total assets grew by 19%, from $3.95 billion at the end of 2022 to $4.7 billion at the end of 2023. Net profit was also up 26% at $208.6 million. Both increases are the product of loan growth of 28% and a rise in the number of customer accounts – the bank opened 1.2 million new accounts in 2023 alone.
-
For Danske Bank, Denmark’s best bank, 2023 was a year of rehabilitation after a difficult period that culminated in the settlement in late 2022 of historic money laundering issues. With a strong financial performance that saw profits nearly double even after adjusting for the regulatory charges in 2022, the bank has come roaring back to life.
-
BDO Unibank, the Philippines’ largest bank, turned in an exceptional financial performance in 2023, cementing its position as the country’s best bank.
-
The strategic case for banks to remain in central and eastern Europe remains intact: that is the official line from Scope Ratings at least. The agency found that faster growth and higher interest rates in CEE have, overall, boosted the profitability of western European banks present in the region.
-
Global IME Bank’s merger with the Bank of Kathmandu last year proved to be a game changer, catapulting the combined entity to the top of Nepal’s banking sector. This merger is considered an effective step in consolidating the country’s financial resources and in recognition of this, it receives the awards for Nepal’s best bank.
-
After years of political upheaval and economic crisis, Sri Lanka showed signs of stabilization in the second half of 2023. Despite the challenging landscape, Hatton National Bank (HNB) achieved record growth in the review period and cemented its position as Sri Lanka’s best bank.
-
For many US regional banks, the priority in the first part of 2023 was simply survival. But for the very best, ambitions went much further than that. For its excellent financial performance, the product of wise decisions made years ago and the continued execution of an impressive strategy, Fifth Third is the US's best super-regional bank.
-
In 2023, Korean banks faced a perfect storm, grappling with regulatory pressure to lower interest margins while facing intense profitability hurdles. In addition, the country’s largest banks found themselves embroiled in a scandal around the mis-selling of equity-linked securities that had resulted in substantial losses for consumers.
-
Like in the neighbouring Czech Republic, foreign groups own all five of Slovakia’s top five banks. And like in the Czech Republic and elsewhere, higher interest rates have brought higher profits – and new taxes on banks, in Slovakia’s case following the formation of a new government in October last year.
-
Attijariwafa Bank remains the bank to beat in Morocco. In a year that saw profits grow 20% to Dh13.8 billion ($1.4 billion), it has focused its efforts on promoting private investment in the country.
-
Presenting annual earnings in early February 2024, Frank Vang-Jensen had good reason to be delighted with the 2023 performance of the bank he leads as chief executive. After another year in which Nordea strengthened its profile in all four of its main markets, including performing strongly in its home country, the bank again wins the award for Finland’s best bank.
-
UOB retains the title of Singapore’s best bank, bolstered by resilient financial performance and a strengthened network across southeast Asia. Under the leadership of chief executive Wee Ee Cheong, the bank devised a three-year plan in 2023 to become the foremost bank in southeast Asia, and it is well on its way to delivering on that aim.
-
In 2023, ABA Bank, Cambodia’s largest commercial bank, achieved significant growth across all key metrics, solidifying its position as a leader in the country’s banking sector and winning it the award for the country’s best bank. Under the leadership of chief executive Askhat Azhikhanov, the bank’s net profit increased by 5% to $276.5 million in 2023, securing its status as the most profitable commercial bank in Cambodia for the third consecutive year.
-
Bank Mandiri, Indonesia’s largest bank by assets, achieved a record net profit of $3.6 billion in 2023, an impressive 34% year on year rise – the highest in the industry and significantly outpacing the other four tier-one banks. Led by president director Darmawan Junaidi, it retains the award for Indonesia’s best bank.
-
The winds of change are coming to the Mexican banking system. Nubank’s arrival and its 15% interest-paying deposit account are certain to bring new competitive challenges to the established banks. As the biggest and best bank in the country, BBVA theoretically has the most to lose, but its continued excellence across banking segments means that it is the best prepared for any disruption to come.
-
There is a new force in small and medium-sized enterprise banking in Latin America and that is BTG Pactual. The bank is renowned for forensically analyzing new segments before entering and then aggressively pursuing what it has identified as specific opportunities and market innovations.
-
For the second year in a row, HSBC walks away with the award for Asia’s best bank – and deservedly so. Outgoing chief executive Noel Quinn’s decisive move in early 2020 to pivot to Asia by redeploying $100 billion in risk-weighted assets has delivered, generating strong new income streams and squeezing more gains from key product lines such as wealth management and transaction banking.
-
In investment banking, the biggest event of the year was the €2 billion IPO of Hidroelectrica in Romania, Europe’s biggest IPO in 2023. This was Romania’s largest-ever IPO and played a role in reopening the market across the continent, thanks to a strong performance in the secondary market. It also helped reawaken the international capital market to the opportunities in central and eastern Europe.
-
The Ecuadorian economy slowed significantly in 2023 and was largely driven by public-sector spending. The impact of new president Daniel Noboa, who won the November 2023 election, has yet to be seen, but liquidity remains a persistent issue for the dollarized economy. Seeking scale seems to be the best defence against the country’s regular dollar shortages and in this environment the large banks thrive.
-
Banking small and medium-sized companies across central and eastern Europe has become intensely competitive for the regional banks. Even amid the anaemic economic growth of last year, competition to grow the SME client base remained high as banks sought to expand their market share and boost assets.
-
Afghanistan International Bank (AIB) has once again proven its resilience and adaptability in the midst of severe economic challenges, demonstrating its crucial role as a financial lifeline connecting the country with the world.
-
Barclays wins the award as the UK’s best investment bank. Even though some investors had to wait for the bank’s investor day in February 2024 to hear it once again reaffirm its commitment to the investment bank, staff in the UK had no doubt of this.
-
Awash Bank greatly expanded its digital solutions last year, achieving high levels of engagement across mobile and internet banking.
-
Prime minister Donald Tusk’s defeat of the former ruling party PiS in elections last October brought hope for a less strained relationship between Poland and the EU. It also brought hope for more favourable policies towards banks, after the PiS government’s mortgage holidays and bank taxes.
-
Brazil’s Nubank is the momentum story in global banking. In 2023, the bank added 19 million clients (to a total of 93.9 million), and it now can claim to bank 53% of the adult population of Brazil. It is also now seeing a positive operating leverage effect from the growth in its client base. In the fourth quarter of 2023, it recorded revenue of $2.4 billion (Nubank is listed on the NYSE and all its earnings are reported in dollars), which was up 57% on an annual basis. Net income jumped 489% to $360.9 million, with a return on equity of 23%.
-
Crédit Agricole CIB demonstrated its global capabilities and expertise in sustainability for Hong Kong clients last year, structuring and executing several transactional firsts as well as supporting the growth and development of the broader market.
-
In a year marked by historic lending growth in China, state-owned banks have taken the lead, defying the traditional dominance of smaller banks in driving loan expansion. Among these state-owned giants, Bank of China (BoC) has emerged as a standout performer, securing its position as China’s best bank this year.
-
Barclays has integrated sustainability across its operations and financing activities, significantly reducing emissions and enhancing its commitment to green investment.
-
Getting M&A right in Africa is not easy – big-ticket transactions are rare, and deal flow tends to come in fits and starts – but Standard Bank has got it down to a fine art.
-
Panama had a solid 2023, with economic growth of 5%, but that belies the significant challenges that the country’s new president, José Raúl Mulino, will face. The closure of the country’s copper mine will add to the fiscal pressures that the increasing deficits from the country’s social pension system are creating. A drought has also affected the Panama Canal, a major revenue source for the government, and the economic outlook will likely get tougher from here.
-
The Guatemalan economy had a turbulent time in 2023. The election of Bernardo Arevalo in early 2024 should improve relations with the US and potentially lift the country’s economic outlook, but the social challenges that have plagued Guatemala through times of economic expansion and contraction alike are resistant to superficial measures.
-
Raiffeisen Bank Kosovo is the country’s best bank after a year in which it introduced of a series of new and enhanced products across its banking businesses, materially grew its client base and generated a record net profit.
-
Scotiabank has demonstrated remarkable consistency amid a very volatile economic period, reflecting the management team’s focus on initiatives to improve the productivity and efficiency of the bank.
-
Under the leadership of chief executive Karl Stumke, Bank of Maldives, the country’s best bank, has delivered on its strategic priorities in 2023, resulting in a strong financial performance and substantial customer acquisition.
-
Baiduri Bank is again Brunei’s best bank, not just because of its impressive financial performance but also for its dedication to digital transformation.
-
Standard Chartered wins the award this year for making several key enhancements to its digital banking platform, supporting strong growth in customer sales and engagement.
-
S&P’s regional bank index has just pushed past its March 10, 2023, level, reflecting where these stocks were immediately before the collapse of SVB last year. Those stocks are rising sharply and investors are seeing huge profits, so is this a sign that regional banks have finally emerged from their crisis?
-
HSBC’s choice of a new CEO to replace Noel Quinn was long flagged. Elhedery’s fortune is to be handed the reins of power in an extended period of calm for the UK lender, which benefited immensely from Quinn’s calm stoicism. But deteriorating Sino-US relations mean that turbulence for the London- and Hong Kong-listed lender is sure to return.
-
The bank is targeting the often-overlooked service sector with structured solutions, along with identifying embedded finance as a fast-growing segment. With the launch of Global Trade Solutions, it goes beyond traditional product offerings and financing.
-
The Singapore state-owned fund has unveiled plans to invest $10 billion in India and to plough more capital into the US and Japan. At the same time, it is quietly retreating from China, once its largest investment market, but now beset by underperforming capital markets, weak growth and bleak consumption data.
-
President Xi Jinping’s ‘great rebalancing’ is creating a two-speed China: one a stodgy economy; the other full of export-focused corporate superstars. To serve the latter, China’s banks must invest overseas by buying assets or opening branches – and they need to do so fast.
-
Tyler Dickson’s departure from Citi must rank as one of the most predictable moves in investment banking this year, even if where he has ended up is perhaps less obvious. Elsewhere, Citadel Securities is apparently set to make an offer that some of the Street might find difficult to refuse.
-
France’s political and banking troubles obscure good momentum in Societe Generale’s corporate and investment bank. Yes, capital is constrained, but the bank says it is moving in the right direction.
-
The bank’s decision to sell a large minority stake in Credit Suisse’s former China JV to BSAM, a Beijing-based fund it has known for decades, is a setback for Ken Griffin’s Citadel Securities. The US firm is still committed to expanding in China’s troubled market.
-
Diego De Giorgi’s arrival at Standard Chartered has coincided with important changes at the bank. He talks to Euromoney about the transition from investment banker to chief financial officer, and how the firm can further leverage its advantages amid growing profitability and geopolitical risk.
-
The limitations of the Alternative Investment Market are forcing many companies to explore other sources of funding. Nevertheless, there is optimism that the market for small and medium-sized growth companies can be revived.
-
CEO Leandro Miranda tells Euromoney that the firm will use recently granted CVM license and secured deal mandates to raise equity.
-
Basel-endgame pushback has reduced the urgency for US banks to relieve capital, but investor appetite for significant risk transfer trades is spilling over to Europe.
-
Donald Trump is now likely to win the US presidential election after a disastrous debate performance by incumbent Joe Biden. Trump 2.0 may bring complications as well as benefits for Wall Street.
-
Mamerto Tangonan, the deputy governor and head of the payments and currency management sector at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, tells Euromoney how southeast Asian countries are using advances in digital payments to revolutionize cross-border transactions.
-
The region’s tough economic history, coupled with its strength in soft and hard commodities, makes it best positioned to tackle today’s challenges.
-
Derivatives structurers are thriving, but regulators aren’t convinced the biggest Wall Street banks have a firm grasp of their complex exposure.
-
The Siena-based bank has a better bill of health and is once again a target in Italy.
-
Despite an overwhelmingly Italian business in retail, Intesa Sanpaolo has stepped up its share of corporate and investment banking revenue outside the country. In its global growth markets, divisional chief Mauro Micillo says the firm is here to stay.
-
With corporates taking a more holistic view of sustainability, banks are under pressure to address concerns over reporting and verification requirements for sustainable working capital, trade finance and liquidity management products.
-
Risk aversion has spread quickly since the call for a snap election in France, from French government bonds, through bank stocks and CDS spreads to now derail the IPO of an Italian maker of luxury trainers.
-
Euromoney recently sat down in Dubai with the heads of investment banking for HSBC in the Middle East. The conversation focused on the burgeoning trade and deal flow between the Gulf region and Asia, what investors on both sides are looking for and why they like what they see.
-
The South Korean automaker is on track to raise upward of $3 billion via the listing of its India unit in Mumbai. If successful, it will surely compel more global firms to raise capital in south Asia’s largest market.
-
MBridge, China’s cross-border digital currency initiative, has entered the minimum viable product stage. It is the world’s most advanced cross-border CBDC and stands on the cusp of playing a pivotal role in the de-dollarization process.
-
Mexican banks have sold off hard since Claudia Sheinbaum – as widely expected – was confirmed as the country’s next president.
-
It is getting tougher for investors to execute block trades of more than €2 million in Europe’s fragmented equity markets. Matching buyers and sellers needs a return to negotiation and away from pure electronic trading.
-
The absence of staking and the earlier approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have sucked much of the excitement out of the SEC’s surprising decision to greenlight spot Ethereum ETFs.
-
After years of retrenchment, Commerzbank’s head of corporate clients Michael Kotzbauer tells Euromoney of a tentative return to growth. The bank has dodged Germany’s commercial real estate slump but is having to adapt to a worsening geopolitical backdrop. Capital and cost efficiency remain big priorities.
-
For the US to come out in support of voluntary carbon markets even while arguing for their reform is an important step in the drive to seek better standards for what are vital – albeit flawed – mechanisms. But more guidelines on how to certify and trade offsets are no substitute for the real thing.
-
The Palestinian economy was already slowing ahead of the October 7 attacks, but the situation has deteriorated sharply since then. Growth had fallen by 3% year on year across the territories in the first half of the year and by 4.4% in Gaza itself.
-
Rising confidence in European banks has raised hopes of a surge in domestic M&A, perhaps laying the foundations for the long-sought ideal of genuinely pan-European firms.
-
Hefty convertible bond sales by the likes of Chinese firms Lenovo and Alibaba, plus renewed interest in issuance from corporate Japan, have the market chattering. Is the market here to stay in Asia, or could a single soggy offering cause it to slam shut again?
-
Does the high number of drawn-out insolvency cases in the UK suggest a failure of regulation?
-
For Israel’s banks, 2023 was a story of two distinct parts: the months prior to the Hamas attacks on October 7; and those after.
-
John Mathews, head of UHNW Americas for UBS in New York, tells Euromoney why the US’s private banking model is so successful, why the Swiss firm is really in the life counselling business, and explains why it has targeted US ultra-high net worth clients.
-
As securities markets shift to T+1, repo is already going intraday with DLR the first of what may be many digital trading platforms to offer JPM Coin for the cash leg.
-
By starting from a blank sheet of paper, Royal Bank of Canada hopes its new US cash-management platform will allow it to capture a greater share of wallet from existing clients while not being held back by legacy technology.
-
Corporate treasurers are playing it safe when balancing the merits of exploiting improved access to capital against the risk of unexpected economic shocks and business interruption.
-
Though HSBC retrenched from other Latin American markets, it stayed in Mexico, and country chief Jorge Arce says that the bank is well-positioned to take advantage of the nation’s unique blend of structural growth drivers.
-
Financial markets reacted calmly to news of an early UK election, expecting whoever wins to stick to the fiscal rules. But whoever wins must also cope with rising debts and onerous interest payments.
-
President Macron’s newfound zeal for cross-border financial M&A is creating a headache for France’s big banks.
-
The prospect of interest rate cuts from the Fed in 2024 is disappearing. Japan and Korea are among those feeling the heat.
-
Will increased transparency in the European corporate bond market lead to higher transaction costs for large trades?
-
The bank is looking to capitalise on its local presence in Latin America as Korean and Chinese firms intensify their nearshoring efforts.
-
Unlike other firms in Latin America, BTG Pactual hides its growing retail digital banking business within its wealth-management division. Why?
-
Anything except a brief stay on as chairman would cast a baleful shadow over the chief executive’s successor at JPMorgan.
-
Sohar International Bank is Euromoney’s best bank in Oman this year. The landmark merger with HSBC Bank Oman in 2023 has resulted in substantial growth in assets, market share, market presence and workforce.
-
Commercial International Bank (CIB) has maintained its position as the bank to beat in Egypt during the review period.
-
Al Rajhi Bank’s Bank of the Future strategy marked its final year in 2023, the end of a series of growth targets set when chief executive Waleed Al-Mogbel took the helm.
-
Arab Bank, under the leadership of chief executive Randa Sadik, had another good year in Jordan despite acute geopolitical risks, surging inflation and unprecedented increases in interest rates.
-
Al Salam Bank enjoyed strong financial performance last year, while expanding its geographic footprint and innovating in the digital space. It is Euromoney’s best bank in Bahrain 2024.
-
Qatar National Bank (QNB)’s scale and banking power in the country seem unassailable across all banking businesses. It dominates activity, reporting more assets ($338 billion), loans ($234 billion), deposits ($235 billion) and net profit at the end of last year than that generated in each segment by all four of the other largest banks combined.
