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.

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.

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.

Although the biggest universal banks regularly appear higher up the M&A advisory league tables by transaction value, Rothschild & Co works on far more deals than any competitor. According to Dealogic it advised on 222 deals in the 12 months under review compared with Goldman Sachs’s 132.

The Covid-19 pandemic destroyed many of the assumptions underpinning M&A deals under preparation before the outbreak. Therefore it has been vital for advisory banks to shift focus to help clients understand and manage the situation. Much of that is about having built up a well-rounded franchise.

Rothschild has been quietly building up in the US to compete with its great rivals based there.

Rothschild & Co wins the award for best bank for advisory by virtue of the unrivalled breadth and depth of its CEE franchise.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

The combination of a broad physical presence, in-depth regional expertise and strong public-sector connections helped Rothschild maintain its position as CEE’s best advisory bank during the current awards period.

Rothschild once again proved that an independent firm can hold its own in advisory against both bulge-bracket and regional banks in CEE in the awards period, winning mandates on some of the biggest M&A deals in the region as well as advising on a clutch of high-profile financing transactions.

CEO seeks to ease regulatory hit; merger doubles French business.

Results index Bumper M&A transactions have been a rarity in CEE over the past two years. Mid-market activity, however, has been brisk; instabilities in regional markets and still-high levels of state control continue to offer opportunities for advisory work on risk management, restructurings and privatizations.

The House of Rothschild doesn't look as solid as it used to. In a world of supermarket banks, the days of the corner shop may be numbered ­ even if it has the best name in the business. But Rothschild is fighting the trends with a major reorganization. Brian Caplen analyzes the plan and looks at the vexed issue of succession