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Barings, Castlepoint, AIG, Eclectica, to name but a few, have all set up agriculture funds in the past 12 months to cash in on expected commodity price increases. And if returns to date are anything to go by, more will be joining them.

Nordea remains the market leader in Sweden, with assets not far off those of second- and third-placed SEB and Handelsbanken combined. But SEB had the better year, with assets increasing by 21.2%, operating profit up by 9%, net profit 8% higher and return on equity of 19.3%. Moreover, despite a poor share performance in 2007 – in line with almost all banks globally – compound five-year growth in total shareholders’ equity is 10.76%: higher than Nordea’s 7.58%.

Société Générale

As one door closes, another opens. Odey Asset Management closed its $40 million Japan hedge fund in June after it fell more than $1 billion in 18 months. The same month, though, the manager announced that it would be creating a fund of hedge funds subsidiary in order to play out some of its investment theme convictions.

In March 2008, Bank of Bahamas International became the first retail bank from the Bahamas to have a physical presence in Miami. The new office hopes to expedite trade and help Bahamians who shop and seek medical care and education in the US state.

With a population of just 5.21 million people producing a GDP of a mere $3.7 billion, Kyrgyzstan is not going to be home to any really large financial institutions. The biggest bank in Kyrgyzstan, with $130 million in deposits accounting for a 22.1 % market share, is Asia Universal. It is also the best performer. It is Kyrgyzstan’s fastest-growing mortgage provider and is the only Kyrgyz entity to have received an international credit rating. Total shareholders’ equity rose 212% to $36.5 million in the past year, while net income climbed 246% to $2.7 million. In both of those measures, as in total assets and customer accounts, Asia Universal is by far the country’s leader. It is also the first bank to offer internet banking services, and the only one to establish a dedicated control and compliance department. It is also competitive regionally, with branches in the Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Latvia, as well as a representative office planned for China later this year.

After being among the top performers of 2007, Asia-focused hedge funds are suffering this year. In 2007, the HFR Asia composite hedge fund index returned more than 17%, and the Asia ex-Japan index almost 40%. Year to end-May 2008, however, the Asia ex-Japan index is down almost 10%. If investors piled in based on past performance, they will now be kicking themselves.

Butterfield Bank Group reported a 2008 first-quarter net income of $36.3 million, the second highest on record for the group and up 1.8% year on year. Total operating revenue grew year on year by $16.2 million, or 14.6%, to $127.1 million. The loan portfolio increased year on year by 11%, or $419 million, to $4.2 billion. This increase reflected increased loan demand across the banking group, in particular in Bermuda, up 15.8%, Barbados, up 11% and the Bahamas, up 104.3%. The group’s balance sheet remains highly liquid, with a loan to customer deposits ratio of 37.8% compared with 39.2% a year ago. Deposits with banks and investments increased year on year by 14% to $8.1 billion and amount to 62.9% of total assets.

It was a hit and miss year for the UAE’s leading banks. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank found itself caught up in the US sub-prime crisis, leading to a $152 million writedown in 2007, with the possibility of more to come. Dubai Islamic Bank, too, is undergoing a difficult period after police detained the former chief executive of Deyaar Development, of which DIB owns 41%, as part of an investigation into a possible fraud.

JPMorgan Consistency and ability to execute landmark transactions makes it a clear winner in emerging markets.

Bank of Cyprus is not only the largest bank in the country but also the best run. With net income growth of 55%, a cost to income ratio of 43.6% and a return on equity of 27.6%, it is hard to fault.

From his grand office overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, Jim Ovia, managing director and chief executive of Zenith Bank, can look down with pride at some of his and the bank’s achievements. While most banks in Nigeria claim to be the biggest or the best, Zenith, by just about every measure, whether it is asset quality or balance sheet strength, innovation, use of new technology or just brand recognition, emerges as the best in the country. Last year it picked up a BB– international credit rating from Standard & Poor’s and Fitch – the highest possible, equal to the sovereign credit rating; was granted a full banking licence in the UK, the first Nigerian bank to achieve that in 25 years; and set up a proprietary data services provider to link all its branches in real time. The bank is setting up subsidiaries or representative offices in South Africa, Dubai and China, as well as branches across sub-Saharan Africa. What is behind the bank’s success? Some say it is the fact that Zenith has grown organically and not through merger and acquisition like other Nigerian banks. Much of the credit is attributable to the vision and drive of Ovia and his deputy managing director, Godwin Emefiele. Ovia obviously doesn’t spend much time enjoying the sea view.