-
Kuwait Finance House (KFH) is Euromoney’s best bank in the country this year, following a record-setting financial performance and the consolidation of Ahli United Bank Kuwait.
-
FAB was the clear winner of Euromoney’s best bank award in the UAE this year following a strong financial performance, improvements in environmental, social and governance and sustainable finance, and advancements in technology.
-
If you visit the website of National Bank of Bahrain (NBB), it doesn’t take long to recognise that it takes corporate responsibility seriously.
-
The provision of transaction services in the Middle East has become one of the most fiercely competitive parts of the market, largely concentrated around banks’ ability to support local and regional champions as well as blue-chip multinationals operating in the region.
-
In the face of increasing competition among regional and global banks, HSBC has again demonstrated its financing strength and expertise in the Middle East across the breadth of markets, sectors and geographies it is a leader in.
-
Emirates NBD Private Banking has a proven track record across wealth management in the Middle East. The Dubai-based firm scooped several wins at this year’s Euromoney private banking awards across global wealth management.
-
As more banks in the Middle East invest in their digital transformations, the largest banks in the region are competing to develop new digital products and services.
-
It was another stellar year for First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), under the continued leadership of group chief executive Hana Al Rostamani.
-
Last year was an important one for sustainable finance in the Middle East. Dubai hosted the COP28 conference, following on from Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt in 2022. This has well and truly put the spotlight on sustainable finance for banks, corporates and sovereigns in the region.
-
If there were two areas for any investment bank’s Middle East advisory team to specialise in and prove all-round excellence in last year, they were the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and outbound transactions. JPMorgan excelled on both counts.
-
HSBC dominated the region’s debt capital markets across the awards period, completing 52 DCM transactions worth a total of $10.3 billion, according to data from Dealogic. In equity capital markets, the London-headquartered lender came second, completing seven deals worth $2 billion. It also ranked in initial stock offerings, completing six IPOs worth $1.38 billion in total.
-
Emirates NBD has successfully exported its small and medium-sized business banking operations from the UAE to its other core markets of Saudi Arabia and Egypt, creating a regional SME banking champion.
-
In an interview with Euromoney, European Banking Authority chair José Manuel Campa joins the European Central Bank and others in pressuring banks to do more to prepare for geopolitical risks spreading from Russia to China, the US and Middle East.
-
Rumours that Chinese insurer Ping An could cut its stake in HSBC further, perhaps selling to a Middle East buyer at a time when Gulf investment is flooding into the People’s Republic, should not come as a surprise.
-
Banks and regulators are keen to use instant payments to reduce the influence of Visa and Mastercard on the European payments industry – but replacing these two dominant players will be far from easy.
-
Although the relative health of some nationalized banks may facilitate their privatization, major obstacles to any sales remain.
-
Naz Vahid is to leave Citi after nearly four decades as one of the US bank’s most effective and innovative wealth managers.
-
-
Thailand is enduring a record heatwave, yet its economy is in the deep freeze. Prime minister Srettha Thavisin is frantically jetting around the world trying to woo global corporates and investors, so far to little avail.
-
-
New accounts targeted at low-income customers reflects the reality of intense competition in the sector.
-
UK banks, asset managers and individuals see better returns from dumping UK stocks and investing elsewhere, but the impact eventually becomes ruinous.
-
BBVA’s bid for Banco Sabadell didn’t appear to be going well when its share price slumped after the announcement. Then Sabadell rejected the offer despite the substantial premium to its own share price.
-
Twenty-five years ago in Spain, ING launched a branchless bank – still its biggest greenfield retail operation. Euromoney asks Iberia chief executive Ignacio Juliá Vilar what still makes it stand out from both incumbents and newer arrivals.
-
UOB’s acquisition of Citi’s consumer assets in four southeast Asia markets strengthens its status in one of the world’s fastest growing regions. The Singapore lender’s CEO Wee Ee Cheong talks to Euromoney about why this matters and what comes next.
-
Aditya Birla Finance Limited-Wealth wins this award for the quality and range of its investment research.
-
Several Chinese bubble-tea makers are looking at Hong Kong IPOs. When high-end tea maker Nayuki listed three years ago investors drank it up, but the deal now trades 90% below its listing price. Can a new group of issuers revive the market?
-
As mandated real-time payments loom, Europe’s banks and other payment providers must look at modernising legacy infrastructure.
-
Corporates’ longstanding complaint on banks’ payments offerings is that they don’t know what they are being charged for but suspect it is too much. Airwallex now provides an alternative at global scale.
-
BBVA could have bought Banco Sabadell much more cheaply in 2020. Sabadell’s CEO César González-Bueno has since turned his bank around. But BBVA’s return to the negotiating table comes at a time when European banking may be moving to a new and more confident phase.
-
Exactly one year ago, San Francisco-based First Republic Bank was sold by regulators amid a US regional banking crisis. Citizens Financial Group, which had seen the sale as a chance to turbocharge its private banking ambitions, lost out to JPMorgan. But far from being the end of the story, that failed bid was just the beginning. Within weeks the bank had announced First Republic’s Susan deTray as the head of its new private bank, a unit that is now at the heart of a fast-growing wealth franchise.
-
Restructuring HSBC, like painting the Forth bridge, is a never-ending job. While Noel Quinn has done well, the board must not make another ham-fisted transition.
-
A lack of consensus on whether recent under-performance of Asian currencies will impact China’s willingness to let its own currency weaken is leading to disparate views on near-term valuations.
-
Recently rebranded and expanded, Wealth at Work is Citi’s most dynamic generator of wealth revenues. Its leader, Naz Vahid, sits down in New York with Euromoney to explain her vision for its future.
-
As banks focus more on climate adaptation across their businesses, are they conceding that mitigation efforts are futile?
-
The body responsible for settling about $6.5 trillion of global daily FX trades has decided against extending its deadlines to accommodate non-US participants who still want to use its next-day settlement service. But it expects the impact to be limited – far too limited to justify the complexity that a change would impose on its members.
-
The two European banks are both trying to de-emphasise their investment banks and want to build up areas where they see weakness. Barclays is later to this party than Deutsche, but both will have found encouragement in the first three months of 2024.
-
Direct lenders to risky borrowers take comfort from their seniority in the creditor hierarchy. But stressed borrowers could jeopardise this as they struggle to attract new funding.
-
The Brazilian neobank is growing its number of clients faster than perhaps any financial institution on earth. Combine this with static unit costs and the operational leverage potential is big. CFO Guilherme Lago explains how its business model is now focused on the next five to 10 years as open banking generates unprecedented price transparency, customer portability and opportunity.
-
A private credit market growing so fast, away from the oversight of bank regulators, may be a new source of systemic risk. With smaller investors taking greater exposure to an asset class whose high returns and low losses look almost too good to be true, there could be trouble ahead.
-
Junior bankers should relax about the threat to their jobs from AI and lean into opportunities to bluff their way to Wall Street glory.
-
Quarterly survey reveals that UK finance professionals may be feeling more upbeat about prospects, but that this is yet to translate into a willingness to take greater risk onto balance sheets.
-
A move back up in rates is creating a PR battle among Wall Street banks. JPMorgan was punished for a cautious outlook, Goldman Sachs promoted strong fixed income trading results and Bank of America projected a Zen approach to rate moves.
-
UK fintechs attracted more investment than all European rivals combined in a tough funding market last year, but a broken IPO market leaves them with nowhere to go.
-
China’s Project Whitelist, launched at the start of the year, exists to ensure bank funding for property development. But it is there to protect projects, not the developers behind them.
-
Rumours that FAB is in exploratory talks with a Turkish lender, together with hopes for a big-ticket IPO, point to optimism despite the dire outlook on inflation.
-
Previous changes of policy direction have left analysts undecided on whether to attribute recent sharp corrections to the renminbi reference rate to accident or design – or even a combination of the two.
-
The EU’s Instant Payments Regulation may have fired the starting gun on real-time payments in Europe, but many banks remain stuck in the blocks.
-
Does Banco Galicia’s acquisition of HSBC Argentina validate president Javier Milei or weaken him?
-
The Singapore lender is looking to India in search of new business and growth opportunities, its chief executive Piyush Gupta tells Euromoney. Long term, it aims to emulate onshore the country’s best private-sector lenders, HDFC and Kotak Mahindra.
-
Isbank’s chief executive Hakan Aran sees embedded finance and an innovative approach to bank branches as the future as the Turkish bank looks to rebuild on a better market environment for its 100-year anniversary.
-
The Korean banking sector faces many obstacles, but a single, powerful catalyst is driving change.
-
From fast fashion to electric vehicles, Chinese firms are grabbing customers and market share. Meanwhile, the nation’s banks are stuck at home, propping up troubled developers and local governments. It’s an anomalous situation that will benefit the foreign banks.
-
The good news is that bank executives don’t see big loan losses ahead; the bad news is that they lack the confidence and vision to invest in the business.
-
XP has succeeded in Brazil by using its technological efficiencies to win on digital experience and price. But now the incumbents are catching up and XP chief executive Thiago Maffra is focusing on developing service beyond pure online delivery.
-
The Greek bailout fund’s exit from Piraeus Bank last month was the country’s biggest post-crisis privatization. The bank’s chief executive, Christos Megalou, tells Euromoney that this is more than a capital-return story. It’s also about growth: in the economy, in wealth and asset management, and, thanks to neobank Snappi, internationally.
-
President Javier Milei campaigned on cuts – and that is what he has delivered. But like all extreme diets, the approach is unsustainable. Time to rethink the plan.
-
After a decade of restructuring, EFG International ramped up hiring last year – above all from Credit Suisse. Chief executive Giorgio Pradelli talks about the firm’s scope to lead a wave of Swiss-bank consolidation, while doubling down on new wealth from the Middle East and Asia.
-
The paradox of Itaú is that it has maintained its leadership of Brazil’s banking sector with an ease and assuredness in recent years that belies the radical and continual transformation going on under the surface. The bank’s CFO, Alexsandro Broedel, tells Euromoney that its management’s only real constant is to view every new player as an existential threat – and react accordingly.
-
There almost certainly won’t be a Truss/Kwarteng-style meltdown in the US Treasury market – just persistent inflation, high rates, volatility and likely some form of monetary financing.
-
BDO Private Bank wins the award as the Philippines’ best domestic private bank for the quality and range of expertise and services it provides to high net-worth individuals, families and entrepreneurs.
-
Credit Suisse’s domestic bank was arguably the failed group’s best and strongest division. One year after the rescue, UBS is not the only one trying to feast on its domestic wealth-management and corporate-banking leftovers. Other Swiss and international players also hope to benefit from the longer-term fallout in Switzerland. Will the rush to pick up the remnants of the fallen champion pay off?
-
The decision by the US SEC to drop mandatory Scope 3 reporting weakens global emissions reporting standards. However, many corporate issuers are already using Scope 3 performance targets on sustainability-linked transactions for non-regulatory reasons. Are the debt and equities markets leading companies onto ESG ground upon which regulators fear to tread?
-
Stock market reform has not only revitalized the country's capital markets but has also permeated the real economy. Countries like Korea are quickly following suit. Interestingly, China also seems to be drawing inspiration.
-
For its impressive commitment to this issue in the country, DBS wins the award for Taiwan’s best for sustainability.
-
DBS wins the award for Taiwan’s best international private bank in recognition of the quality of its services and its leading market position in the country.
-
Julius Baer wins this award for the investment the firm is making in this core Asian market, as well as the global expertise it offers Indian clients.
-
UOB Private Bank wins the award as the only foreign private bank operating onshore in Malaysia.
-
UOB Private Bank wins this award for its commitment to and investment in supporting next generation clients.
-
DBS wins the award for Singapore’s best domestic private bank for the second consecutive year in recognition of its regional expertise, as well as the strength and sophistication of its wealth management offering.
-
DBS wins the award for its strength and innovative leadership in serving family office clients in Singapore.
-
DBS wins the award for its expertise in succession planning.
-
DBS wins this award for the strength and sophistication of its digital solutions.
-
DBS wins this award for best international private bank in Hong Kong in recognition of the quality and breadth of its services and its distinctive regional expertise.
-
Euromoney Private Banking Awards: Hong Kong’s best for family-office services: JPMorgan Private BankJPMorgan Private Bank wins the family office award thanks to the quality and range of products, services and advice it provides wealthy Asian families.
-
Euromoney Private Banking Awards: Hong Kong’s best for philanthropic advisory: JPMorgan Private BankJPMorgan Private Bank wins this award in recognition of its expertise and global connectivity in philanthropic advisory and services.
-
Julius Baer wins the award for Singapore’s best for high net-worth clients in recognition of the impressive range of expertise and capabilities it offers this key client segment.
-
Euromoney Private Banking Awards: Singapore’s best international private bank: JPMorgan Private BankJPMorgan Private Bank wins the international private bank award for the power, range and expertise of its cross-business capabilities.
-
EFG Bank wins the award for its differentiated private-banking offering.
-
Global money is flooding into India to profit from high-performing stocks, a booming economy, and the ease of investing via Gift City, a growing financial hub in Gujarat. Local wealth is flowing the other way, notably to Dubai. It’s a gold mine for private banks, and the process has only just begun.
-
Norwegian wealth manager Formue has been growing revenues and assets since opening in 2000. It has done this by financially educating people who never gave much thought to wealth planning and by getting people to like it.
-
Deutsche Bank Private Bank is building a focus on the most challenging customer segment of all: ultra-high net-worth individuals and family offices.
-
LGT Private Banking is the private bank of the Princely House of Liechtenstein. Founded in 1920, it operates according to the same values and convictions that have guided the building and managing of its owner’s family assets for almost 900 years, across 26 generations: thinking and acting entrepreneurially; a long-term focus; openness to new developments and technologies; and a disciplined approach to risk and resources.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
JPMorgan has been making a strong push in private banking in Europe, the Middle East and Africa over the past three years, substantially growing its numbers of advisers and clients, opening offices from Athens and Brussels to Copenhagen and Manchester, while taking advantage of its big technology budget to invest in new capabilities.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management operates across 17 countries, serving a client base of entrepreneurs, family offices and high net-worth individuals.
-
Serving the next generation of wealthy individuals and family members is at the heart of everything Julius Baer does. The Swiss pure-play wealth manager is cognisant of the vast amount of wealth in the process of being handed from one set of family hands to the next; it sees this segment as a key vehicle for it to, in its words, “live out [its] purpose” and “create value beyond wealth”.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management shows “a strong dedication to enhancing the client experience through digital means, innovation and research”, according to the judging panel for this year’s private banking awards.
-
In its home market, Deutsche Bank has expanded its leadership with high net-worth (HNW) customers, as well as with the ultra-high net-worth (UHNW) clients that are becoming a core focus in Germany, Europe and cross the globe.
-
Caixabank Private Banking wins the award for best domestic private bank in Spain this year having demonstrated strong performance and launched important enhancements in many sectors.
-
BNP Paribas has been relentlessly fine-tuning its secondary equities business in Europe for more than a decade. While the primary focus has been on reaching an affordable offering for institutional investor customers of its markets business, clients of the wealth-management business are now also benefiting.
-
Few manage to do discretionary portfolio management better than Julius Baer today. The largest pure-play private bank by assets under management has been busy during its latest strategic cycle, which runs for three years through 2025.
-
Societe Generale Private Banking, the wealth-management arm of Societe Generale, is a worldwide private bank with a strong European base. It had €140 billion of assets under management at the end of September 2023.
-
The wealth-management divisions of national-champion universal banks have won most of the regional private banking awards in Western Europe. But Lombard Odier offers a powerful reminder of the capabilities of a pure-play private bank, owned by its managing partners who follow a business model solely focused on managing their clients’ assets.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management’s philanthropy solutions have been a noteworthy part of its wider positive impact offering since 2008. The firm aims to provide clients, free of charge, with proposals that fit each step of their philanthropic journey.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management has been named Western Europe's best private bank for sustainability this year. One of the many factors supporting this decision is the banks’ ability to embed sustainability into all its product and services by prioritising portfolio assessment and the upskilling of its bankers.
-
JPMorgan Private Bank has unveiled a host of new services in recent years, targeting key clients across North America, as well as world-wide.
-
At the heart of Goldman Sachs’s approach to discretionary portfolio management is the belief that all the bank’s institutional clients ought to have access to the kind of expertise and strategies that historically might only have been accessible to the very biggest.
-
UBS’s wealth-management business had already seen enviable performance over the 10 years since it set itself the ambition of being the world’s leading global wealth manager in 2012. But, with the acquisition of Credit Suisse, the last 12 months have seen it take another step forward.
-
Most high net-worth (HNW) individuals in the US plan to pass on their wealth to their children, but according to Bank of America Private Bank, fewer than half are confident that the next generation will make responsible decisions with their inheritance.
-
At a time when geopolitical and macroeconomic turmoil are more bewildering than ever, the need for the guiding hand of a thoughtful investment research and strategy operation is greater than ever for private-banking clients.
-
Key to succession planning is having a team with that critical combination of technical expertise in the relevant fields of estate and trust planning, but also a history of advising the wealthiest families in approaches that can then be successfully deployed and tailored in the service of new clients who might have similar characteristics.
-
If JPMorgan Private Bank has one objective, it is to provide to clients that magic combination of an institution with the power of a global financial leader and the intimacy of a private-banking relationship. It is led by Mary Callahan Erdoes.
-
RBC’s global asset-management business underpins its wealth-management offering, and its already dominant position in the Canadian market is increasingly being complemented by a strong showing in the US, as well as other regions around the world.
