When it comes to productivity, bigger is usually better. Small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) and micro, small and midsize enterprises (MSMEs) face a significant gap in value-added per worker compared to their larger peers.

Small-business productivity is half that of larger firms, the authors of a 2024 study by McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) found. In emerging markets, the average is 29%, or a 71% gap. Kenya has the widest gap of the 16 emerging economies studied, at 94%, while Brazil has the narrowest, at 46%. In advanced economies, the average productivity gap is 40%, with Poland showing a 50% gap and the UK 16%.

These differences in value-added represent serious money left on the table, considering that MSMEs represent 90% of businesses globally: approximately half of the private-sector value-added and nearly two-thirds of business employment. According to MGI, the actual productivity ratio versus the top quartile level averages 5% and 10% of GDP for advanced and emerging economies, respectively.

“It ranges from 2% in Israel and the UK, to 10% in Japan among advanced economies, and from 3% in Brazil to 15% in Indonesia and Kenya among the emerging economies,” the authors reported. “On a per business worker basis, the amount is meaningful, ranging from about $3,000 in Israel to $12,900 in Japan among advanced economies and from $3,200 in Mexico to $8,800 in Indonesia among emerging economies (all in purchasing power parity terms).”

Lack of access to finance drives much, but not all, of the productivity gap. A World Bank study estimates that MSMEs face $5.2 trillion in unmet finance needs, or 50% more than the current lending market for such businesses.

When MSMEs seek help to improve productivity, they can turn to governments, business partners, and financial institutions, each providing unique offerings.

Governments can assist with public financing programs and fund core infrastructure development, but poor management and oversight have often blunted their success.

“For decades, governments in emerging market and developing economies have implemented programs to improve SME access to finance, often at a large budget cost. Yet, the SME financing gap remains large, especially in the least developed countries, and public budgets are tight,” Jean Pesme, global director of the World Bank’s Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation Global Practice, noted in a 2024 research report. He suggests governments adopt “a more evidence-driven approach for the design and implementation of support to ensure it reaches the SMEs facing the most critical financial constraints.”

On the other hand, the productivity gap can be bridged in part by creating an economic fabric in which larger and smaller companies work together, argues Olivia White, a senior partner at McKinsey and director of MGI. “That, in fact, boosts productivity both of the smaller firms and the larger ones,” she says.

The MGI study cited DuPont leveraging a banking relationship to secure working capital credit for its MSME suppliers in rural areas, strengthening its supply chain and increasing sales.

But not all help needs to be financial. The MGI report cites automotive MSMEs, which have “gained operational proficiency through systematic interactions with productive original equipment manufacturers, and small software developers [that] have benefited from talent and capital ecosystems seeded by larger companies.”

Financial institutions have historically been a two-edged sword for MSMEs, but that is changing. Banks fund MSMEs, but since the latter have less capital and security than larger players, they face more rigid credit-scoring models that slow account opening and lending.

Banks have adopted innovative underwriting approaches, however, that incorporate additional alternative credit data to deliver affordable credit. MSMEs have responded positively to these new offerings. An Experian survey found that 70% of small businesses are willing to furnish such data if it means a better chance to obtain credit or reduce their borrowing rate. Banks are also investigating how they might act as matchmakers between their MSME and larger clients.

“Financial institutions often own the most important connective links between smaller and larger firms, the payment rails,” says MGI’s White. “One of the major ways that small and large firms interact is one does something for the other, and there needs to be a payment. By maintaining those rails, banks make it easier for the smaller and larger firms to interact.”

Nevertheless, it is early days for providing such services, she adds. More financial institutions are talking about being matchmakers, and many are experimenting with platform mechanisms that could facilitate client-to-client connections. But there is more development work to be done before these platforms can scale.

“I suspect it’s just going to depend a lot on the market and who sees that business opportunity,” says White.    —Robert Daly

With input from industry analysts, corporate executives, and technology experts, the editors of Global Finance selected the World’s Best SME Banks 2025 winners based on objective and subjective factors. The editors consulted entries submitted by the banks as well as the results of independent research. Entries were not required.

Judges considered performance from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024. Global Finance then applied a proprietary algorithm to shorten the list of contenders and arrive at a numerical score of up to 100. The algorithm weights a range of criteria for relative importance, including knowledge of SME markets and their needs, breadth of products and services, market standing and innovation.

Once the judges narrowed the field, they applied the final criteria, including scope of global, regional, and local coverage, size and experience of staff, customer service, risk management, range of products and services, execution skills, and use of technology. In the case of a tie, the judges assign somewhat greater weight to local providers rather than global institutions. The panel also tends to favor private-sector banks over government-owned institutions. The winners are those banks and providers that best serve SMEs’ specialized needs.

