The World’s Best Banks 2024 – Introduction | Global Finance Magazine

Global banking has achieved success in 2023 despite the drama of bank failures.

Bank profits in Asia-Pacific have soared, with many lenders enjoying record-high net income – even in sclerotic Japan, where the banking sector’s 12-year battle against negative interest rates appears to be coming to an end as easy money approaches by the end. to completion. China was noticeably absent from the party, with the troubled real estate sector dampening sentiment.

Last year, the global banking industry demonstrated greater economic efficiency and improved asset quality. However, the direction of movement will be determined by economic growth; changes in the central bank’s base rate, particularly by the U.S. Federal Reserve; demand for credit; and loan delinquency rates.

As the cost of capital came into focus and banks sought to reduce cost-to-income (CTI) ratios, the industry lost 60,000 jobs globally last year, the highest since the crisis. Investment banking commission wallets have collapsed as the number of deals and listings has fallen.

At the same time, traditional bank lending was challenged by the thriving private credit market created by the non-bank financial sector. Leveraged buyout funds were more often provided by a large hedge fund than by a large bank, and at more competitive rates.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues remained a dominant theme: in Europe as an overall operating contribution thanks to a tightening regulatory straitjacket, and in Asia as companies and banks caught up on sustainability. play during the onset of ESG-focused regulatory convergence emerging across the region.

Sustainable finance dominates the entire spectrum of finance around the world, whether in the transitional format that dominates in Japan, or in the full-blown green issuance typical of Europe and the US and growing in the Asia-Pacific region, with the exception of Japan.

In Europe, banks enjoyed their most profitable year ever thanks to the NIM effect, solid asset quality and low CTI ratios. The Bank for International Settlements’ capital needs record has been poor, with more capital returned to the bank’s shareholders last year than at any other time since the crisis. —Jonathan Rogers

Methodology

With input from industry analysts, corporate executives and technology experts, Global finance The editors select the Best Bank Award winners using information provided in entries and independent research based on objective and subjective factors. You are not required to enter to win, but materials included in your entry may increase your chances of success. Participants may provide information that is not publicly available.

Judgments are based on results from January 1 to December 31, 2023. We then apply an algorithm to narrow down the list of applicants and arrive at a numerical score, with 100 representing perfection. The algorithm includes criteria weighted by relative importance, including local and customer knowledge, financial strength and security, strategic relationships, capital investment, and product and service innovation.

Once we’ve narrowed the field, our final criteria include scale of global reach, size of staff, customer service, risk management, product and service offerings, execution skills and smart use of technology. In the event of a tie, our bias leans towards the local service provider rather than the global organization. We also tend to favor private banks over government institutions. The winners are those banks that best serve the specialized needs of corporations engaged in global business. It’s not always the biggest that wins, but the best: companies with qualities to look out for when choosing a supplier.

The best banks in the world 2024

Country and Territory Winners