-
Once again, Morgan Stanley takes the award for best private bank for sustainability in North America this year. The bank shows consistent leadership in this space with its Investing with Impact platform that now boasts over 300 financial products and accounted for $69 billion in client assets, as of September 2023.
-
The best private banking franchises today must do much more than simply preserve and grow wealth. They must also enable their clients to share that wealth to meet all manner of broader goals, whether traditionally philanthropic or through the more modern lens of social impact.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
JPMorgan’s wealth management business headed into the coronavirus pandemic with considerable momentum in high and ultra-high net-worth clients. It had only recently founded 23 Wall, a team to advise the biggest and wealthiest families on how to think strategically about the whole panoply of their private assets – everything from companies and property to sports teams and art.
-
The very best franchises serving family offices must get one thing right above all else: they must be able to deliver a customized offering that is sensitive to the particular needs of any client. The larger the institution, the more services it can deploy to do this, but the higher the risk of a cookie-cutter approach to clients, requiring them to adapt to the service provider rather than the other way around.
-
Nowadays, wealthy investors are not only looking for further insights and analytical expertise to guide them through uncertain markets but also for the ability to integrate non-financial preferences into their decision-making.
-
Sustainability principles are embedded across all the private banking products and services offered by Formue, the Nordics and Baltics’ best private bank for sustainability this year.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
Amid strong competition between the region’s leading private lenders, Carnegie Private Banking is the judging panel’s choice for best private bank in the Nordics and Baltics this year. The bank has also been recognized in three other categories: family office services, investment research and ultra-high net-worth individuals.
-
Formue is this year’s winner for best bank for discretionary portfolio management in the Nordics and Baltics. Key to its success was the lender’s transition from a manually processed portfolio construction to an industry-leading portfolio and advice digital solution: Advent Genesis.
-
Carnegie Private Banking is this year’s winner for best bank for ultra-high net-worth individuals in the Nordics and Baltics.
-
The award for the best international private bank in the Nordics and Baltics goes to JPMorgan Private Bank this year. Among other things, the US lender impressed the judging panel with the philanthropic commitments it has facilitated for clients in the region.
-
For its mix of global capability with local expertise and philanthropic efforts, JPMorgan wins the award for Sweden’s best international private bank.
-
DNB Private Banking has been named this year’s best bank for family-office services in the Nordics and Baltics.
-
Carnegie Private Banking wins the Sweden’s best domestic private bank award for the second consecutive year for the growth, investment and development it has made across its private banking business.
-
Lombard Odier takes home the award for Euromoney’s best pure play private bank in the Middle East this year. The Swiss firm has transformed its presence in the region over the last few years.
-
Ultra-high net-worth can be the most challenging client segment to service for private banks. The investable assets these clients provide can come with challenging demands and complicated needs.
-
Investment research is about more than producing reports and roundtables. It is about creating quality resources that clients trust and respect.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management has been named Euromoney’s best international private bank in the Middle East for 2024.
-
In a region where most private-sector commercial activity is undertaken by family businesses, succession planning and wealth transfer could not be more important.
-
The family-office sector in the Middle East has become increasingly important in recent years, with more and more local and international family offices setting up in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
-
Discretionary portfolio management is an important part of Lombard Odier’s offering worldwide, and this is reflected in its business in the Middle East.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
Emirates NBD has been named Euromoney’s best private bank for digital solutions in the Middle East for a second year in a row.
-
The challenges presented by the pandemic and broader geopolitical tensions have meant that the role of the chief investment office has become especially important to any private banking offering in the Middle East.
-
Sustainable finance came under intense scrutiny across the Middle East when COP28 took place in Dubai last year.
-
Emirates NBD Private Banking’s retail banking and wealth management division generated its highest-ever revenue and strongest loan growth during the awards period and the firm is named Euromoney’s best private bank in the Middle East this year.
-
In Brazil – and indeed throughout Latin America – the family-office business is critical for private banks.
-
With the growth in wealth in all regions – and particularly in Latin America, which has seen a soft commodities-boom generate large increases in the high net-worth segment in recent years – the key to serving these clients is efficiency.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
In recent years, the private banking industry in Latin America has been undergoing rapid transformation, with lower real interest rates and digitalization fragmenting traditional brands. And senior bankers forming their own boutiques.
-
Until recently Latin America’s best bank for sustainability in Euromoney’s private banking awards would not have been a domestic franchise. Environmental, social and governance considerations came relatively late to Latin America, and the first wave of ESG-labelled investment funds was an imported novelty from the international banks – particularly the Europeans.
-
Santander Private Banking in Latin America enjoys certain natural advantages thanks to the bank’s geographical footprint and strategy. Overlaying the global bank’s strength within the region is dominance in Spain and Europe more broadly, as well as a presence in the US. This perfectly matches the domestic market for private banking in Latin America – the local presence is essential to serve these clients – while also offering access to the main markets that Latin Americans tend to think of first when seeking portfolio diversification.
-
Santander Private Banking’s ultra-high net-worth segment is called Private Wealth and covers clients who have more than €20 million. The bank has been growing this segment in recent years and it now has more than 100 dedicated bankers and specialists in Latin America.
-
Credicorp Capital’s investment in investment research is a differentiator for a local private bank. The regional coverage provides excellent breadth, but it is the depth in certain areas that provides its client base with different investment ideas.
-
Credicorp Capital retains its award for being the best private bank for discretionary portfolio management in 2024.
-
If necessity is the mother of innovation, then it is perhaps no surprise that Santander Private Banking’s digital platform – which spans all the main Latin American private-banking clients – was the one that impressed the judges the most.
-
As the oldest private bank based in the southeast of Brazil – the traditional powerhouse of wealth in the country – Itaú Private Bank has an inbuilt advantage when it comes to managing the generational succession in private banking.
-
BTG Pactual’s next-generation service proposition is closely – but not exclusively – correlated with its family-office activities, so it is no surprise that its strength in the latter translates into leadership in the former.
-
OTP Private Banking is putting resources into sustainability and showing signs of progress in the area. At a group level, improved scores by several environmental, social and governance ratings agencies are testament to its improvements in the area recently. For example, it moved from a medium- to low-risk ranking by Sustainalytics.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
OTP Private Banking’s approach to digital development and innovation is predicated on a regional approach, helping the firm benefit from its presence across central and eastern Europe.
-
OTP Private Banking says it has recently embarked on an overhaul of its discretionary portfolio management services. This involves redefining the workflow to reflect topical industry themes, such as the focus on environmental, social and governance, as well as the implementation of what it describes as revolutionary new front-office software and a focus on increasing client alpha.
-
Over the past decade, OTP Group has grown as a regional bank in central and eastern Europe – even as other international banks have begun to retreat from the region. Listed in Budapest since 1995, the group now covers 12 countries, counting 17 million customers. Although it is headquartered in Hungary, it also considers itself a market leader in Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro and Slovenia in terms of the overall banking market, including retail.
-
UniCredit’s importance as a private bank in Central and Eastern Europe is particularly evident in its service offering for high net-worth individuals.
-
Chief executive Andrea Orcel has made it clear that Central and Eastern Europe remains at the heart of UniCredit, not least through the purchase of Greek lender Alpha Bank’s Romanian operations last year.
-
BPI Private Wealth wins the award for the Philippines’ best for the next generation based on its investment and commitment in educating of this key client segment.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management has been named Asia’s best private bank for sustainability 2024 in recognition of the firm's comprehensive approach to environmental, social and governance integration and its commendable track record of financial performance.
-
FortePremier wins this award in recognition of the quality and range of its private banking and lifestyle services in Kazakhstan.
-
For the quality and breadth of service it provides to family clients, BPI Private Wealth wins the award for the Philippines’ best for family office services.
-
Ambit Global Private Client wins this award for its impressive performance in discretionary fund management.
-
Few things matter more to investors than clarity and foresight. JPMorgan Private Bank's investment strategy team has established itself as an essential navigator, steering clients away from market pitfalls and towards opportunity.
-
This year, DBS has been named Asia’s best private bank for high-net-worth individuals, a testament to its innovative approach in this competitive wealth-management sector.
-
CICC wins this award for the strength and range of wealth management products and services it provides across the wealth segments.
-
Julius Baer has a distinct position in Asia. As the region’s largest pure-play private bank, it is unwavering in its commitment to personalized service.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management is named Asia’s best private bank for digital solutions in 2024. This recognition comes on the back of a year that saw good digital growth and the implementation of a client-centric digital transformation strategy.
-
Citi Private Bank's chief investment office has adopted a distinctive strategy following the bank's transition to a more streamlined structure that involved shedding regional layers in Asia. This combines its global capabilities with in-depth local expertise.
-
United Overseas Bank (UOB), a stalwart in Singapore's banking sector since 1935, now boasts a robust network of 500 branches and offices across 19 countries. UOB is not only a bank with a long history but is also dedicated to spearheading innovative initiatives for the next generation through dynamic and multifaceted programmes.
-
While the wealthy have excelled in accumulating and managing their assets, many still struggle with the complexities of passing them on. The urgency of succession planning was underscored by an HSBC Trustee survey in 2023, which found that 85% of global families are actively preparing successors for their business empires. This aligns with forecasts that about $18.3 trillion will change hands among high net-worth families by 2030.
-
In a year that has seen Asia's financial institutions face mounting pressures from geopolitical headwinds, DBS retains its mantle as Asia’s best private bank 2024. This award comes in tandem with two other regional honours: best for family office services and best for high net-worth (HNW) individuals. Its managing director and group head is Joseph Poon.
-
With Singapore's ascent to a prominent hub for family offices in Asia, DBS has made quick work of establishing itself as a leading player in the region.
-
Union Bancaire Privée (UBP), one of Switzerland's most prestigious private banks, has charted a course of strategic growth in Asia throughout 2023.
-
360 One Wealth wins this award for the all-round strength of its private banking and wealth management offering in India.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
Metrobank wins the award for the Philippines’ best for ultra-high net-worth clients based on the impressive quality of the services it provides to this key client segment.
-
Julius Baer’s commitment to Asia has certainly paid off. Bolstered by a team of 1,600 professionals, including over 430 relationship managers, the bank has achieved a doubling of its assets under management in the region since 2016, establishing itself as the largest pure-play private bank in the region.
-
Bank of East Asia wins the award for the range of environmental, social and governance-related investment products it offers clients.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management has been named Asia’s best bank for discretionary portfolio management (DPM) this year in recognition of its adept navigation of market headwinds and steadfast focus on client-centric service.
-
In an African context in which private family wealth is growing rapidly, Standard Bank Wealth and Investment regards itself as one of the few large regional institutions with a comprehensive family-office service. It sees itself as a pioneer in this area, and wants to maintain a preeminent position in the category as the importance of African family offices continues to grow.
-
As part of one of South Africa’s biggest banking groups, FNB’s private wealth offering provides clients with advice across local and offshore portfolios to help them leverage their assets at every stage of their life.
-
Seven years ago, Barclays’ then chief executive Jes Staley decided to gradually sell down its Johannesburg-listed African unit, including retail banks across the continent. But when Credit Suisse announced a strategic refresh in 2021 – including selling its ultra-high net-worth private client book in nine African markets – Barclays saw it as a chance to gain bulk in African private banking once again.
-
This year’s winner for best bank for high net-worth (HNW) individuals in Africa, Standard Bank Wealth and Investment, is rewarded for delivering clever tailored solutions to its growing clientele across key African markets.
-
Two key elements of Standard Bank Wealth and Investment’s offering stood out in this category. The first of these, My360, allows clients to visualise and control their financial assets. It offers them an aggregated view of their portfolio across asset classes, providing clients with a view of their net asset value in multiple currencies, and allowing them to delve deeper into different categories from a single dashboard.
-
FNB is this year’s winner for Africa's best bank for discretionary portfolio management. Not only did the regional lender’s discretionary solutions deliver a strong performance compared with its peers, but the bank also continued to innovate to meet new client needs in 2023.
-
FNB wins the award for Africa's best private bank for ultra-high net-worth this year. The pan-African lender’s distinctive offering for the super wealthy demonstrates its ability to serve these clients.
-
Next-gen clients can be just as diverse as any other private-banking clients, with similar ranges of age, investment goals and overall desire to be involved in the family wealth.
-
As Africa’s largest bank by assets, Standard Bank Wealth and Investment is well-placed to take advantage of the growth of the continent as a private-banking market. The firm is led by Jacques Els.
-
FNB has put succession planning at the heart of its private wealth proposition, taking the view that all clients should have access to the service, regardless of income or balance-sheet value. It considers the needs not only of the existing client but also the aspirations of the next generation.
-
Last year was marked by innovation and implementation for 2024’s winner of the award for Africa's best bank for philanthropic advisory: FNB.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core private banking activities during the past 12 months.
-
While welcome, initiatives by the government and financial sector bodies designed to make it easier for companies to raise funds in the UK face a number of obstacles.
-
As Japan puts an end to the global negative interest rate era, its central bank's QE programme remains in place and may be a model for peers. Investors maintain a bullish outlook on the stock market.
-
A wall of liquidity among investors has helped to drive a busy start to the year for bond issuers, as they rush to capture tight spreads.
-
Reports that the long-rumoured deal has been agreed suggest growing optimism among Argentine bankers about the new administration.
-
In a world of higher interest rates, economic uncertainties and data overload, corporate treasurers are turning to cutting-edge tools and strategies to predict and optimize their cash flows.
-
The German lender’s decision to put its chips on southeast Asia is paying off handsomely. Under the leadership of Asia CEO Alexander von zur Mühlen, Deutsche Bank has doubled its capital in Vietnam and Indonesia, with more to come, moved a host of global roles to the region, and has seen Asean eclipse its India and China business in terms of growth and absolute numbers.
-
Asset managers and industry regulators face operational challenges around the tokenization of private assets.
-
Encumbered by an impotent fiscal policy and a sluggish stock market, bank lending could be China’s only route to economic recovery.
-
Caution at local commercial banks – coupled with the eagerness of large investment banks to foster relationships with private equity players – means large real-estate deals fuelled by back leverage could be primed for a comeback in Europe.
-
Corporates seeking to leverage sustainable investment opportunities continue to be restricted by the lack of reliable data on which to base their assessments.
-
The Basel committee is shocked – shocked! – that some banks might be reporting inflated leverage ratios.
-
The UK startup is now a fully regulated bank and private funds are backing its vision to embed regulated banking in non-financial companies as well as fintechs.
-
The Fed chair has made a remarkable, virtually unconditional surrender to opponents of his plan for Basel III implementation in the US. The tactical withdrawal is embarrassing, but it makes strategic sense.
-
With some big deals launching this week, Europe’s IPO pipeline is flowing at last. If they do well, they should put to bed the notion that ‘private IPOs’ are what is needed to provide exit routes for sponsors. A handful of recent deals shows that the biggest driver of success is doing the simple things well.
-
The UK Chancellor has big plans for the tech sector.
-
Thinner margins across the banking industry hit smaller banks harder. But investor pressures are also less of an issue for mutually owned lenders.
-
For a deeply unpopular government with little room to manoeuvre, the chance to bribe voters with a cheap offer of bank shares is irresistible. The bank in question is now well-run and profitable while its stock still trades at a discount. But the great NatWest share offer will do little to revive UK capital markets.
-
Luring star bankers from rivals – like Citi’s appointment of JPMorgan veteran Viswas Raghavan – can bring hidden costs beyond the expense of replacing stock options for the lucky new hire.
-
The UBS chief investment office’s sustainable and impact investing strategist wants to avoid measurement for the sake of measurement, but responding to client demand for more data while ensuring its readability remains a challenge.
-
The leading neobanks in Brazil seem to have hit their stride in terms of profitability just as some of the traditional banks have stumbled. Are these firms the future of Brazilian banking?
-
The Brazilian government’s changes to the laws governing its tax-exempt debentures have allayed financial market fears that president Lula intends to rely on BNDES to fund billions spending on infrastructure, crowding out private-sector finance.
-
The newest ESG trend in retail banking might be a niche offering for now, but all banks will have to take it seriously someday.
-
Chief executive Carlos Eduardo Guimarães says that he expects the bank’s return on equity to double to between 20% and 22% in the next two years.
-
Banco Inter reported return on equity of 8.5% in the fourth quarter of 2023 but is now targeting a return on equity of 30% by 2028, CFO Santiago Stel tells Euromoney.
-
Leading commercial banks are focusing on their approach to relationship management to reassure corporate customers that they are being listened to.
-
Chinese fintech Ant Group has offered UBS a reported $250 million for Credit Suisse’s China joint venture, outbidding Citadel Securities. It is a timely reminder that despite its current malaise, Asia’s largest economy is still a great long-term place to invest.
-
There are sensible elements to CEO Slawomir Krupa’s plans for Societe Generale, but their communication needs attention.
-
In 2020, Deutsche Bank’s Asia chief, Alexander von zur Mühlen, placed more of his chips on fast-growing southeast Asia. As global firms diversify out of China, his prescience and willingness to deliver on his convictions is starting to pay off.
-
Investors and staff at Societe Generale are slowly starting to understand chief executive Slawomir Krupa’s brutally honest approach to the bank’s many challenges. Taking them with him as he embarks on his restructuring plan may prove a more delicate task.
-
In the wake of heavy losses and mis-selling to retail investors, there is an urgent need for an overhaul of risk management in the banking sector.