Three times, it is a charm for Brazilian digital bank BTG Pactual, which took home the Best SME Bank Award for Brazil, Latin America, and the world. Having opened for business in 2019, it continues to increase its SME credit book, which grew 52% year-over-year to reach 22.1 billion reais (approximately $3.9 billion) in the first quarter of 2024. Nearly 40% of its lending portfolio—R$8.9 billion—was eligible for the bank’s Sustainable Financing Framework.

To support its agribusiness clients, BTG Pactual Empresas has introduced a variety of credit offerings, including real estate financing, invoice discounting, direct energy negotiations, and credit lines for clean energy and agribusiness supplies, equipment and facilities. And it has partnered with Latin American enterprise resource planning vendor Senior Sistemas to develop digital financial products and services for the latter’s systems.  

United Bank for Africa (UBA) is celebrating its 75th anniversary. Among its hallmarks is an unwavering commitment to driving the growth of small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) in Africa.

For UBA—boasting $20 billion in assets, $454.2 million in pretax profits in 2023, and a presence in 20 markets on the continent and four global centers—empowering SMEs means fueling Africa’s economic development.

Its home market of Nigeria is a poster case. With a portfolio of over a million SME clients and a loan book of $90 million, the bank has been instrumental in ensuring that SMEs remain the engine of growth.

Last year, the bank set aside $6 billion to lend to SMEs in partnership with the Africa Continental Free Trade Area secretariat, a program to be implemented over three years. The partnership augments the bank’s defining strength: its ability to support intra-African trade and investments critical for SMEs’ growth.

To enhance convenience for SMEs, UBA has signed up to the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System. The bank also ensures easy transaction processing through its UBA Afritrade and UBA Connect.

UBA has also become a pacesetter in financing women-owned businesses, owing to its strong belief that women should not be left behind in Africa’s socioeconomic development. —John Njiraini

In making this award, the Global Finance team notes DBS’ close focus on the specialized needs of SMEs—from the clarity of the CEO’s mission statement to the detailed structure and effectiveness of the bank’s SME products.

Outgoing DBS Group Chief Executive Piyush Gupta, who will step down in March 2025, has acknowledged that banks worldwide underserve SMEs. Under his guidance, DBS has worked to rectify this failure.

Together with Enterprise Singapore, DBS launched the ESG Ready Programme, an end-to-end program that aims to help local businesses—especially SMEs—become future-ready by building capability and capacity in sustainability. Participating companies can access a panel of sustainability specialists to guide them on their respective sustainability journeys.

“Banks have not thought enough about the battleground of tomorrow,” said Gupta in a 2015 interview with the National University of Singapore’s Business School. “But it is changing—in the last two years, digitization has now become the No. 1 agenda for most banking CEOs.”

Before the pandemic, DBS had relentlessly leveraged emerging technologies to help SMEs, especially micro and small enterprises, streamline services and manage credit risk. Digital payments, online banking, and blockchain technology emerged and became established during Gupta’s tenure, emphasizing SMEs.

The judges noticed that DBS had developed algorithmic models powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced data analytics to alert the bank to signs of potential trouble SME customers might face, substantially reducing insolvency risk.         —Simon Littlewood

In operation for over 80 years, Banreservas offers more than 315 physical service centers in the Dominican Republic—including traditional bank branches, mini branches, and mobile branches—along with roughly 1,900 ATMs. SMEs account for 16% of the bank’s business, or approximately $1.5 billion, giving Banreservas a 28% market share.

Banreservas offers its roughly 130,000 SME clients a broad array of financial services. Fomenta Pymes (“Promotes SMEs”) is a bank program providing small businesses access to financing products, credit cards, management services, payroll services, and other benefits. Special events include monthslong “loan fairs” through which SMEs shop for financing. In its 2024 iteration, the Banreservas loan-fair program disbursed 5,800 loans, totaling about $238.5 million. These were given to SMEs working in multiple sectors: tourism, construction, commerce, education, healthcare, social services, industry, agriculture, and livestock, among others.

Additional bank offerings include Programa Preserva, a workshop-based program that promotes economic security through saving. Programa Coopera, meanwhile, promotes the Dominican Republic’s socioeconomic development through financial support of businesses throughout the country, including those located in economically vulnerable areas.   —Laura Spinale

SMEs contribute 15% to Grupo Financiero Banorte’s loan portfolio. The financial institution works to better serve that market through an SME expansion plan instituted over the past year. As part of this program, Banorte has focused on increasing its SME offerings to include a full suite of tailored financial products and services. These include various loan types, business advisory services, tax advisory services, and strategic alliances with companies offering products and services of value to the SME market.

Credit is a significant part of the SME expansion plan; and the bank has instituted a new pricing structure, providing credit conditions more favorable to clients. SMEs qualify for these rates through an application process that provides a more holistic view of each SME applying. Available SME financing products include working capital loans, equipment financing, expansion loans, and lines of credit. One of these, Mujer PyME, is a credit facility targeted to women-led SMEs.

Additional advancements include the integration of biometric signatures in branches and a time-saver for account openings.          —LS

Located in Moldova, MAIB is this year’s regional winner for Central and Eastern Europe. As the country’s largest commercial bank and lender, MAIB has almost 37,000 active customers, an increase of about 13% year-over-year (YoY); and it captures approximately 43% of all newly registered companies in Moldova. MAIB has continued to consolidate its position within the SME sector—about 6,000 companies, primarily within IT, winemaking, and food industries—earning the bank an approximately 37% market share. Despite challenging economic conditions, various strategic efforts have helped the bank achieve record growth within its SME business unit

The bank leverages a customer-centric approach by using feedback to tailor products and services to SMEs. MAIB also emphasizes data-driven decisions, which have helped the bank maintain a profitable loan portfolio despite a declining demand for loans among SMEs, fluctuating grain prices resulting from regional conflicts and weather conditions, and falling interest rates.

To help attract SME customers, MAIB launched internet and mobile banking solutions. The bank created its Business Banking Customer Care Service, which has a dedicated line for SME support and specialists who can resolve customer issues. MAIB’s products and services include night and weekend payments, remote onboarding, factoring, and digital signatures on credit contracts.

The bank has partnered with over 150 companies that sell their products, such as agricultural machinery, photovoltaic panels, and cars, through loans that MAIB originates. The bank is also the first in Moldova to offer consulting services to its customers in accounting, business, and human resources.        —Andrea Murad

BTG Pactual Empresas’ SME lending portfolio reached 22.1 billion Brazilian reais (approximately $3.9 billion) in the first quarter of 2024, with its SME credit book growing 52% YoY. SME business now accounts for 12% of BTG Pactual’s total portfolio.

The bank attributes its SME growth in part to its digital capabilities. Its digital platform offers a complete, integrated portfolio of SME products and services—providing access to the bank’s credit, guarantees, insurance, investments, foreign exchange, and derivatives products. Associated services accessible via the platform include creation of invoices payable by QR code; online invoicing; instant electronic bank transfers; open banking; payments to suppliers, tax authorities, and utilities; budgeting and categorized spending services; digital receipts; and other capabilities. The platform offers more than 45 integrations, including Telegram and Google Workspace, along with an extensive range of productivity improvement products.

Speed is a crucial platform benefit. According to the bank, the platform enables the bank to disburse 95% of its loan funds in less than 10 minutes, 16 times faster than its competitors.

Agriculture is a big part of the Brazilian economy, and BTG Pactual Empresas offers services tailored to this sector. These include credit lines for agricultural products (fertilizers, pesticides, seeds); equipment financing; and infrastructure financing for the construction of silos, warehouses, and other facilities.

Activities addressing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues are also important to BTG Pactual. Of its loans to corporations and SMEs, 72% are subjected to social, environmental, and climate-risk analysis, in line with international best practices. R$8.9 billion of its lending portfolio aligns with the bank’s sustainable financing framework.          —LS

Founded in 1992 by the Bahraini government, Bahrain Development Bank (BDB) is part of that country’s efforts to diversify its economy into non-oil-producing sectors. SMEs are vital to those efforts. BDB strives to support entrepreneurs and SMEs through loans, financing, and advisory and mentorship programs and conferences tailored to the SME market.

The bank offers financial products for various types of SME businesses, including agriculture and fisheries, manufacturing, education, health-care, tourism, and transportation companies. It also provides financial services targeted to women. Over the last several years, the bank has invested in digital transformation. One result of that is tijara, BDB’s digital banking arm. This platform offers SMEs quick access to financing and efficient processing of business transactions, salary transfers, and other payment services.          —LS

In September, the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) released its annual small-business poll. Results indicate that 51% of Canadians are considering starting a businesses. RBC wants to help them.

The bank operates in more than 30 countries and serves more than 17 million clients worldwide. As of 2023, it had about CA$3.6 trillion (approximately $2.6 trillion) in assets and over 91,000 employees. To improve the customer experience, RBC has invested heavily in digital banking and AI technologies.