-
Chief executive Jane Fraser has been true to her promise of a marquee hire to run Citi’s banking division, with the appointment today of JPMorgan veteran Viswas Raghavan. He brings a wealth of both transactional and operational management experience, but the symbolism of his arrival may be just as important.
-
Diego De Giorgi’s arrival as Standard Chartered’s CFO coincides with a shift away from asset shrinkage and a “final push” on digital transformation.
-
Domestic companies launch banking-as-a-service models as the country's central bank creates space for new entrants.
-
A private debt hangover in real estate is threatening middle-class retirement savings across Germany. Local banks, which focused more on senior loans, should be safer. But are these lenders ready to finance the recovery in commercial property that the German market so badly needs?
-
Even after the rally on its latest restructuring plan, investors still value the UK bank at such a wide discount to book that management must consider radical action.
-
Barclays chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan intends to stop a low-returning investment bank from dragging the rest of the group down with it. He argues that most of the improvements are within the bank’s own grasp. That is debatable, and in any case hardly reassuring.
-
Direct lenders commanded generous terms on leveraged buyout financing last year, but volumes were low and, now that they show signs of revival, the banks are competing once more.
-
The UK government’s impending sale to retail investors of a big stake in the bank informs the shadow-play guidance on this year’s earnings.
-
One of the first edicts handed down by Citi’s wealth head is to tell all private bankers to track and record client calls. It has ruffled feathers at the US lender, but if it transforms the unit into the powerhouse CEO Jane Fraser wants it to be, then so be it.
-
Bankers in the Middle East are intensifying their focus on succession planning as the first wave of intergenerational wealth transfer looms.
-
He leaves the Australian financial firm after transforming its commodities and global markets division, and despite being widely tipped as likely to succeed current CEO Shemara Wikramanayake.
-
Corporates continue to exhibit worrying levels of complacency when it comes to the implications of rate rises for their bottom line.
-
Former bank examiner Alessandro DiNello stresses resiliency of deposits as NYCB strives to build capital after higher provisions and ratings downgrades.
-
A recent rule change means that Brazilian banks will be able to use tax credits related to provision expenses sooner – and the impact could be material.
-
Citi’s head of Asia treasury and trade solutions has retired after 40 years at the US bank. He tells Euromoney what he would do if he were a 20-something graduate today, and why it helps to be both a specialist and a jack-of-all-trades in the industry now.
-
Investors will be hoping that the fall in the value of Bitcoin since US regulators approved the listing and trading of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products is not a sign of things to come.
-
After a dire couple of years, the hope had been that the only way was up for US regional bank M&A. But this week’s trauma at New York Community Bank has demonstrated some of the problems that can catch out the unwary as expansion takes them into new regulatory territory.
-
As Beijing works to underpin the equity market, China's fund houses and investment banks are betting on exchange-traded funds as the next big thing. That reflects a market corseted by regulation, where limited options compel a collective herd mentality.
-
Losses on commercial real-estate loans at US regional banks should surprise no one; risk at the heart of the US financial system thanks to weak regulation should shock us all.
-
Internal and external reforms are under way as the new president signals a break with the previous administration.
-
Extracting value from Russia via a stake in Strabag previously owned by Oleg Deripaska shouldn’t be confused with a proper disentanglement from Russia by Raiffeisen. The main impetus for the transaction may, in fact, lie with Deripaska and Strabag’s other shareholders.
-
Trade-receivables securitization transactions are flourishing as corporates seek more affordable access to long-term financing.
-
Abu Dhabi and Dubai sell themselves as international hubs for tech companies, with new initiatives to support start-ups and scale-ups, but rules around eligibility for equity listings will hinder the Emirates’ tech sectors if they aren’t changed.
-
Banks need to start quantifying the legal risks of both climate action and inaction.
-
Management changes expand the responsibilities of Marianne Lake and Jennifer Piepszak, lead candidates to one day head JPMorgan, but there is another contender.
-
The SEC wants us to be thinking about special purpose acquisition companies again.
-
Uneven progress towards financial market reform across the continent continues to pose a challenge for ambitious African corporates.
-
Wall Street bankers tempted to pick a fight with the Federal Reserve should take a lesson from the insider trading plea deal by investor Joe Lewis.
-
Opposition to the proposed Basel III endgame for US banks is now so widespread that a climb down by the Federal Reserve is likely. Wall Street bankers like Jamie Dimon can stop crying wolf about increased capital requirements and think carefully about publicly threatening their regulators.
-
While the world’s biggest markets are still preparing for T+1 settlement, talk is growing of the next step – but going any faster would mean a total reworking of how markets function.
-
It is not hard to find short-term worries over global markets’ state of readiness for the US’s transition to one-day settlement in late May. But even if the UK, Europe and those Asian markets still using two-day settlement can adapt to the shift in the longer term, they will also face intense pressure to lessen their dislocation from the US cycle by copying its move. Many also fear the ultimate end-game of same-day or even instant settlement.
-
The Sino-Swiss corridor, set up to encourage Chinese firms to sell global depositary receipts to international investors in the European state, took off fast in 2022. But a host of challenges, from Chinese regulatory concerns to an apparent lack of global interest, has stalled its progress.
-
The midcap broker needs new business lines to survive a prolonged IPO drought.
-
Corporate and development banks want their capital to reach the smallest and most impactful of SMEs in frontier markets. Traditional credit ratings and risk assessments can get in the way.
-
Record regional bank profits, plus strong capital ratios in Western Europe, have fuelled hope for more bank acquisitions in Central and Eastern Europe. The uncertain effect of recent court rulings on Swiss franc mortgages, however, is a big obstacle to deals in Poland.
-
Corporates are adopting a variety of approaches to mitigate the impact of uncertainty in foreign exchange markets caused by divergence in economic policy and performance.
-
They already dominate the investment banking business in Europe, and now the leading US banks have their eyes on an even bigger prize. They see their vast investments in the digital technology transforming payments and transaction services and their retained global presences as the keys to winning even greater revenues from Europe’s midsize corporates.
-
Appealing to issuers by removing investor protections makes no sense when London’s decline as a listing venue stems from domestic investors abandoning the UK market.
-
It has become fashionable to describe private credit as an opaque and fast inflating bubble that could bring crisis to the global financial system. But in Asia even banks and regulators hope it will grow to bridge the yawning financing gap.
-
Many factors explain Japan’s renewed allure to global corporate and financial institutions. Inbound FDI is rising, with local stock prices regularly hitting record highs. Is the economy’s long-awaited renaissance a passing phase or here to stay?
-
Collaboration between national banks has seen widespread adoption of mobile payments schemes. The French and German-led approach of focusing on a single European scheme could therefore be seen as a distraction. But is it the only real way of keeping US payment companies at bay?
-
Regulators are making more mileage out of their settlement with Morgan Stanley than the outcome really deserves.
-
Morgan Stanley has for years touted its expertise and adherence to confidentiality as reasons to choose it over rivals for equity block trades. But charges brought by regulators over leakages of confidential information by the bank’s former head of US equity syndicate and another employee now make its historic claims look embarrassing.
-
With its economy embattled and investors fleeing in droves, getting good data on China has never been more important. There are some great analysts and research shops out there. But too many China-facing reports suffer from a lack of imagination, groupthink brought on by a fear of irritating Beijing and an over-reliance on state data. That must change.
-
The London Stock Exchange Group’s head of sustainable finance strategic initiatives wants climate data to redefine the act of indexing.
-
Brazil’s banks have been talking a good game about capturing the outperformance of smaller, privately held companies in the country. Now a new banking advisory firm – packed with senior bankers – has made this segment its entire business strategy.
-
Ambitious brokerage firms have precipitated a shift in demand for FX licences, with interest in regulated European and Asian markets on the increase at the expense of offshore jurisdictions.
-
After overseeing radical transformations at Bawag and Hamburg Commercial Bank, Cerberus Capital Management now has ultimate control of HSBC’s French retail bank. Former UniCredit banker Niccolò Ubertalli is running the new business, and reveals a very different strategy to the private equity company’s German-speaking antecedents in European banking.
-
Best Bank: Hana BankHana Bank wins this award for not only growing at a faster rate than its competitors but also for doing so in a way that doesn’t endanger its franchise in the long run.
-
Hong Kong-based Chinese investment banks, plagued by the market’s liquidity issues, are looking to China's economic pivot and the renminbi's rise as a fundraising currency to restore their fortunes.
-
New entrants spur breadth and depth in the country’s capital markets.
-
Recently, investors have welcomed Turkish USD debt with open arms. As 2024 approaches, prospective borrowers will be hoping that the renewed interest can last.
-
A team of once-public sector bankers and officials is launching a new private equity fund that aims to identify ‘climate winners’ from the transition to a decarbonized economy. It has identified key industries but its central thesis is regulation.
-
Outgoing supervisory chair Andrea Enria warns against ‘complacency’ – despite higher capital ratios at eurozone banks – as he announces new requirements on banks to tackle investment-banking leverage, liquidity shortages and leveraged finance risks.
-
A securitization of pay-as-you-go electricity bills to fund wider access to electricity in Côte d’Ivoire could spark copycat social bonds for affordable housing, telecoms, electricity access and more.
-
Outside Switzerland, European banks largely escaped the banking turmoil last March. That hasn’t prevented supervisors using it as an excuse to ratchet up the pressure. Ahead of its 10th anniversary as a supervisor, is the ECB – as some bankers suggest – getting too intrusive?
-
The cost to the government of supporting the Mexican oil firm’s debt could rise to 1.5% of GDP in 2025. Could it walk away?
-
BR Partners grew steadily up until its successful IPO in 2021. However, tougher markets since that float have led to a period of relative consolidation. Will 2024 see a resumption of chief executive Ricardo Lacerda’s ambitious empire building?
-
Siemens is anchor client for a new rules-based approach to banking.
-
The annual Senate quizzing of US big bank chief executives threw up all the usual favourite partisan arguments, but little else. If this is oversight, it often lacks insight.
-
The appointment of Marcelo Noronha as chief executive of Bradesco should probably have taken place five years ago. Is he still the right man for the job?
-
The chief executive of Newton Investment Management is a forthright believer in the power of active investors to effect change at the companies they invest in, and thinks tinkering with market rules is unlikely to boost the appeal of London-listed equities.
-
Many corporates are realising the benefits of intercompany netting on FX risk, trading and cash-flow visibility.
-
Restrictions may come at a cost as MSCI considers developed market status.
-
At the start of 2023, analysts sized China and liked what they saw: an economy reopening after three years of Covid isolation, and ready once again to roar. Nothing of the sort has happened and corporates and institutional investors are now fleeing the market in droves.
-
Barclays hopes to win over investors with new return targets and buyback commitments next February, but it really needs a revival in investment banking.
-
National Bank of Ukraine governor Andriy Pyshnyy talks to Euromoney about stabilizing the country’s financial system after the invasion, how rapid shifts to cloud-based banking can work and why cyber risks mean other countries are now seeking Ukraine’s advice about keeping banks running when national electricity infrastructure is down.
-
Regulators are starting to take a more messaging-based approach to sustainable finance, but stopping greenwashing won’t automatically lead to a transition to net zero.
-
The commodities firm still needs large banking groups and a range of options when it comes to supporting its operations.
-
The Signa Group of companies is complex, but its problems are simple: debt service costs are going up while property values are going down.
-
As the Chinese property crisis deepens, a new round of bank-led rescue efforts is on the horizon. While banks must shoulder part of the blame for the crisis, their options for action are limited.
-
Thailand wants to give almost every adult in the country money through a digital wallet. It’s an interesting step towards bringing digital finance to the mainstream.
-
The bank must broaden its horizons if performance is to improve.
-
The travails of Zhongzhi, a key player in China’s poorly regulated $3 trillion shadow financing market, underline why a future crisis in the country is more likely, not less.
-
The 28th Conference of the Parties starts in Dubai tomorrow. Dubbed the finance COP, conflicting priorities could turn it into a fossil fuel investor roadshow.
-
First Bank of Nigeria is the country's third-largest bank, accounting for 10.4% of banking system assets at the end of 2022. Despite tackling a sizeable legacy book of impaired lending, it has built a decent corporate banking business that, by the end of 2022, had an annual turnover of more than N5 billion ($6.4 million).
-
More and more bond trading is automated. As volatility now shifts from rates to credit that will provide a stern examination of new trade execution tools.
-
While many African countries experienced lower interbank FX turnover and saw their foreign-exchange reserves dwindle last year, there are grounds for optimism that 2023 will turn out to be a better year at both regional and national level.
-
The sovereign pushed hard on its first use-of-proceeds green bond, but a sustainability-linked bond was not seen as a practical option for now.
-
Instead of boasting about the billions extracted from the crypto exchange, the US Departments of Justice and Treasury should have closed it down.
-
Markets jump on the news that Javier Milei will be Argentina’s next president. A large devaluation is needed, but that leads to the risk of deposit flight.
-
Kenyan authorities have cleared Flutterwave of wrongdoing following an anti-money-laundering case in the East African nation. Nevertheless, industry confidence in the Africa-focused payments company remains mixed.
-
While the dollar’s international supremacy is unchallenged for now, the wider landscape is shifting. Companies are raising more funding in renminbi and the currency’s use in international payments and settlements is growing.
-
The overall use of cash will continue to fall, but the decline of bank branch networks means that businesses now face a headache in handling physical takings.
-
While the air at the Singapore Fintech Festival was full of grand ideas about GenAI, real innovation was taking place in the weeds of fintech development.
-
When Kevin Gartside was medically discharged from the British army in 2012 after three tours of duty in Iraq, he was unsure what to do next. He saw cross-over appeal in banking, an industry with a surprisingly flat operating structure that prizes punctuality, teamwork, adaptability and decision making.
-
Standard Chartered’s corporate and institutional bank can increase its profitability even when rates fall, divisional head Simon Cooper tells Euromoney. After reaping the benefit of investments in cash management, he is now turning to the financial markets business, especially credit – reinforcing efforts to grow clients in Europe and the Americas.
-
Sector shows strong profit performance in the third quarter as asset quality improves.
-
Andy Sieg is back again from Merrill Lynch, and has big plans for Citi’s new global wealth franchise.
-
Exiting consumer banking in a range of markets around the world was one of Jane Fraser's first steps when she became Citi’s chief executive. The immensely complex task would need the safest of hands.
-
Big banks are scrutinized on environmental, social and governance matters today as never before and they must often walk a tightrope between competing interests. Citi is no exception.
-
As Citi presses on with its consumer-banking exits around the world, the job of defining what its international network now represents falls to its newly appointed head of international, Ernesto Torres Cantú.
-
-
Competition for deposits is influencing pricing decisions on commercial loans. However, the major cash-management banks insist that they have maintained both deposit levels and lending rates.
-
The war in Ukraine has suddenly ramped up demands on the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development after the institution spent years searching for a new role. President Odile Renaud-Basso talks to Euromoney about the bank’s strategy and plans to boost its capacity through a €4 billion capital increase.
-
Enel could trigger the largest step-up event in the sustainability-linked bond market if it misses its CO₂ emissions targets at the end of this year. How the market reacts will set the tone for the future of these instruments.
-
The Swedish regulator digs deep into background of prospective senior managers.
-
The great and the good have assembled again for the Global Financial Leaders investment summit in Hong Kong.
-
UK banks that focus on tech are seemingly rewarded with greater customer trust.
-
The local sector is in good shape to weather a short-term conflict. If the war drags on and spreads throughout the region, however, the position is far less clear.
-
Data hoarding, ESG illiteracy and credit risk are roadblocks for regional banks looking to establish sustainable supply-chain financing programmes in the Gulf, just as COP28 approaches.
-
Corporates are taking a big punt on markets remaining relatively benign, given their apparent lack of confidence in existing FX technology and systems.
-
Rakuten needs money – and lots of it – as its mobile telecommunications arm continues to burn cash. But it is running out of things to sell, while its debt profile is miserable.
-
A $3.5 billion deal attracts $36 billion of demand, answering the question of whether Swiss banks can return to this market after Credit Suisse's collapse.
-
OTP Bank recorded impressive growth in lending volumes during the awards period and has also advised on some landmark financings.
-
ING Bank’s commitment to sustainable and responsible banking in Germany makes the best bank for environmental, social and governance in the country this year.
-
-
While no charges have been laid against the Adani Group, a new Sebi rulebook addresses a key concern that came from the January stock-market controversy.
-
The AFX marketplace provides a new venue for US regional and community banks to lend and borrow from each other overnight. It could be the foundation for a new credit-sensitive benchmark rate.
-
Net interest margins are shrinking. Banks may need to find new sources to fund customer loans, perhaps even by lending to each other.
-
Mongolia’s five big lenders have successfully completed their IPOs, doubling the size of the local stock market. But the challenge of attracting more foreign institutional investment remains.
-
Singapore’s DBS Bank has spent the past decade transforming itself into one of the world’s best digital banks. But a series of lengthy service outages over the past year has wrongfooted senior management, who have been left to issue apologies and pledge to do better.
-
Private banking clients have begun exploring alternative asset allocation strategies in Brazil. Euromoney talks to the founders of a startup that is tapping into this demand with a strategy focused on special situations.
-
A local asset management company in Liaoning province just bailed out Shengjing Bank – by borrowing the capital it needed from the very same ailing regional lender.
-
High interest-rate regulations skew credit portfolio allocation and stifle new entrants to the sector, but the new president may have other challenges to solve first.