RBC strives to support SMEs at every stage. The bank offers various financing and loan options for SMEs, including unsecured and operating lines of credit. It also administers Canada Small Business Financing Loans. Special programs target Black entrepreneurs.

A knowledge base on the bank’s website instructs would-be entrepreneurs at the very earliest business stages. Guides for starting a business, validating ideas, creating business plans, determining startup costs, choosing a business structure, and exploring business financing are available.

Beyond typical banking, RBC also offers several business services, mostly digitized. In the field of payment processing, it offers medical billing software for hospitals and clinics, point-of-service systems, and services enabling merchants to offer buy now, pay later options to their clients. Marketing services help SMEs explore consumer spending patterns, find clients, and embark on global trade. The bank offers a host of payroll and HR solutions. Operations services help entrepreneurs register and incorporate online, protect businesses against cyber threats, automate accounts payable, and perform other tasks.       —LS

Headquartered in Spain and with operations throughout Western Europe, Santander is named as the best bank for SMEs in Western Europe for the third year in a row. The bank has a wide range of targeted products and services to meet the needs of its customers, which include 114,000 SMEs that make up over 91% of corporate customers and over 95% of digital customers in Portugal.

Through its platform, Santander X, the bank has helped over 7,000 SMEs scale their businesses through training, advice, and other resources. The platform’s training enables SMEs to create a digital presence, expand domestically and internationally, and grow and maintain their workforce. Companies can also participate in competitions for cash prizes and other awards. In addition, this platform creates a global networking community for SMEs to connect with other businesses, providing discounted third-party resources and services.

Through various initiatives, Santander supports SMEs looking to expand abroad. Through the Santander Trade platform, SMEs can analyze different international markets, find international business partners, and support shipments overseas; while the Santander Trade Club helps SMEs find new distributors and suppliers. The bank’s “One Europe” strategy helps identify good practices in other countries—practices that can then be implemented domestically.

The bank develops products and services with the customer in mind, through engagement and solicitation of feedback. The result is personalized products across digital channels and enhanced user experiences.  —AM

China continues to search for antidotes to an ailing economy and the deterioration of its real estate market, and the banking sector continues to expand. GDP growth rose to 5.2% in 2023, up from 3% in 2022, but it is now forecast by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to fall to 4.8% in 2024 and further, to 4.5%, the following year. Meanwhile, China has contributed to balance sheet growth for each of the institutions that earned a place in our ranking of the biggest emerging market banks.

China claims the top 15 spots and 25 entries overall out of 50, with an average increase in assets of 7%; together, the country accounts for 90% of aggregate assets represented in our ranking.

India has posted high GDP growth in recent years, including 8.2% last year, according to the IMF, and the five Indian banks that earned a place in our top 50 have expanded strongly as well. In 2023—our year-end for these rankings—HDFC Bank, the country’s largest private sector bank, completed its merger with India’s largest housing finance company, like-named HDFC Ltd., boosting the bank’s assets by 50% in the country’s largest M&A deal to date. The remaining four Indian banks in our ranking averaged 7.5% balance sheet expansion during 2023.

While South Korea’s economy has rebounded this year, GDP slid to a three-year low of 1.4% in 2023, likely contributing to asset growth under 1% for all seven of the Korean banks represented in our ranking.

A broader picture emerges when looking at the 50 biggest emerging market banks without the dominant Chinese institutions. This view broadens the global scope of the top 20 alone, where China holds 19 spots. The expanded view adds three more Indian banks, for a total of eight, as well as representions from Africa, Latin America and more from the Middle East.

Global Finance’s 2024 ranking of the world’s 50 largest banks highlights institutions that have built powerful franchises in their respective markets, with extensive rosters of corporate, commercial, and retail clients. Their sheer size makes them industry leaders, and by leveraging thier diverse banking platforms they have grown their balance sheets.

Additionally, banks that earned a place in our 2024 ranking are highly influential in shaping the industry’s best practices, with the deep resources needed to attract top talent and develop innovative products and services.

Balance sheets for the top 50 expanded 4% in 2023, giving them aggregate assets of $92.8 trillion: a turnaround following a 2% decline for last year’s winners.

Chinese banks have consistently ranked as the world’s largest; this year, they hold the top four positions in our ranking, with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China on top at more than $6.2 trillion in assets. The top four banks averaged 11% asset growth and the 15 Chinese banks in the top 50 posted an average 6% year-over-year (YoY) increase.

In Japan, the three banks included in our ranking—Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui, and Mizuho—all suffered an average 5% balance sheet contraction in 2023, which could be seen as a reflection of the country’s difficulty sustaining economic growth.

Euro area economies had similar challenges, with an average of less than 1% GDP growth in 2023, according to the IMF. The 14 eurozone banks in our top 50 averaged a 1% increase in assets. YoY changes include new entrants Banque Federative du Credit Mutuel at No. 47 and State Bank of India at No. 49, replacing Norinchukin Bank and CaixaBank.

The common thread running through this year’s country winners is the resilience they demonstrated during a period of higher interest rates linked to central bank efforts to tame rising inflation. Now, inflation is declining globally and central banks have begun to ease rates as their focus shifts to sustaining economic growth.

That means banks face a different set of challenges and opportunities. The pace of rate cuts is particularly important for those in developing and frontier economies, which stand to gain from an interest rate stance that favors growth following a prolonged period of elevated rates and sluggish GDP. During that stretch, sovereign rating downgrades, particularly in developing and frontier countries, were often the catalyst for follow-on ratings action on their respective banking systems.

Most of our 16 new country winners were in these developing markets. The overall picture was mixed; however, many jurisdictions saw positive developments, including rating upgrades that benefited their banks.

Negative credit trends and the withdrawal of bank ratings resulted in new winners in three Latin American markets. Following Ecuador’s sovereign debt downgrade last year, due to its deteriorating funding and liquidity profile, Fitch downgraded several Ecuadoran banks as well. However, they maintained Produbanco’s rating, confirming the latter as this year’s winner.

In Bolivia, S&P’s withdrew the remaining rating of incumbent Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz, allowing Banco de Credito to claim the top spot. Similarly in Venezuela, Fitch withdrew its rating of last year’s winner, Mercantil Banco Universal, leaving no rated candidates in that country.

Western Europe sees three new winners this year. Hellenic Bank takes the top spot in Cyprus, aided by a Fitch sovereign debt upgrade and improved bank credit fundamentals. With its leading position as the largest bank in Denmark, Danske Bank is a new winner following a two-notch upgrade by Moody’s in May reflecting improved governance controls in response to findings of deficiencies in its Estonian operations. Fitch cited this operational remediation as well as improved profitability and capitalization as the bases for its upgrade last fall. Islandsbanki is our new winner in Iceland as the bank picked up a new Moody’s rating in September 2023, edging out incumbent Arion banki this year.

Moody’s upgraded its ratings for five Azerbaijani banks, including the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA), based in part on improving trends in the country’s economy, including efforts to diversify beyond the oil sector. While IBA’s score is equal to last year’s winner, Kapital Bank, IBA is larger, earning it the top spot for 2024.

Likewise, in Georgia, TBC Bank is slightly bigger than last year’s winner, Bank of Georgia, giving TBC the Safest Bank title. In Turkey, Fitch and Moody’s upgraded a range of banks following their upgrade of Turkey’s sovereign debt and reflecting increased confidence in the new macroeconomic policies the government implemented last year. These in turn benefit the banking sector, in part by improving access to foreign funding. Each agency acted on up to 17 banks. When the dust settled, Turkiye Garanti Bankasi emerged as this year’s winner. (Fitch upgraded 24 Turkish banks in September, but this rating action occurred after our ratings cutoff date of August 16, 2024.)

Indonesia’s largest bank, state-owned Bank Mandiri, benefits from its leading franchise, solid credit profile, and an improving operating environment. As it is a systemically important domestic bank, both Fitch and S&P cited enhanced levels of government support as the rationale for their upgrade of Mandiri, allowing it to take the top spot.

Under our methodology, a bank that is wholly owned by its parent is ineligible. In Cambodia, ACLEDA is the new winner, as the incumbent, Advanced Bank of Asia, is a 100% owned subsidiary of National Bank of Canada.

Similarly, First Iraq Islamic Bank emerges as a new winner after S&P initiated coverage and incumbent Trade Bank of Iraq was downgraded by Fitch. Citing an improved strategic mandate that will contribute to United Arab Emirates’ economic transformation and a high level of implied government support, S&P upgraded Emirates Development Bank, helping it unseat First Abu Dhabi Bank as the safest in the UAE.

Stanbic Bank Kenya unseated KCB Bank Kenya (KCB). Fitch and Moody’s each downgraded KCB following a lowering of Kenya’s sovereign rating. Stanbic Bank Kenya is not rated by Moody’s and dodged a Fitch downgrade due to its 75% ownership by South Africa’s Standard Bank Group. Securing a new bank rating frequently provides a critical boost in our scoring model: Our winner in Ivory Coast, new entrant Banque Internationale, benefited from Fitch initiating rating coverage that began last December.