-
Turkey’s central bank took another step on the path to normalization when penalties for exceeding interest-rate caps on lending were scrapped last week. It is good news for banks, but will it last?
-
Barclays has made visible progress across the board in environmental, social and governance, advising on large sustainability financings, enhancing its sustainable mortgages and offering more support to green startups.
-
Ardshinbank is Armenia’s best bank for environmental, social and governance after demonstrating a commitment to sustainability with its carbon footprint-minimization strategies and green financing work.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core banking activities over the past 12 months.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core banking activities over the past 12 months.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core banking activities over the past 12 months.
-
In a period marked by rapid technological evolution across its entire business, Bank ABC has made several digital enhancements to its corporate product offering. The bank has been named best corporate bank in Bahrain this year in recognition of these transformative efforts, alongside its involvement in a number of important regional transactions.
-
Singapore’s big-three lenders – UOB, DBS and OCBC – have won Euromoney awards for best SME bank in Asia each year since 2016, two of them taking the global award as well. Why?
-
Global banks spent years trying to make China’s vast market work for them, mostly in vain. Today, though, China’s manufacturers are investing in Europe and the US, and turning to Western lenders for advice. The real China opportunity starts here.
-
The risk of a new war with Israel will derail any fledgling economic recovery for Lebanon as it attempts to convince private-sector investors of its gas and renewable energy potential.
-
Continuity is likely to be the theme as incoming leader inherits a well-performing franchise, but competition in wealth management and the markets businesses, as well as a still-lacklustre environment for investment banking, will be among Pick’s challenges.
-
KVS Manian has been overlooked in favour of ex-Barclays man Ashok Vaswani. What does it mean for one of India’s finest banks?
-
Latin America has been a relative backwater for private equity firms. Could better equity market conditions in the region drive an uptick in activity?
-
Andrea Orcel’s complex deal with Alpha Bank ultimately opens a new front in the Milan-based lender’s pan-European strategy: Greece.
-
The Singapore regulator MAS has set guidelines for banks transitioning to net zero. Unusually, it cautions against moving too fast.
-
In one of his last interviews in office, Ignazio Visco sets the record straight on his controversial 12 years as Italy’s central bank governor: a period of almost constant crisis. Today, the country’s NPL problems seem cured but, as he acknowledges, simmering risks remain.
-
Pressure is growing on Japan’s self-imposed caps on government bond yields. Positive rates must be around the corner, but what will that mean for banks and public debt?
-
Banks may be retreating from lending directly to small and medium-sized enterprises, but by lending to credit specialists with good technology they can still be a source of funding for the sector.
-
Sustainability-linked loans have faced growing criticism for their opacity and concerns around greenwashing. Sustainability-linked loan bonds could help to bring more transparency to the market and help legitimise these structures.
-
The controversy surrounding My Forex Funds has reinforced the view that tighter regulation of foreign-exchange proprietary trading firms is inevitable.
-
While foreign investment in China has fallen, supply-chain shift is a different story. Rather than transferring their main production away from China, manufacturers are cultivating deep regional supply chains across Asia and beyond.
-
It took five years for the invoice finance specialist Accelerated Payments to advance its first €1 billion, but just nine months for the next €500 million.
-
Record sustainable finance issuance will still only get you so far.
-
Digital banks look to online games to help drive retention.
-
It is rare that a popular, fast-growing and secure financial product is put at risk, but could the boom in FGTS loans in Brazil be under existential threat?
-
Bidding $2.5 billion for the bulk of Credit Suisse’s sub-Saharan Africa ultra-high net-worth private bank book 18 months ago has been a ‘game changer’ for Barclays in the region, the UK bank’s Africa market head Amol Prabhu tells Euromoney.
-
If you owe the IMF $3.6 billion, it’s your problem. But if you owe the IMF $36 billion, it is their problem.
-
Even as the industry pleads its solidity, accidents keep happening.
-
Deutsche Bank’s Mexico team says the country is vital for Latin American credibility and that nearshoring will drive FDI in the coming decade.
-
Ahead of COP28, the sector needs to focus on lending for energy efficiency in the emerging markets before climate tech startups in developed markets, if decarbonization is the goal.
-
Latin American issuance was solid, if unspectacular in the first half of this year. However, with politics, sticker price resistance and refinancing needs skewed to 2024, the next half may be more difficult.
-
Just three weeks on from the rapturous response to Arm Holdings re-listing on Nasdaq, the prospects for a revival in IPOs suddenly look dim.
-
Patricio Sepúlveda, head of Chile’s public debt office, discusses how programmatic issuance demonstrates commitment to sustainability-linked bond goals and can make these structures more cost effective.
-
A market-beating increase in UniCredit’s share price is just the beginning, chief executive Andrea Orcel tells Euromoney. He must now prove the many remaining sceptics wrong and show the bank can still thrive when net interest margins fall and credit costs rise.
-
More banks have announced partnerships with asset managers to place loans into private debt funds that offer investors better risk-adjusted returns than bank equity.
-
European corporates are finding a warm welcome from investors, pushing investment-grade volumes to a 2023 monthly record last month – their biggest total since the start of the interest-rate hiking cycle. But while investors are clearly ready to buy even the more adventurous stories, they still need the reassurance of sensible pricing.
-
Digital sukuk issuance still faces the issue of uneven Shariah interpretation.
-
As a relative outsider, Slawomir Krupa might have appeared better suited to the chief executive job at Societe Generale precisely because it had done so badly under an establishment insider. BNP Paribas’ good performance, by contrast, would make the traditional background of its rumoured chief-executive-in-waiting, Marguerite Bérard, less of a barrier.
-
The relaxation of visa rules has turbocharged the recent flow of wealth into Dubai. The nature of these flows can, however, make them a mixed opportunity for the UAE’s private bankers.
-
MUFG’s vast balance sheet has the potential to make a considerable difference to Japan’s net-zero ambitions. But the bank won’t be pulling back from polluters, arguing that money needs to flow to where emissions are, not away from them.
-
SBM Bank has undertaken several structural and strategic initiatives to enhance its offering for small and medium-sized enterprises over the last year and is Mauritius’s best bank for SMEs as a result.
-
Zenith Bank wins best bank for digital solutions in Nigeria following a period of robust growth across its digital channels.
-
Rawbank is the Democratic Republic of the Congo's best bank for digital solutions this year – a challenge in a country where much of the population doesn't have access to the internet or mobile banking.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core banking activities over the past 12 months.
-
The Lebanese diaspora has come home to pump fresh cash into the country’s economy, but the resulting price surge is a further blow to the lira-earning population.
-
The banks in each market that have excelled across a range of core banking activities over the past 12 months.
-
Private foundations were once the preserve of a narrow group of the monied elite. Today, they are the fastest-growing source of private-sector philanthropy in the US and across the developed world.
-
BlackRock joins Allfunds initiative to distribute new variants of private equity and credit funds to wealthy individuals.
-
Euromoney talks to Jacques Levet, chief digital officer at BNP Paribas, about the competitive advantage that newly acquired FX fintech Kantox offers.
-
Slawomir Krupa may yet turn around Societe Generale. But it won’t be by shock and awe.
-
Farmland acquisition for transition agriculture has proved attractive to the climate-focused investment management franchises of large asset managers. Will real-asset investors follow suit?
-
A Citi survey of family offices finds some unsurprising things to say about the worries of the wealthy – inflation, interest rates and geopolitics – but discovers a shocking lack of preparation for succession planning.
-
Despite tweaks to improve efficiency, Societe Generale’s new strategy has received a lukewarm reception. New CEO Slawomir Krupa has lifted the capital target, but revenues will remain flat, and there is a lack of news on asset sales.
-
Bankers at Lloyds say that progress in FX, fixed income and structured finance this year reflects chief executive Charlie Nunn’s strategy for targeted growth in corporate and institutional banking.
-
The enormous re-listing of Arm Holdings is unrepresentative in many ways, but it still contains a valuable lesson for those coming down the pipe.
-
Market participants have welcomed recent moves to enhance FX liquidity by increasing the efficiency of credit payments for trades.
-
Borrowers that financed cheaply in 2021 will soon hit a maturity wall. Many will struggle to refinance at higher cost. Some will default. Private credit managers – still magnets for institutional capital – are set to step in and bridge some of the financing gap left by the banks.
-
Beneath the Great Game geopolitics of US-Vietnam relations, there are some intriguing possibilities in the detail.
-
Should we take Vivek Ramaswamy literally or seriously?
-
Financial market practitioners might be forgiven for reflecting on a job well done now that the final Libor panel has ended its submissions. The journey has been immense, but the focus is turning to loose ends, including the argument that just won’t go away: is there a place for credit-sensitive rates in a post-Libor world?
-
As other investment banks cut staff, HSBC has been hiring to build a leading bank in tech and healthcare.
-
Banks and investors opposed to European Union derivatives clearing plans have made an astonishing charge: the EU is worse than the US in jealously guarding its own markets.
-
A tactical retreat on crypto regulation might help SEC chair Gary Gensler to avoid being bogged down in a war of attrition for the rest of his term.
-
A debate in Australia arguing for the liquidation of the sovereign wealth fund has relevance to the global fund community.
-
For decades, transaction banking was a profitable but largely ignored corner of the banking industry. Then Covid happened. Today, bank chiefs see it as critical to everything they do. Given the challenges ahead – collaborating with fintechs and embedding ESG principles in global supply chains – the revolution under way in this business is unstoppable.
-
After years of easy Eurobond access and ramped-up Chinese lending, developing economies are now caught between rising interest rates and geopolitical tensions, making debt restructurings more numerous and more complicated. Despite some progress in inter-creditor talks, many debtor nations face an uncertain financial future.
-
HKEx chief executive Nicolas Aguzin opened the group’s latest new office in London on Wednesday. His aim: to get more global firms to IPO in Hong Kong and convince investors to put money to work there. But against the backdrop of China’s economic situation, his team will have its work cut out.
-
A handwritten note brings down the curtain on a 38-year journey for bank founder.
-
The frontrunner in the Argentine presidential election campaign has said he wants to abolish the peso and replace it with the US dollar. Is it blue-sky thinking or just greenback dreaming?
-
Private bankers are eyeing PE and venture capital investments as digital platforms emerge in Brazil, but personal advisory remains critical.
-
After buying parts of BNP Paribas and Societe Generale, Orabank is African banking group Vista’s boldest acquisition yet. Despite coups and sovereign debt distress, Vista’s founder and chairman Simon Tiemtoré tells Euromoney how he can succeed where other higher profile ventures have failed.
-
The Brazilian bank is focused on new initiatives aimed at boosting active-user rates, including a new global app and buy-now-pay-later product.
-
With a new proposal for long-term debt issuance, US banking regulators have launched the next phase of their war against the lack of confidence that shook the industry in March 2023. But it is becoming increasingly clear that the approach is less about precision strikes and more about a carpet-bombing campaign.
-
Two new platforms show how India is building on top of its digital foundations.
-
Despite the cross-border growth of Hungary’s OTP Bank and the regional potential of Romania’s Banca Transilvania, banking in central and eastern Europe is increasingly a national game.
-
China is having a shocker of a year. Growth has stalled, deflation is back and global firms are moving production elsewhere as they de-risk from China to boost supply-chain resiliency. FDI is down sharply and exports are sinking. Just as Brexit reshaped the UK’s relationship with the world, has Covid done the same for China?
-
The manner of the campaign against chief executive David Solomon risks causing the lasting damage that his internal opponents presumably wish to avoid.
-
Outbound Chinese M&A deal-flow has slowed to a crawl even as inbound activity remains steady. So focus in the region is moving elsewhere: to rising India, steady-and-lucrative Australia and even Japan, where once-bloated conglomerates are streamlining portfolios under intense pressure from activist shareholders.
-
Good things could be in store for Libya if harmony at the central bank spreads to the government and sovereign fund.
-
Second-quarter results from Brazil’s largest banks, published over the first half of August, revealed a bounce in financial performance. But it may be premature to dismiss further asset-quality deterioration down the line.
-
The political response to rising bank profits should focus more on debt distress than on deposit rates and taxation.
-
Despite its roots in the region, HSBC’s Asian woes have sometimes seemed endemic. It has been overly dependent on Hong Kong and too often caught in Sino-US crosshairs. But under regional co-CEOs Surendra Rosha and David Liao, the lender has regained its confidence, is more regionally diverse than ever, and is busy posting record profits.
-
The second-quarter earnings season saw more detail from US banks on how they are preparing for the worst in commercial real estate exposures. We look at how the data shapes up for the super-regional sector.
-
The domestic economy is flatlining while interest rates continue to rise, but the booming banking sector has helped overall UK corporate payouts keep pace with those elsewhere.
-
Moody’s took a swing at US banks last night. The moves might have seemed indiscriminate, but it’s hard to argue with the conclusions. After the scares of March, the sector is far from out of the woods.
-
It is no surprise to find the ACCC blocking ANZ’s takeover of Suncorp. It is eye-catching, though, to see the regulator naming a deal it would prefer to see happen.
-
The investment firm founded by securitization experts in 2015 has grown to an $8 billion portfolio of 60 companies without managing any third-party funds and still sees big potential returns, notably in football clubs, from applying the discipline of structured finance to operating businesses.
-
Thirty percent of Singapore sovereign fund’s portfolio is in private equity or real estate. Surely this is as good as it gets for private markets.
-
Thames Water has become the highest profile example of a UK corporation that finds itself hamstrung by inflation-linked bonds issued at a time when persistent high inflation and economic stagnation seemed unlikely bedfellows.
-
Accessing funds via debt capital or private placement may seem like an onerous task, but a growing number of corporates see it as an opportunity to mitigate the impact of changes to bank-capital deployment.
-
Banks including NatWest and JPMorgan are struggling to put out reputational risk-management fires.
-
The NatWest chief executive’s resignation ends a solid if unexciting three-and-a-half years at the helm.
-
BlackRock, JPMorgan and McKinsey are working on plans for a new development finance institution focused on Ukraine’s reconstruction. The project has already had to temper some ambitions, but its advisers still hope it can propel flows of private-sector money to Ukraine in years to come.
-
Credit growth is a key driver of stellar earnings from India’s banks as the country completes its recovery from Covid-19, but another driver is digital traction.
-
Analysts are looking beyond China for clues as to where the main Asian currencies will go over the remainder of 2023 as they try to second-guess Japan’s monetary policy plans.
-
ADIB’s almost 10-times oversubscribed additional tier-1 issuance shows interest in the product is alive and well for the right issuer, but demand won’t be the same for every bank.
-
The increased corporate focus on environmental, social and governance issues is impacting treasury teams that can struggle to justify their initiatives.
-
Wealth management had a tough 2022. Assets under management fell across the board, undermined by global uncertainty. But one region is not struggling. More wealth than ever is being formed in the Middle East, and more of it than ever is staying there. Private banks are hiring as fast as they can and expanding their repertoire in Shariah-compliant asset classes.
-
The German lender has named Claudio de Sanctis as its new head of private bank and created a single, unified division – part of longstanding plans to generate more income from the business by rooting out inefficiencies and tapping into new global income streams.
-
Temasek, as an equity-only sovereign wealth vehicle, had a bad year. A close look at its portfolio positioning helps us understand what it is doing about it.
-
Big banks capable of competing with US players are part of Europe’s geostrategic interests, Deutsche Bank CEO tells audience at Euromoney dinner.
-
Trade and currency wars have boosted Brazil’s agribusiness sector in the past couple of years. Higher prices for soft commodities have, however, accelerated a trend that has been noticeable for many years: the country’s inward focus.
-
It has been a tough year for Sri Lanka and for the banks operating in the country. Just as the island was exiting the worst of the Covid crisis, Sri Lankans were faced with political upheaval, an economy on the brink of collapse and shortages of everything from food to fuel.
-
For the first time in its 62-year history, the Reserve Bank of Australia has appointed a woman as governor.
-
All private banks are different: in how they project their brand, build business, serve clients and generate fees. But they all seem to have two things in common. They love lending to rich people with big art collections and chatting about ocean preservation.
-
The Kingdom’s government has announced that international firms – many of whom are based in Dubai – that want to work with the state will need to base their regional headquarters in Saudi.
-
UOB’s transformative initiatives have earned it the title of Singapore’s best bank once more.
-
HSBC remained formidable in the Hong Kong market over the past year and is now well positioned to reap the benefits of mainland China and Hong Kong’s post-Covid reopening.
-
Prudence and caution was the mantra at CIMB Bank in the past year, and it served the bank and its chief executive Abdul Rahman Ahmad well. Revenues in 2022 rose 7.6% year on year, net profits before tax rose 38.1% and loans 5.6%. The bank also gained market share in mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.
-
Baiduri Bank remains the standout bank in Brunei. This is not just down to its solid financial growth but also because of its commitment to digitalization, which has enhanced its capabilities in everything from data analytics to customer service.
-
Capital market transactions might be few and far between in Tanzania, but when they do happen, Stanbic Bank Tanzania is often on the deal.
-
Chinese banks have not had an easy ride in recent years. Faltering economic growth, muted domestic demand, tight Covid restrictions and growing scrutiny from regulators have forced them to hunker down and work as best as they can.
-
Hana Bank wins this award for not only growing at a faster rate than its competitors but also for doing so in a way that doesn’t endanger its franchise in the long run.
-
It is not much fun being a banker in Argentina. But while it is pretty much universally tough for everyone, spare a thought for individuals like Juan Parma, HSBC’s chief executive Argentina and head of wealth and personal banking America. Because, while Parma’s peers in Argentine banks face many of the same challenges he does, at least for them the whole organization is still focused on the country. HSBC’s global leadership could be forgiven for skipping over the country in global strategy meetings.
-
When financial analysts argue about whether economies of scale exist in cross border retail banking, they simply need to point to BAC International Bank (BAC). Led by Rodolfo Tabash, the bank is a big player in all the regional markets and, while these are small individually, together they total more than 50 million people.
-
There is no better wealth manager in Latin America than Banco Santander. It won the award for best private bank in Latin America in Euromoney’s 2023 private banking awards.
-
The retrenchment that Citi has made in the retail markets of central America has clearly not impacted its dominance of corporate and investment banking in the region. It wins the award for central America’s best investment bank again this year.
-
If an organization in Latin America – corporate, sovereign or multilateral – wants to raise finance, Citi will invariably be part of the conversation. The bank’s financing team, led by Adrian Guzzoni, head of debt capital markets for Latin America, and Marcelo Millen, head of equity capital markets for Latin America, has shown that Citi’s ability to access local and international sources of funding and to present options spanning debt, loans and equity is a compelling proposition for finance departments across the region.
-
BNP Paribas’s sustainability strategy for Latin America continues to mature, underpinning the bank’s strong position across the continent. The bank has made considerable efforts to deepen its focus on the three most important sustainability issues in Latin America: protecting biodiversity, promoting social development and decarbonizing hard-to-abate industries.
-
Banco Pichincha has been developing several strategies to boost social inclusion and improve gender dynamics in Ecuador. The bank now has an impressive portfolio of projects that fit under the corporate responsibility banner.
-
This year’s winner of the award for Latin America’s best digital bank, Davivienda, has not just adopted the digital channels of new startup rivals but has gone further. The bank has embraced digital banking, blockchain adaptation, artificial intelligence and the metaverse. The result is an intriguing and compelling mix of upgraded old-bank processes through digital infrastructure and completely new business opportunities.
-
Latin America saw increased interest from many different types of acquirers in the past year as volatility elsewhere boosted the relative attractiveness of the region’s economic, legal and regulatory frameworks.
-
The region's best banks, country by country
-
BofA Securities retains the award for Latin America’s best investment bank. Last year, the team, led by Alexandre Bettamio, co-head of global investment banking, and Augusto Urmeneta, president for Latin America and head of Latin America Investment banking, claimed the award for a strong regional performance. This year BofA went even further and took the country awards for Colombia, Peru and Brazil. The latter is easily the most important investment banking market in the region.
-
Banco Santander’s headquarters are in Europe, but the centre of gravity of its operations has been drifting westward to Latin America for many years now. Over the review period, the bank posted a solid year of progress among many of its Latin American markets, which comprise Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia and Peru.
-
It is tempting to conclude that Citi’s impressive suite of treasury management services, for which it wins the award of Latin America’s best bank for transaction services, is the result of the bank knowing that it really needs to excel in this area. Given the growth strategy being pursued by chief executive Jane Fraser, which has seen the bank pull out of many retail banking markets to focus on corporate and investment banking, a market-leading transaction services offering is imperative.
-
Despite the war in Ukraine, the past year has seen UniCredit operating with more of the purpose and commitment that international banks in central and eastern Europe too often lack.
-
Last year, ING was the first bank in central and eastern Europe to stop providing dedicated finance to new upstream oil and gas fields, despite the fact that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatened energy supply on the continent. The Dutch lender remains the bank of choice for green or sustainability labelled deals in the region.
-
Geopolitical tensions in the region have provided a welcome boost to Armenian banks’ profitability. Ardshinbank stood out during the awards period for making the most of this opportunity under the leadership of chairman of the management board Artak Ananyan. Profit before tax more than quadrupled in 2022, from Dram16 billion ($42 million) to Dram77 billion.
-
Good perceptions of corporate social responsibility have become ever more important for banks in central and eastern Europe since the start of the war in Ukraine.
-
The past year has seen Societe Generale play a crucial role in central and eastern Europe’s financing markets, led by Philippe Madar, head of corporate coverage for Europe. It is top of Dealogic’s mandated lead arranger rankings for regional syndicated loans in the awards period. Its market share in loans was almost twice as high as the next ranked bank, and it was also involved in some of the key bond deals during the awards period.
-
Wealth management across central and eastern Europe is still in a state of flux, nearly 18 months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In that period, some lenders have pulled back from specific markets in the region; others have sought ways to cut costs by reducing their roster of senior private bankers.
-
Under chief executive Hakan Binbasgil, Akbank demonstrated an innovative and proactive approach to small and medium-sized enterprise banking during the awards period, despite the difficult operating environment in its home market of Turkey.
-
Even rivals recognize that OTP Bank has advanced strongly in digital banking recently, ensuring that its technology wins and retains customers in Hungary and across central and eastern Europe.
-
Best Bank: OTP Bank Albania
-
With the war in Ukraine adding to global volatility in capital markets, investment banking deal flow was weak in central and eastern Europe during 2022 and early 2023, especially for lower-rated names.
-
Government clients and the reduced presence of international banks are typical features of finance in central and eastern Europe, and M&A is no exception. But the region is not beyond the reach of JPMorgan, central and eastern Europe’s best bank for advisory.
-
UniCredit has long been regarded as a leader in corporate banking in central and eastern Europe. Transaction services continues to be a vital part of this regional franchise under Riccardo Madinelli, head of transactions and payments for central and eastern Europe.
-
Football clubs undergoing a period of transition often talk of needing a transfer window or two to get where they need to be. More often than not, this doesn’t work. Better-run teams continue to make clear-minded decisions that keep them ahead of the pack. Catching up is always hard to do.
-
It was ultra-competitive at the top of the M&A league tables in the review period. Goldman Sachs wins the award for Asia’s best bank for advisory this year because it was there on most of the big mergers and acquisitions. The bank advised on 76 deals in Asia Pacific in the 12 months to the end of March 2023, worth a total of $181.9 billion, according to Dealogic, for a 16.87% share of the market.
-
Best Bank: Afghanistan International Bank
-
Morgan Stanley is a powerhouse in financing. In Asia Pacific ex-China, the US bank helped to complete 42 equity capital markets deals – more than any other bank over the 12 months to the end of March 2023 – worth a total of $5.4 billion, according to Dealogic. And in debt capital markets, it completed 419 deals worth $46.2 billion.
-
Citi takes everything it does seriously, but there is a special place in its collective consciousness for transaction services. This often-sprawling area of financial services, which chief executive Jane Fraser calls the crown jewel of the bank, is the beating heart of all Citi stands for.
-
Singapore is Asia’s leading private banking hub – and at the heart of that story is DBS, a bank that has remade itself over the past decade and a half into one of the world’s best wealth managers.
-
It is no surprise that HSBC is Asia’s best bank for sustainable finance for the sixth year in a row. Across its commercial, retail, global banking, markets and securities, capital markets, trade finance and risk management teams, the lender has created an extensive sustainability knowledge base that few of its rivals can match.
-
Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) is a worthy winner of this award. At the heart of the bank’s philanthropic efforts is its BPI Foundation, which touches the lives of more than one million financially under-served Filipinos in 75 of the country’s 81 provinces.
-
There is perhaps no other digital bank anywhere in the world like kakaobank. Many pure-play digital banks seem to have an in-built ceiling: at a specific point, organizational flaws appear, they cease adding new customers and start to appear more dysfunctional than disruptor.
-
Afghanistan International Bank (AIB) remains the most stable and reliable institution in a country facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
-
Morgan Stanley swallowed the market whole this year. There was precious little transaction activity that its investment bankers didn’t play a key role in.
-
UOB is as committed as ever to serving small and medium-sized enterprises in its home base of Singapore – where it reckons it banks one of every two SMEs – as it is to clients in key markets across the region. From mid-sized corporates on the fringes of requiring capital markets services, to micro-enterprises, clients have come to rely on it for funding, financial advice and best-in-class banking services.
-
Africa’s best bank for transaction services, Societe Generale operates in 19 countries in Africa, with 4.3 million clients, including 175,000 corporate clients. Its global transaction and payment services team is led by Alexandre Maymat.
-
For the second year in a row, Equity Bank is Africa’s best bank for corporate responsibility. Under the leadership of group CEO James Mwangi, Equity Bank continues to create shared value for clients and citizens across its banking business, as well as its foundation, which dates back to 2008.
-
In investment banking, Citi continues to benefit from the combination of a leading global network and an on the ground presence in Africa that is much bigger than most other international firms.
-
In many African countries, Standard Bank is not as large as it would like to be. But it has a physical presence in 20 African countries and is already by far the biggest pan-African group in terms of its scale in the main sub-Saharan markets, the size of its balance sheet and its absolute profit.
-
Standard Bank Wealth & Investment stands head and shoulders above the wealth management competition in Africa. The South African bank is a regional powerhouse in the sector, with private banking offices in 14 African markets, including Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana, as well as the whole of southern Africa.
-
A combination of rising interest rates, depreciating currencies and poor credit ratings make it difficult for African economies to tap into global financial markets to fund their sustainable transition. At the same time, the impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly severe across the continent.
-
Advantageous financial services reforms, abundant natural resources and a young population means there is plenty of potential for long-term economic growth in Angola. The banking sector is dominated by six large lenders, with very little competition from non-bank institutions.
-
Evidence of an ability to leverage networks across Africa and beyond has helped Citi win the title of Africa’s best bank for advisory this year. While the firm has a strong franchise in South Africa, the rest of the continent is now becoming more important as a growth market. This award is therefore largely thanks to the team led by chairman of investment banking for Middle East and Africa, Miguel Azevedo, and Claude-Stephanie Ngningha, Citi’s head of investment banking in Africa outside South Africa and Egypt.
-
Best Bank: Banco Angolano De InvestimentosBest Investment Bank: Standard Chartered Angola
-
No African lender can match Ecobank Transnational’s reach. The Togo-based financial institution is a worthy winner of this year’s award for Africa’s best bank for small and medium-sized enterprises – the second year in a row it has received the title.
-
Like most of South Africa’s big banks, Nedbank is on a mission to reform and re-engineer its IT system, using it to attract new business, cut costs and roll out new services.
-
Compared with European banks that have built African retail operations, Deutsche Bank might not be as well-known as an Africa-focused lender. But it has long had important corporate and investment banking operations on the continent. It is one of the largest correspondent banks for African financial institutions and in the previous decade it helped many African sovereigns issue debut international bonds.
-
Perhaps it is no surprise that when Euromoney sits down with Bank of America to discuss the bank’s pitch for this category there are five people in the meeting – and they are all women. This is a bank that has led from the front across all aspects of corporate social responsibility (CSR), including diversity and inclusion (D&I).
-
The lasting impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on global energy markets has steered the sustainability conversation towards efficiency and practicality in western Europe. Beyond investing in low-carbon solutions to reduce the energy intensity of across a range of sectors, banks were preoccupied with clients’ transition plans to reduce their own financed emissions, while facing tougher disclosure regulations and public scrutiny of their continued financing of the oil and gas sector.
-
With retail banking operations in Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg, BNP Paribas is the clear leader among a very small handful of European banks that have grown beyond being national champions in their home markets to serve personal customers across the continent.
-
UBS’s financing business might not have the widest scope in the industry these days, nor does the bank top the debt and equity capital markets league tables, but what it does have is expertise that is unusually well tailored to the times. For its skill in responding to its target clients’ needs, and particularly those of financial institutions, it is our pick as western Europe’s best bank for financing.
-
Charlie Nunn, who has been chief executive of the UK’s best bank since 2021, announced a new strategy for Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter of 2022. It didn’t receive much attention as it was announced on the same day that Russia invaded Ukraine. And the new strategy is really the old strategy with a slight shift in the focus beyond cost discipline and scale efficiencies towards investing in growth and doing more for the bank’s market leading 26 million customers.
-
In a quiet year for equity capital markets, BNP Paribas worked on the two main deals that took place: the $1 billion accelerated bookbuild for Energias de Portugal in March this year and the €53 million rights offer for Greenvolt Energias Renovaveis in July 2022.
-
The past year has seen Societe Generale reap the benefits of its long-term investment initiative in its transaction services business across Europe.
-
BGL BNP Paribas positioned itself as the strongest commercial bank in Luxembourg in 2022.
-
The region's best banks, country by country
-
BNP Paribas Fortis is Belgium’s best investment bank this year. It took the top position in the equity capital markets league table during the awards period, from second last year, with a 20% market share, having completed six transactions worth a total of €457 million.
-
In April 2022, the European Central Bank launched a call for payment service providers, banks and technology companies to engage in the creation of prototypes for a digital euro and associated payment services.
-
BNP Paribas’s wealth management team has had a stellar year. In Euromoney’s 2023 private banking awards, it was named Europe’s best private bank and the Middle East’s best private bank. It also won a hatfull of country awards, including best domestic private bank in France and best international private bank in Belgium and in Switzerland.
-
Last year, Rothschild & Co advised on a higher volume of M&A transactions than any of its European rivals, with its $220 billion of completed deals putting it comfortably ahead of Barclays on $207 billion, Lazard's $185 billion, BNP Paribas' $178 billion and Deutsche Bank's $145 billion.
-
BNP Paribas has also had an excellent year in its corporate and institutional banking division, particularly in its home region. The division posted record revenues in 2022, of €16.5 billion, up 16% on the previous year. The equity and prime services, global banking and securities services units all saw new highs, while global markets had its best year since 2009.
-
Isabel Guerreiro, head of retail and digital for Europe at Banco Santander, describes her employer as a digital bank with branches. This is what is behind the Spanish bank’s continued success with the small and medium-sized enterprise segment across Europe.
-
The volatile conditions during much of the awards period meant that banks supporting borrowers in North America needed to be flexible.
-
Bank of America has become a global leader in digital banking steadily and without fuss. It has been a quiet route to success for the US financial firm; one done its own way, on its own timetable, and at its own pace.
-
The most striking thing about this year’s winner of the US best super-regional investment bank award is that PNC Financial Services Group prides itself on not really having an investment bank.
-
Global macroeconomic turmoil might seem far from the day-to-day concerns of small and medium-sized enterprises, but those issues are getting ever closer to the heart of their business. Inflation, supply chains, labour shortages and commodity prices were just some of the challenges thrown up in the awards period.
-
Good banks do not collapse in times of turmoil. But the best banks do more than that – they are so buttressed against stress that when it strikes, they not only emerge unscathed but can act decisively in support of the whole sector. JPMorgan was that bank in March 2023, able to play that role because of its consistently superior performance.
-
The volume of completed M&A deals involving a North American buyer or target was steeply down in the awards period this year, with a 41% drop to just under $2 trillion. But in volatile times activity concentrates on the very best franchises, and this year demonstrated that well. For increasing its market share and strengthening its already dominant position, Goldman Sachs is North America’s best bank for advisory.
-
As the immediate chaos of the global financial crisis subsided, Morgan Stanley took a long hard look at its strategy and chose to focus on wealth and investment management. It is a decision that has paid off. Private banking generates steadier, more reliable income streams than the more cyclical business of investment banking.
-
All banks today claim to have inclusion, diversity, accessibility and sustainability programmes, but some stand out for the breadth of their initiatives. Under chief executive Bharat Masrani, Canada’s TD Bank Group is one that has made corporate responsibility a priority for years in its approach to customers, clients and employees.
-
Moribund primary equity capital markets and a rising interest rate environment meant that investment banks were tested more than ever in the past 12 months as they sought to give clients the options they needed in spite of poor conditions.
-
From the outside looking in, sustainable finance in North America seems to act much like a see-saw. Last year, news about the wave of anti-environmental, social and governance legislation coming from Republican states was immediately followed by $500 billion of financial incentives for clean energy and healthcare under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). This was then followed by concerns over gridlock when the Republicans took control of the House.
-
Citi’s transaction services bankers can be in no doubt of the firm’s commitment to their business. Chief executive Jane Fraser is on record calling the Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) division the crown jewel of the bank and she rarely misses an opportunity to refer to it. The bank invested $1 billion in technology for this business alone in 2022.
-
Sometimes a franchise is suited to a moment. And in an awards period that began with the catastrophe unfolding in Ukraine, ended with a meltdown in US regional banking, and was accompanied throughout by eye-watering rate hikes, clients had no shortage of demands of their investment banks.
-
Only the biggest and soundest of the US regional banks were able to come through the wreckage of March 2023 unbowed. None did so better than Citizens, a bank that was already consolidating two fine strategic moves at the start of the awards period and was able to consider another at its end. It wins the award for the country’s best super-regional bank.
-
Canada’s banking market remains as competitive as ever, but one bank stands out for the strong performance of its underlying businesses as well as for completing the standout strategic move of the period. Bank of Montreal (BMO) is Canada’s Best Bank.
-
2023 is shaping up to be the year of the pause for the region’s capital markets.
-
At €1.9 billion, international investors would happily have bought all of Europe’s biggest IPO since Porsche – even on the illiquid Bucharest stock exchange.
-
VÚB banka spreads its love for the environment typographically.
-
Jamie Dimon puts a limit on staff travel to one of JPMorgan’s more exotic branches.
-
The two chief executives should be on the undercard for the Musk/Zuckerberg cage fight.