To be eligible for inclusion in Global Finance’s Safest Banks By Country, institutions must rank among the world’s largest 1,000 banks by assets and carry at least one long-term foreign currency deposit or debt rating from one of the three major rating agencies. Wholly owned subsidiaries are ineligible. Criteria are broader than for our global rankings, which require a position among the largest 500 banks and rating by at least two agencies.       

Islamic banks based in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries continue to expand their reach, taking on Shariah-compliant transactions in new industries and establishing new strategic partnerships.

That aggressive approach has already paid off in years of double-digit growth, and the outlook remains favorable. Moody’s forecasts strong profitability over the next 12-18 months based on solid economic growth in GCC countries, robust commercial activity, and government initiatives that give Islamic finance a bigger role in diversifying the region’s economies.

Part of this growth will come from financing new asset classes. As Islamic banks are required to back every transaction with a tangible asset, real estate has been a large component; but the sector is broadening its reach to include telecommunications and airline assets and sustainability projects. Fueling this expansion is strong issuance of Shariah-compliant sukuk bonds. According to Moody’s, year-over-year issuance of sukuk in the GCC states rose 138% to $69 billion as of June, with Saudi Arabia accounting for 37% of total issuance.

The Gulf’s Islamic banks look to build on this momentum through strategic partnerships. With the recent launch of ADIB Ventures, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), which tops our rankings, aims to accelerate its digital transformation, collaborating with technology firms to build its own fintech ecosystem. The bank expects this will help it leverage artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies to identify and launch new Islamic banking solutions. In June, ADIB formed a strategic collaboration with DIFC Innovation Hub, the largest financial technology accelerator in the Middle East, which works with clients in Africa and South Asia as well.

This year’s ranking of the safest Islamic banks once again reveals some notable changes.

In March, Fitch upgraded Qatar’s sovereign debt rating, then subsequently boosted the ratings of three Qatari-based banks. Partly on the strength of these upgrades, Qatar Islamic Bank moved up to No. 2 in our rankings from No. 5, Dukhan Bank advanced two spots to No. 6, and Qatar International Islamic Bank moved up two places to No. 7.

Ahli United Bank leaves our ranking due to its acquisition by Kuwait Finance House, creating the second-largest Islamic bank, behind Saudi Arabia’s Al Rajhi. This allowed Warba bank to enter the ranking at No. 10.

For the commercial banking sector, continuous innovation, strong product development and customer service, and effective risk management are just some of the critical elements necessary to sustain and grow a franchise. The banks included among our 50 Safest Commercial Banks continue to demonstrate leadership in their respective markets to earn a spot in this year’s rankings.

The interest rate cycle has shifted in many jurisdictions, as central bank policy has now adopted an easing stance following a period of elevated interest rates necessary to battle inflation. During this time, much of the sector enjoyed healthy profitability bolstered by expanding net interest margins. However, as central banks continue to cut rates to maintain economic growth, it remains to be seen how long banks can sustain these margins as successive rate cuts take hold.

To maintain growth and profitability, these institutions must continue to embrace innovation to boost revenue and increase the efficiency of bank operations. In recent years, the sector has focused on honing its digital offerings with online and mobile banking platforms to provide customizable solutions and powerful apps with user-friendly interfaces and dashboards, to better attract and serve clients. While this involves leveraging vast amounts of bank data to identify and target new customers and products, many banks are accelerating this process by utilizing generative AI technology to unlock valuable insights from this data more rapidly, for the development of new services, automation of internal processes and workflows, and elevation of the bank’s risk management capabilities to better manage inherent risks related to cybersecurity, fraud protection, and compliance issues.

In addition to solid operating performance by many banks, regulatory requirements are also contributing to enhanced capital positions. This has resulted in ratings upgrades and consequent movements in our rankings. Australian banks made the biggest of those moves, as Commonwealth Bank of Australia, ANZ Group, National Australia Bank, and Westpac each rose 10 spots year-over-year and now place among our top 10. This follows upgrades by Moody’s and Fitch during the first half of 2024 that reflect the implementation of a formal resolution-planning framework that also involved an increase in loss-absorbing capital buffers at these banks. This development is designed to ensure stability in the Australian financial system, as these banks collectively represent over 70% of banking system assets.

In many instances, upgrades to a country’s sovereign ratings have a follow-on impact on the ratings of their banks, given the increased ability of the government to support the banking sector. In March, Fitch upgraded the sovereign rating of Qatar to AA, subsequently boosting the ratings of seven Qatari banks including Qatar National Bank, which moved up 11 places to No. 31.