-
The activist shareholder highlights concerns about a former poster child for private equity ownership of banks.
-
The former Credit Suisse chief is championing Africa.
-
-
Regulators forced banks to skip dividends during Covid, but let them make up payouts later on. They should now do the same for AT1s or risk that market failing.
-
The global disclosure recommendations don’t stand a chance against mandated regional regulation.
-
Banks are not waiting for loans to stop performing before they sell them.
-
Societe Generale’s recent African exits, and BNP Paribas’s talks with Orange Bank, highlight how closely Europe’s banks tend to follow each other. Differences are often more a question of strength than strategy.
-
What African fintechs need is supportive regulation, local capital and the development of talent. Singapore wants to show them the way.
-
Rising default rates will soon separate the smart private credit managers from the mediocre. This offers opportunity for the winners to scale up.
-
Veteran banker Tom Montag is to join the board of Goldman Sachs in a bid to bolster support for embattled chief executive David Solomon. Weak second quarter earnings could make this task harder.
-
Several Gulf Cooperation Council countries have bank consolidation at the core of economic visions. As governments push for national champions, pressure is building across the industry as banks jostle for position.
-
Tyme Bank’s experience with grant recipients in South Africa demonstrates the need to link up banking innovation to the real-world requirements of customers.
-
High interest rates and low bank appetite for risk have created the perfect conditions for a renaissance in invoice factoring.
-
Once again, Emirates NBD walks away with the award for the Middle East’s best bank. The Dubai bank posted net profit of $3.54 billion in the full year 2022, up 40% year on year, boosted by strong returns from investment banking, treasury sales income and trade finance. It has continued that strong performance in the current year, posting a first-quarter 2023 profit of $1.63 billion, bolstered by net interest income of $1.96 billion, up 69% year on year.
-
HSBC wins the award for the Middle East’s best bank for financing this year. During the awards period the bank topped the equity capital markets league tables, completing 12 deals – more than any other financial institution – worth just over $4 billion, according to Dealogic.
-
Kuwaiti citizens are proud of the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the country’s largest bank by assets, and for good reason. NBK views itself as a pillar of the corporate and financial community. It deserves to win this award for several reasons, starting with its willingness to connect with worthy new initiatives.
-
Arab Bank has long been at the forefront of innovation in lending to small and medium-sized enterprises. Its regional reach gives it the kind of presence few can match. At the time of writing, the Jordanian bank oversees a network of 600-plus branches on five continents and boasts offices in Jordan, Lebanon, the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
-
Citi is the standout winner of the award for the region’s best bank for advisory in 2023. In a strong year for M&A, it was way ahead of the pack. It advised on 18 completed deals collectively worth $32.1 billion, giving it a 26.5% share of the market, according to data from Dealogic.
-
Mashreq Bank is a perennial winner of this award. Can any other regional lender compete with its ambition to be not just the best digital bank in the region but one of the best in the world? So far at least answer is a resounding ‘no’.
-
All big banks say they are leaders in transaction services, few really are. HSBC is always in contention for this award and takes the honours after a year full of new services and innovation.
-
UBS continues to assert its position as the Middle East’s best bank for wealth management. It won this award last year and the one before that – and the one before that. It is active in every important market, continues to expand its reach and innovates intelligently, introducing products tailored to regional clients’ specific needs.
-
In the Middle East, sustainability is about adaptation, not just to the increasingly stark evidence of climate change but also to the global demand for a more diversified energy mix to lessen fossil-fuel extraction.
-
In some years this award is a close decision, with two or three banks vying for the prize. This wasn’t one of those years.
-
Best Bank: National Bank of BahrainBest Investment Bank: Sico Bank
-
The green transition is boosting demand for key metals and Africa’s commodity markets are under pressure to increase extraction. But buyer awareness of Scope 3 emissions means that processes need to be cleaned up and fast.
-
When Credit Suisse is taken over by UBS, it’s likely that the new parent’s appetite for structured private credit will be significantly different to that of the institution it is absorbing. Two banks in particular are waiting for the opportunity that follows.
-
Issuance has barely stopped in Indonesia’s IPO market this year. Global investors have bought into the resource-led story with glee – and there are plenty of deals in the pipeline.
-
Japan is the first major market to put a regulatory environment around stablecoins into law.
-
Kevin Lam is to lead the Malaysian bank, becoming the second person within three years to step down as UOB’s TMRW digital head.
-
The country’s economy was already weak before a serious drought hit. Now it is broke, and the question in Buenos Aires isn’t whether finance minister Sergio Massa can muddle through to the presidential election at the end of October, it is whether he can make it to the primaries in August before a full-blown financial crisis.
-
Bankers are hopeful that they may soon be able to issue new AT1 deals again as the secondary market recovers from the Credit Suisse write-down.
-
Indonesia is one of the world’s brighter prospects right now: growth, demographics, infrastructure momentum, inflation under control, more equity raised in the first quarter in Jakarta than New York. Banks are positioning to benefit – while keeping an eye on next year’s elections.
-
Extreme FX volatility is proving a challenge for some finance directors who are struggling to minimize the impact on their bottom line.
-
The standardized approach for counterparty credit risk has not yet proved to be the catalyst for greater use of clearing in the FX market that some expected.
-
Could trading of US sovereign credit default swaps trigger a global systemic meltdown? Probably not, but default swap shenanigans aren’t helping to calm jittery markets.
-
Inflation is not beaten and rates may rise further. But high-grade bonds can still provide steady income and low risk, playing a new old role in investor portfolios.
-
If the UK is to become an international crypto hub, it must focus on bringing regulatory certainty to the industry and the banks that back it.
-
If Olam Agri’s planned dual-listing IPO goes ahead in June it will have a bit of everything: a Singapore-Saudi listing, geopolitics and sovereign funds jostling to defend their nations against strain in global food security.
-
Despite surging global interest rates, inflation, gyrating currencies and geopolitical tensions, Ahli Islamic Bank has stayed the course. It has grown its business and worked to expand the industry, pursuing financial inclusion when it is needed most.
-
RakBank isn’t the biggest or best known bank in the United Arab Emirates. But it is playing an outsized role in providing innovative Islamic banking solutions and growing the market.
-
Since its inception in 2004, Boubyan Bank has carved out a specific niche in a Kuwaiti market dominated by bigger and more established players. As chief executive Abdullah Al-Tuwaijri puts it, three words serve as the guiding star for the bank’s strategy: “modern, attractive and digital.”
-
The global turmoil of 2022 posed a severe test for Banque Misr and its more than 10 million customers. The one-two punch of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the foreign-currency crunch caused by surging inflation sent Egypt to the IMF.
-
Kuwait Finance House’s 45th year in business was a banner one. In October 2022, the team led by acting chief executive Abdulwahab Iesa Alrushood completed the acquisition of Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank to create the world’s second-largest Islamic bank.
-
Dubai Islamic Bank reported a 12% year-on-year rise in net profit in the first quarter of 2023, while total income grew by 47% over the same period – the result of strong income from financing assets and robust cost management.
-
You might expect that a bank that managed to double its profit over the last year would be an easy call for the best in Bahrain. But aside from the financials, Bahrain Islamic Bank, led by chief executive Yaser Alsharifi, is a clear standout in many categories.
-
Qatar’s biggest Islamic bank remains hard to beat. Last year, it offered shareholders a 17.8% return on equity, a 2.1% return on assets and one of the industry’s lowest cost-to-income ratios at 17.4%.
-
Al Rajhi Bank had a busy 2022, arranging 12 high-profile transactions in the Saudi riyal and US dollar debt capital markets.
-
Founded in 2009, Sidra Capital is a pioneer of private Islamic finance in Saudi Arabia, with offices in Riyadh, Dubai, Singapore and London. Licensed and regulated by the Saudi Arabian Capital Market Authority, Sidra’s Shariah-compliant asset business focuses on alternative asset classes, real estate and private finance and private equity.
-
By virtually any measure, Maybank is Malaysia’s best Islamic bank. It is ahead of its rivals in market share for total assets, financing, deposits and unrestricted investment accounts.
-
Bank Syariah Indonesia’s (BSI) focus on tech disruption is not typical for a state-owned lender. But southeast Asia’s biggest and most populous economy is proving fertile territory for startup finance.
-
Over the last 45 years, Jordan Islamic Bank (JIB) has steadily grown its banking, financing and investment businesses in accordance with Islamic guidelines. The corporate governance code it built became the standard in Jordan and one that the central bank has taken to using as a benchmark for peers.
-
Few banks take the phrase 'digital transformation' more seriously than Dukhan Bank.
-
-
As interest rate volatility persists, corporates are taking a hard look at their trade finance options.
-
Leading firms join a new network of networks, but crypto natives see just another walled garden.
-
Banks keep up on the record commentary on the rules.
-
Fears were already growing about dangers lurking in US commercial real estate even before the wave of turmoil that has hit banks in the last two months. After the pandemic and a rush of rate hikes, there is little debate that the sector is at a turning point – the question is whether something worse is on the horizon.
-
The evolution of Brazil’s central bank payments programme could be good news for banks.
-
As the drumbeat of bad news from the US regional banks grows steadily louder, Euromoney talks to market veterans about the lessons that can be learned from the event that started it all: Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse in March.
-
As the Gulf IPO boom subsides, will better allocations for international investors, dual listings and better secondary-market liquidity be enough to ensure that the region’s equity capital markets can mature?
-
UBS’s acquisition of Credit Suisse will further reduce the number of large international private banks in Brazil. Julius Baer has been quick to take advantage of this.
-
The banking sector appears to be quietly confident that the European Commission will row back on new regulation that, if enacted, could notably increase the cost of some trade-finance instruments.
-
The US regional banking system has just sustained its third bank collapse this year. Following an initial sharp slump in reaction to the news, bank stocks have continued to fall as short sellers target perceived weakness. Can the sector stabilize as the impact of rate rises on many of these lenders’ business models becomes apparent?
-
The big transaction banks are becoming increasingly active in the B2B marketplace as they seek to cash in on corporate digital transformation.
-
Jordan Kuwait Bank has issued the country’s first green bond, a key milestone for sustainability driven capital investments in the country. But getting momentum going in the sector will be an uphill battle.
-
US banks have seen $1.1 trillion in deposits flee the system over the past year. Much of this wound up in money-market funds that offer higher returns and the promise of safety and stability at a time of rising uncertainty. How dangerous is this for US lenders, and what can they do to convince flighty deposits to return to the banking system?
-
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has fuelled an abrupt end to venture-capital exuberance. There are vital implications for fintech and for the banking industry.
-
JPMorgan has cleaned up in a deal that sees the regulators waive their own cap on 10% deposit ownership.
-
A curious disruptive technology group proudly announced an investment by Temasek. The problem: it wasn’t true.
-
JPMorgan’s AI model to interpret central bank messaging came out just as it emerged that Jerome Powell had been pranked into discussing policy with Russian provocateurs. Euromoney’s distinctly obvious heuristics model (D’Oh!) might be needed.
-
Relative winners after a year of interest rate hikes include Bank of America and Citigroup. Losers are led by regional US banks, while alternative asset managers argue that higher rates present a historic opportunity.
-
Pouncing on a firm with lots of corporate broking relationships at the low point for IPOs is a smart trade.
-
The acquisitive fintech group reckons it can accelerate the transition from legacy FX technology by making it easier for tech firms to get their products to market.
-
UBS will face pressure to spin off Credit Suisse’s Swiss bank and may yet lose more private-banking assets. Coping with this will make managing down illiquid and hard-to-value markets positions look easy.
-
How on earth, in this environment, did the bank deliver one of its best-ever quarters in Asia?
-
Proceeds raised in the first three months of this year were 99% lower than the amount raised at the start of 2021.
-
The French investment bank is taking a bet on a double-edged blockchain technology to stay ahead of both the tokenization and sustainability trends.
-
The French bank joins HSBC, DBS and others in setting up a full-service wealth management offering in the stable southeast Asian country, with all transactions booked in nearby Singapore.
-
Tech-related bank deals can still get away, but investors call the shots now.
-
The recent spate of deposit flight that spread panic through the banking systems of the US and Europe opens a chance for non-bank lenders to seize more of the core businesses that banks want to retain. Central bank emergency measures may have prevented the crisis from spreading, but a new phase of disintermediation has begun.
-
The chair of Ping An Asset Management has called again for the break-up of HSBC and spin off of its Asia assets. His argument is a strong and valid one; his problem is that none of the bank’s other main shareholders seems to care.
-
Standard Chartered’s new chief sustainability officer is not shying away from the reality of what the energy transition looks like in emerging markets.
-
The country’s banking system seems as solid as ever, but its banks are seeing an uptick in delinquencies that could spin out of control.
-
Australian banks adore residential mortgages. But they are ignoring a cohort of people who are going to run into a lot of trouble with repayments.
-
-
Disagreement over where US interest rates are going has split opinion on overall prospects for emerging market currencies.
-
Rethinking liquidity regulation would be better than a regulatory backlash that imposes an even greater liquidity burden on banks. History offers some lessons on how that might be done.
-
A flurry of collaborations and the acquisition of Nivaura’s technology is putting NowCM in a key position in the digital capital markets ecosystem. Its focus on real-time issuance and its ownership of a regulated marketplace may have just become even more relevant.
-
Turkish airline Pegasus hopes an innovative funding solution tied to sustainability targets will help it increase capacity despite challenging market conditions.
-
The two bank’s investment banking franchises look enticingly well-matched. But how much business and how many bankers will still be around after the merger?
-
With the advent of its strategic alliance with Japan’s Mizuho Financial, Lombard Odier now has wealth management tie-ups in seven Asia countries, with the promise of more to come.
-
Twinco Capital facilitates access to sustainable funding by focusing on pre-production finance.
-
The last broker-dealer was always going to feel the pain of a continuing capital markets slowdown, but sales and trading has provided a useful fillip.
-
Rising interest rates have driven demand for more efficient liquidity structures.
-
As soon as the ink was dry on the agreement to take over Credit Suisse, UBS chairman Colm Kelleher rushed to bring ex-CEO Sergio Ermotti back to run the bank and the deal. Execution risk is off the charts, and the nerves of shareholders, employees and taxpayers are jangling.
-
No matter what competitors do, contending with a 158-year-old banking major with a presence in 64 economies and a wealth balance the size of Australia’s gross domestic product is going to be hard. Especially if it has a knack for reinvention.
-
Credit Suisse pioneered the family office business in Asia back in 2010 when few people even knew what this rarefied service involved: nowadays, this branch of private banking attracts scores of competitors and is responsible for one of the biggest investment booms in the region.
-
Julius Baer wins the category best for philanthropic services in Asia this year. For starters, the firm doubled the number of philanthropy advisory mandates in 2022.
-
With more than $740 billion in client assets in its global wealth management business, Citi embodies the modern-day financial behemoth.
-
In a year of financial upheaval from all sides, JPMorgan Private Bank made things look almost easy.
-
One of Switzerland’s best-capitalized institutions, Union Bancaire Privée, has slowly but surely showcased that leadership in Asia since its regional business was set up in the early 1990s.
-
Most private banks in Asia now claim that environmental, social and governance investment principles are well-entrenched. But at Bank of Singapore, whose chief executive is Jason Moo, there’s a level of ambition to prove it really does look at the world through an ESG lens.
-
Client goals and aspirations have always been unique. So is Union Bancaire Privée’s discretionary portfolio management (DPM) service. But the team did have to contend with big shifts in clients’ risk profiles in the past year, and their eagerness to be involved in all strategic investment decisions at a time of global volatility.
-
Analysts tracking the trajectory of Asian wealth and trends around gross domestic product are free to peruse government data, surveys and all available reports. Yet some of the most telling clues as to what is going on in this fast-growing region can be found inside the balance sheet of DBS Private Bank.
-
With Asia on the brink of one of the biggest-ever inter-generational wealth transfers, RBC Wealth Management finds itself in the right place at the right time.
-
Julius Baer and the team led by Jimmy Lee, member of the executive board and head of Asia Pacific, look at the future in rather pragmatic terms: if you can’t predict it, why not at least do business with those most likely to shape it?
-
Few things are at a greater premium in global markets than a knack for providing visibility, as well as the list of pitfalls to come. This was very much in demand in 2022 when tried-and-true yardsticks like yield spreads and stock valuations were out of sync.
-
HSBC is named best digital private bank this year, in part thanks to the sheer scale of its user base and the ubiquity of its app, but also because of the firm’s constant reinvention.
-
Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz) wins Euromoney’s award for best Middle East private bank for investment research, a reflection of its research-driven culture.
-
With offices in Dubai, Riyadh, Geneva and Luxembourg, BNP Paribas Wealth Management is well positioned to offer succession planning and wealth-transfer services across the Middle East.
-
BNP Paribas has put environmental, social and governance at the centre of its work over the last few years and BNP Paribas Wealth Management’s approach is no different. The bank, which last year took home the world’s best bank for ESG in Euromoney’s Awards for Excellence, has successfully integrated ESG across its offerings, not least with its innovative ‘myImpact’ app.
-
Emirates NBD has put a strong focus on digital and mobile banking for its private banking clients and wider customer base in 2022.
-
QNB Private was the first private bank established in Qatar, but its offering for clients, particularly high net-worth individuals, spans the Middle East. QNB is the largest bank in Qatar, with a 30% market share, and has a global network that covers 31 countries on three continents.
-
BNP Paribas Wealth Management is named the best private bank in the Middle East in this year’s private banking awards.