Additional moves as a result of positive rating action include UBS, which rose eight spots in our ranking to No. 21 as a result of a Moody’s upgrade to Aa2 in May 2024. This upgrade reflected the Credit Suisse acquisition, which added additional long-term debt providing loss-absorbing benefits. The bank has stabilized the Credit Suisse franchise following its acquisition in 2023.

With its leading position as the largest bank in Denmark, Danske Bank jumped into the rankings at No. 39 following Moody’s two-notch upgrade of the bank’s long-term debt rating to A1 from A3 in May. This reflected an improvement in governance controls following deficiencies in the bank’s Estonia operations. Fitch cited this operational remediation as well as improved profitability and capitalization as a basis for its upgrade to A+ from A in Sept. 2023. NongHyup Bank benefited from a Moody’s upgrade in November 2023 to Aa3 from A1, and is a new entrant at No. 45.

Under the methodology for the World’s Safest Banks rankings, commercial banks that are majority state owned or receive sponsorship by their governments or regional bodies are excluded. Institutions here may operate in the same markets as state-sponsored competitors but don’t benefit from government backing. Additionally, institutions that are wholly owned by their parent company are ineligible under our criteria.

The institutions in our 50 Safest Emerging Markets Banks rankings are facing a challenging operating environment from rising geopolitical tensions, potential disruptions of global trade, and commodity price volatility. Many banks have posted solid operating performance in recent years, as successive interest rate hikes reduced inflation in their regions and globally and also boosted profitability with expanded net interest margins. Now, as central banks begin to ease interest rates to support their respective economies, the banking sector will focus on sustaining profitability in a lower-rate environment by expanding their loan portfolio and other products.

In the Asia-Pacific region, China’s economy continues to struggle, burdened by a depressed real estate market and weak consumer demand. Growth forecasts indicate further deterioration, with projected GDP of 4.9% in 2024, down from 5.2% last year and falling to 4.5% in 2025, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Further deterioration in the Chinese economy presents a risk of contagion regionally and globally, with trade disruptions.

South Korea is vulnerable under this scenario, as China is one of its largest trading partners. But the country is on solid footing, bolstered by a strong consumer-technology sector and a semiconductor industry that is enjoying record exports. The South Korean banking sector’s strength is evident in our rankings, holding the top three spots and placing eight banks among the top 15. However, with the OECD’s GDP growth outlook for 2024 revised downward slightly from the organization’s earlier forecasts, to 2.5%, policy makers at the Bank of Korea are looking to ease interest rates.

Taiwanese banks are also well represented in our ranking and place eight institutions among our Top 50. Taiwan’s critical role in the semiconductor sector, combined with trade tension between the United States and China, carries its own set of geopolitical risks.

Chinese banks hold nine positions on our list, up from eight last year. China Merchants Bank is a new entrant.

In the Middle East, which places 18 banks across four countries in our Top 50 Emerging Markets rankings, the danger of a widening conflict between Israel and other Middle Eastern countries poses significant risks to the region’s banking systems and economies. As China’s demand for oil has declined, given its weakening economy, any escalation in the current war could potentially destabilize the oil supply from the region.

Year-to-year changes in our rankings are the result of a number of factors, including expected ratings fluctuations and other elements of our selection methodology. While Emirates Development Bank has a smaller balance sheet than its emerging markets peers on this list, it enters our ranking this year at No. 5 because it now has an asset size that puts it among the top 500 banks with two agency ratings—a requirement under our methodology. Additionally, the bank’s ranking was bolstered by an upgrade to AA by S&P in May.

In many instances, upgrades to a country’s sovereign ratings have a follow-on impact on the ratings of their banks, given the increased ability of the government to support the banking sector. This is the case in Qatar, where Fitch upgraded the sovereign rating to AA in March and subsequently boosted the ratings of seven Qatari banks, five of which are represented in our rankings. Qatar National Bank thus moved up five spots to No. 7, while Qatar Islamic Bank rose 11 places to No. 30. New entrants as a result of this sovereign upgrade include Dukhan Bank at No. 44, Qatar International Islamic Bank at No. 46, and Ahli Bank at No. 47.

In South Korea, a Moody’s upgrade of Suhyup Bank last November helped it to rise 10 spots in our ranking to No. 32. UAE-based Mashreq Bank rose seven places to No. 42 as a result of a Moody’s upgrade in May 2024. Year to year, industry consolidation is a frequent catalyst for position changes, and Ahli United Bank is no longer represented following its acquisition and integration by Kuwait Finance House, now at No. 37. China Merchants Bank is also a new entrant at No. 48 following an S&P upgrade to A- in March. Consequently, these events and upgrades pushed Banque Saudi Fransi, Arab National Bank, and Saudi Awwal Bank out of the rankings. It’s important to note that, with these upgrades, the score cutoff for inclusion in our 50 Safest Emerging Markets Banks rose to 13 points from 12.5 points last year.