-
Any bank working with ultra-high net-worth clients must understand the needs of that base from generational wealth to philanthropy. LGT Private Banking knows those needs well, owned as it is by the Princely House of Liechtenstein through the Prince of Liechtenstein Foundation.
-
Across products, innovation and technology, client service and delivery, FNB’s digital banking offering is consistently one of the best and most advanced in the industry, supporting the judges' unanimous determination that it be recognised this year as Africa’s best private bank for digital.
-
Wealth transfer and succession planning advice and services should be at the core of a private bank’s offering, demanding a unified, integrated approach to providing clients with experienced and expert advice across assets, business structures and local and offshore jurisdictions.
-
Amid stiff competition, FNB once again rises to the top in the judges' assessment based on its strength and distinction in key areas including products, innovation and technology, and client service and delivery, making it Africa’s best private bank for discretionary portfolio management.
-
Environmental, social and governance-focused investing has become a key priority for institutional investors globally over the past few years, leading to a rapid expansion in the universe of ESG-labelled investment products and funds.
-
Amid turbulent times, the quality and timeliness of investment research takes on greater importance for clients as they try to navigate market volatility and mitigate risk across their portfolios.
-
Size, scale, depth of client penetration – together with offering the full range of wealth management advice, products and services across multiple core markets – are key elements in recognising the leading private bank in any region.
-
Credicorp’s senior management has introduced a range of initiatives to improve the sophistication of its private-bank offering, but none has been more important than its focus on the underlying research department.
-
Not many new private banking mandates are won thanks to an institution’s abilities in succession planning. But many a client has been lost over a bank's poor succession planning capabilities when this becomes a touch point for clients, as it inevitably does at some stage.
-
Credicorp has been investing across its private-banking business in recent years – expanding its capabilities across its growing regional footprint. The judges recognise the outcome of this effort.
-
Credicorp may have been somewhat late in starting its environmental, social and governance initiative in earnest – the bank only formalized its global sustainable impact strategy in 2020 – but the results have been impressive.
-
The consistent growth in both the scale and the quality of Santander’s private banking business in Latin America this year has impressed the judging panel.
-
BTG Pactual is a clear leader in using digital investment to drive service innovation, client satisfaction and private banking performance. It has always been a leading private bank in Brazil (and, latterly, throughout Latin America as well), but its embrace of digitalization has enabled it to pivot its full-service investment platform to a much wider audience than its traditional wealth-management clientele.
-
The judges have acknowledged BTG Pactual’s hard-earned reputation as one of the leading banks for high net-worth individuals in Brazil – and increasingly beyond.
-
Santander’s progress in its family office business is recognised by the judging panel not because of any specific innovation or differentiated approach, but rather for the focus on service quality that sets the bank apart.
-
Adding to its two other European awards this year, BNP Paribas Wealth Management wins the region’s Best private bank for digital award.
-
Supporting its award as Europe’s Best private bank, BNP Paribas is the judges’ Best bank in the region for discretionary portfolio management, too.
-
Completing its trio of European awards, LGT Private Banking is the judge’s Best private bank in Europe for environmental, social and governance investing.
-
Societe Generale Private Banking has demonstrated to the judges its ability to provide differentiated and valuable advice and solutions in wealth transfer and succession planning better than its peers in the past year, supporting its regional award in this category.
-
It takes a family office to know what a family office needs.
-
Amid strong competition between Europe’s leading private banks, the judges agree that BNP Paribas deserves to be recognised this year as the region’s best private bank, an award supported by two other honours: best for digital and discretionary portfolio management.
-
LGT Private Banking’s strong financial performance and distinctive offering creates a compelling case to make the bank the region’s best for ultra-high net-worth individuals and two others: family office services and environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing.
-
Following up on its recognition last year as Euromoney’s Best bank for wealth management in Western Europe in our Awards for Excellence, UBS is now recognised as the leader in the region for high net-worth individuals.
-
Of many information needs today, two of the most prominent for wealthy investors are insight and analysis that help guide them through volatile and uncertain markets, and identify opportunities to invest sustainably.
-
Experience and expertise in investment are standard characteristics of most private banks. Yet, in the booming asset class of environmental, social and governance-related investments, few banks have the length and depth of experience and expertise of Morgan Stanley.
-
Supporting its recognition as the world’s best private bank for family offices services, Morgan Stanley wins the regional award in this category, too.
-
Supporting its awards for the world’s best private bank and best for ultra-high net-worth individuals, JPMorgan’s power and penetration in serving North America’s UHNW segment – the largest globally by number of individuals and total value of wealth – makes it the clear winner in this category for the judges.
-
Across Canada and the US, RBC Wealth Management has built a compelling and powerful offering for clients across all wealth segments, enabling the bank to command a market-leading position, particularly among high net-worth clientele.
-
Morgan Stanley’s focus and investment in wealth and asset management over the past few years has created an enhanced, powerful and distinctive offering, illustrated by revenues in wealth management hitting a record high of $24 billion in 2022.
-
The echoes of 2014 have been loud in Brazil’s private banking industry over the past 12 months. A precipitous fall in interest rates – followed by a meteoric rise – has left the market completely the same but also very different.
-
Pure-play Swiss private bank Julius Baer has had to reconfigure its business model for the 2020s. Chief executive Philipp Rickenbacher talks to Euromoney about why scale and nurturing talent are key to the long-term success of a firm that does just one thing and one thing well: serving wealthy private clients.
-
Citi’s Wealth at Work, which delivers wealth services to white-collar professionals in sectors from law and asset management to private equity, is less than two years old. Its founder and global head Naz Vahid talks to Euromoney about the concept and where the division can go from here.
-
Private banks that fled India in the 2010s are returning in force. Those that never left are frantically hiring. With a fast-growing economy creating a lot of new wealth across every sector, India is once again the toast of wealth managers.
-
Pakistan has been trying to improve financial inclusion for the last 20 years with little success. Are new digital licences the answer?
-
The Credit Suisse deal may have merely accelerated Hamers’ anticipated departure.
-
The failure of venture capital’s favourite bank is bad news for a sector reliant on new injections of cheap capital to sustain loss-making growth.
-
Both Egypt and Turkey have recently been able to tap dollars more cheaply through sukuk.
-
What will UBS’s post-merger sustainable finance strategy look like?
-
First Abu Dhabi Bank’s recent interest in a bid for Standard Chartered and an ill-fated investment in Credit Suisse by Saudi National Bank have put the spotlight on Middle East banks as potential acquirers of international firms.
-
It has been over a decade and a half since a Chinese financial institution bought or invested in a Western counterpart. Beijing sees the West’s banking system as incomprehensibly chaotic and messy, and its own – albeit flawed – as a bastion of stability.
-
Hong Kong conference moves along. Nothing to see here.
-
As well as higher capital requirements for regional US banks, the policy response to the Silicon Valley Bank collapse will likely include increasing the Deposit Insurance Fund, which bigger banks will have to pay for.
-
Recent events call into question most of the core assumptions behind the rules designed to keep banks safe through a liquidity squeeze.
-
Will the fall of Credit Suisse be a seismic moment for private banking? Probably not – the reality is that wealthy clients need their financial advisers too much. Wealth is flighty for sure, but it usually alights nearby at a more stable lender.
-
UBS’s integration of Credit Suisse will be a long and uncertain process, but keeping the latter’s Swiss universal bank may mean the deal eventually comes good.
-
Bankers have been at pains to stress how different the world is today from the dark days of 2008: higher capital; more liquidity; lower credit risk and all that. But while individual banks may be safer than they were, collectively they arguably now face a worse existential crisis. Societies face awkward questions about how they value the utility of the banking sector – and how they should pay for it.
-
UBS shareholders might find plenty not to like in what seems at first glance like a great deal. The bank is making itself more complex at a time when creditors and investors put a premium on simplicity and focus.
-
Big foreign-exchange banks are focussing on enhanced functionality to promote greater use of single-dealer platforms.
-
HSBC’s global head of trade finance talks about how the bank has built 'the trade finance platform for the future'.
-
Short-term government bonds have re-emerged as a viable option for corporate treasurers seeking returns on their cash, but recent events in the US banking sector highlight the risks of long-dated exposures.
-
Michael Klein can’t be expected to ‘devote significant time and attention’ to the unlikely prospect that UBS will allow a CS First Boston spin-off without being paid. Greensill-style invoices for Klein’s theoretical future services could be the answer.
-
Solar thermal technology could offer cheap carbon-free heat for manufacturers. But tech developers are stuck in a financing gap between venture capital and project finance that will be harder to fill after recent bank failures.
-
Credit Suisse came out of the global financial crisis in better shape than many peers. But fragility was never far away – in the years that followed its fortunes would swing back and forth, sometimes violently. Here is the bank’s route to 2023, explained through Euromoney’s own coverage.
-
Interest rate risk management has been complicated by the fall in yields after the US bailout of SVB’s depositors. Clients may feel that hedging chiefly benefits Wall Street dealers rather than themselves.
-
Unfortunately, while the SNB can provide ample liquidity that Credit Suisse doesn’t really need, it cannot provide the trust and credibility it sorely lacks.
-
The decision by its Japanese owners to relist ARM, the UK’s great technology success story, in the US instead of London was inevitable after years of decline and the hammer blow of Brexit. Deregulation might further accelerate its collapse, even as the City wins a boost from new technology bringing the vast pool of retail money into equity capital markets.
-
It is not clear how the SVB collapse will change banking; but it is clear that the lack of supervision of smaller banks allowed systemic risk to spread worryingly fast.
-
Banks like Santander, BNP Paribas and SocGen see auto finance and the future of mobility as critical pieces of their overall group strategies. But as mobility becomes an increasingly fractured business, what does the auto finance bank of the future look like?
-
HSBC runs towards the storm as others are fleeing it.
-
Inflation has returned to the country for the first time in 30 years. As it does so, there is a new face at the helm of the Bank of Japan. What does it mean for the megabanks?
-
The collapsing share price of Silicon Valley Bank, triggered by the realization of a loss on a portfolio sale, puts pressure on other US banks that have built up similar books of investments.
-
For one of the most considerate men in capital markets, nothing was ever too much trouble.
-
The former Barclays chief executive is set to scale up the core banking-technology provider that aims to do banking 10 times better.
-
Santander executive chairman Ana Botín has stepped back from the M&A-based restructuring many assumed former CEO candidate Andrea Orcel would oversee. Euromoney asks Botín and her new chief executive, Héctor Grisi, how they plan to make this international retail bank succeed.
-
The EU green bond standard is understandably broad. But because of this, the limits between sustainable and transition finance remain unclear.
-
Patents are a high-profile demonstration of a bank’s commitment to innovation, but they are not the only option for those looking to encourage new ways of thinking.
-
Droit helps traders decide in milliseconds if deals comply with the ever-changing rules and aims to do the same for wealth managers.
-
The COO of Deutsche Bank’s International Private Bank, Sandra Wirfs, tells Euromoney how it has been able not just to slash costs but also to make its wealth management business more cost-efficient than the core bank.
-
The notion that different businesses can produce healthy results by being under the same roof underpins Goldman Sachs’ diversification strategy. After failing to make that work at the first time of asking, its second attempt looks more derivative – but is perhaps likelier to succeed.
-
Don’t expect a flood of IPOs, but there are still placements across Asia Pacific.
-
Tokenization is spreading fast. Regulated finance is finally embracing blockchain technology just as most cryptocurrencies stand revealed as overleveraged Ponzi schemes. The institutional herd is moving, but can the blockchains they are shifting onto bear the load?
-
From small beginnings as the offshoot of a British merchant bank in 1969, Macquarie has become the world’s largest infrastructure asset manager, a powerful investment bank, a global commodities player and several other things besides. It has built all of this through a distinct culture built on risk management, individual empowerment and a capacity for constant reinvention – but it hasn’t always been popular along the way. A new book by Euromoney’s senior editor in Asia Chris Wright and Joyce Moullakis examines the journey.
-
After its DAX return, Commerzbank now has a clear – if uncertain – path to achieving its profit target, according to CFO Bettina Orlopp.
-
The former CEO of Cazenove has written an intriguing reflection on his 23-year career at the storied London institution. It captures his view from the heart of the turmoil, but mostly steers clear of score-settling.
-
More blue blood than bad blood at former chief executive’s book launch.
-
Restrictions on upstream oil and gas financing aren’t the silver bullet that the sector needs to achieve its climate goals.
-
Firms betting on interest-rate declines will be hoping that inflation does not force central banks to raise the cost of borrowing again.
-
The whereabouts of investment banker Bao Fan are unknown just when China wants to attract foreign talent and capital, not deter it.
-
Higher interest rates will weigh heavily on the property development lending that makes up the bulk of OakNorth’s loan book. But chief executive and co-founder Rishi Khosla tells Euromoney the bank can maintain its ultra-low loan losses and keep growing.
-
A day-by-day account of Adani’s stunning collapse in value.
-
A two-week period saw Adani Group attacked by a short seller, abandon a $2.5 billion share offer and lose $100 billion in market value. What next? And what does it mean for Modi’s India?
-
The desire among political and financial leaders in Beijing to climb the value chain in development finance is clear. But the challenges now facing a giant Chinese state-run infrastructure contractor at Nigeria’s new deep-water port in Lekki show that this is easier said than done.
-
SLLs offer more flexibility for borrowers targeting sustainability, but the structure is coming under scrutiny around the world for potential greenwashing concerns.
-
Four years ago, Christian Sewing set out to give the German bank new direction. His plan, based on income-rich services like private banking, continues to surprise and succeed. Euromoney caught up with the head of International Private Bank, Claudio de Sanctis, to discuss last year’s financials and his plans in Asia and the Middle East.
-
With the digital pound, the UK is following much of what the European Central Bank has done on the digital euro. But could the UK’s more unified banking sector foster a more revolutionary central bank digital currency?
-
A month ago, First Abu Dhabi Bank said it had looked at Standard Chartered but decided against a bid. Now, it is believed to have changed its mind. What has changed?
-
Yet another multi-billion-dollar loss on investments in SoftBank’s Vision Funds speaks to a malaise that is hurting the tech teams of investment banks in Asia.
-
While the bank plans to spin off its troubled investment bank, the new worry is whether and how soon it can repair the wealth management business.
-
Big transaction banks are responding to corporate customer demand for sustainability linked supplier-finance programmes by extending the geographical availability and range of the products they offer.
-
New platform acts as central account keeper under Luxembourg law for first ever sterling bond deal on blockchain.
-
Gains written on banks’ equity book values from long dollar positions could be quickly wiped out if borrowers prove unable to service debt at a higher exchange rate.
-
For the past few years, Goldman Sachs has dangled the promise of something new – a diversification in its business mix that would give shareholders a reason to finally re-rate the stock. But while the firm still has the glint of Goldman on the surface, disappointing earnings are revealing something less valuable underneath. Can its second investor day now fix the legacy of the first?
-
When the news broke that Argentina was thinking of merging its currency with that of its neighbour, Brazil, my immediate question was: which Argentine peso?
-
While no one is willing to bet the farm on anything other than dollar depreciation in 2023, mixed messages from the Fed, and economic and political uncertainty elsewhere mean the greenback could yet defy expectations.
-
Banks and corporates are taking a variety of approaches to mitigating the impact of rising interest rates, quantitative tightening and economic uncertainty on the availability of liquidity.
-
Just back from Davos, the bank’s new head of sustainable finance says the industry needs to do more, and Barclays needs to do more on transition.
-
Private credit funds are committing more to specialist non-bank lenders such as iwoca, seeing big potential in small business credits, even if NPLs are set to climb.
-
The bank’s chief financial officer says Inter is moving into an expansion phase, following an ambitious and aspirational ‘north star’.
-
A report by a US short-seller hammered the stock of India’s Adani Group companies just as one of them tried to raise $2.5 billion in a follow-on. It was not just Adani under attack here, but Modi’s vision of corporate India.
-
Some leading FX banks have struggled to stay competitive in forwards, swaps and swaptions thanks to SA-CCR rules, but compressing portfolios helps.
-
While big US banks edge slowly towards exchange-like trading of loans, a group of market veterans have tested a system in Asia and will soon launch in Europe.
-
A decade ago, the bank opted to go long on more durable sources of income – notably wealth management. Its standout 2022 financials are a clear sign of the benefits of long-term planning.
-
Appetite for corporate issuance remains robust as investors dismiss recession fears and take on credit exposure.
-
Strong collective-action campaigns might hurt some banks' reputations, but they will do little to convince those institutions to change their energy policies.
-
Going all out to keep the sell side sweet seems a sensible strategy for success in the difficult P2P FX market.
-
The recent update to the green taxonomy and implementation of the SFDR RTS have received a mixed reception in parts of the EU.
-
With little likelihood of currency volatility subsiding any time soon, corporates continue to face difficult decisions when it comes to how best to mitigate FX risk.
-
Last year, a connected cluster of village banks in the central province of Henan suffered one of China’s worst financial scandals in years. Beijing’s reaction: to create a new state bank that will take stakes in rural financial and credit institutions with the aim of spotting and weeding out corruption and improving financial governance.
-
The southern Chinese city has set out ambitious plans to become one of the world’s top wealth-management centres. With one of China’s largest onshore pools of private wealth, there is everything to play for.
-
Some issuers are grabbing the opportunities offered by a new capital markets year. Others would do well to face reality sooner rather than later.
-