Global banks face competing priorities. While a shifting interest rate cycle forces them to compete in a new landscape, they must continue to focus on transforming their business models to maintain revenue growth and profitability.

This will be an especially big challenge for banks in regions and countries that are experiencing weak GDP growth. Significant geopolitical risks remain as well, as the Israel-Hamas war widens and the conflict in Ukraine and Russia drags on.

This year’s ranking of the World’s Safest Banks recognizes institutions that have demonstrated consistency and success in their operations during a period of uncertainty while broadening and enhancing their banking services.

Prolonged high interest rates aimed at combatting inflation have given way to easing in many economies, as moderating inflation encourages central bankers to focus on maintaining economic growth. For G20 countries, overall inflation is forecast to decline from 6.1% in 2023 to 5.4% in 2024 and 3.3% in 2025, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Core inflation—excluding food and energy—is projected to fall from 4.2% in 2023 to 2.7% in 2024 and 2.1% in 2025. The inflation trend is approaching central bank targets and is expected to be in line with them by next year.

As countries and regions aimed for an economic soft landing after the pandemic, many avoided a severe downturn. The result is global GDP growth forecast at 3.2% for 2024 and 2025, up slightly from 3.1% in 2023, according to the OECD. While some major economies experienced sluggish growth as central banks tightened, notably the eurozone, the UK, Australia, Canada, and Japan, these jurisdictions face a more promising outlook as 2025 GDP forecasts improve.

For global banks, the prospect is cloudier. Many of them benefited during the high interest rate period, their profitability boosted by higher levels of net interest income thanks to favorable interest rate margins on their loan portfolios. Maintaining those margins may be a challenge, however, depending on how quickly loans reprice at lower rates and how competition for customer deposits responds.

Many developed countries have instituted new resolution frameworks aimed at enhancing banks’ capital positions, contributing to rating upgrades and, in turn, movements in our rankings.

Such was the case this year in Australia, whose major banks made the biggest moves in our rankings. Commonwealth Bank of Australia, ANZ, National Australia Bank, and Westpac each rose 13 spots year-over-year and now place among the 25 safest banks. This follows upgrades by Moody’s and Fitch during the first half of 2024, reflecting implementation of a formal resolution-planning framework that also included an increase in loss-absorbing capital buffers.

These changes are designed to ensure stability in the Australian financial system, as the four largest institutions collectively represent over 70% of the banking system’s assets.

As their Australian counterparts moved up, Industrial Bank of Korea, DNB Bank, Bank of Taiwan, and Banque Pictet were each pushed down four places. While Emirates Development Bank has a comparatively small balance sheet relative to its peers, it enters our ranking this year at No. 30 and now ranks among the top 500 banks by asset size with two agency ratings. Under our methodology, in the event two banks have an identical score, asset size is the tiebreaker. This is evident in the case of No. 18, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise; and No. 19, SFIL, which swapped positions this year.

Global Finance’s rankings cover the world’s largest 500 banks by asset size and are calculated based on long-term foreign currency ratings issued by Fitch Ratings, Standard & Poor’s, and Moody’s Investors Service. Our methodology requires a rating from at least two of these agencies. We source the largest 500 banks with at least two agency ratings from a universe of approximately 1,000 banks, as not all banks hold two agency ratings.

Where possible, ratings on holding companies rather than operating companies are used, and banks that are wholly owned by other banks are omitted. Within each rank set, banks are organized according to asset size based on data for the most recent annual reporting period provided by Fitch Solutions and Moody’s. Ratings are reproduced with permission from the three rating agencies, with all rights reserved. A ranking is not a recommendation to purchase, sell, or hold a security, and does not comment on market price or suitability for a particular investor. All ratings in the tables were valid as of August 16, 2024.

The toolbox is open, and the fine-tuning is underway, as China’s policymakers and financial institutions respond to the thorny economic challenges of the post-pandemic era.

On the policy end, the Politburo in September issued economy-targeted guidance for state agencies. The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) conformed by cutting mortgage rates, injecting cash into the banking system, and easing reserve requirements.

Meanwhile, banks across the country are responding to difficult times with an unprecedented wave of innovation. More than ever, Chinese banks are applying creative, expansive, and tech-savvy tools to strengthen innovation throughout their industry, a banking juggernaut with over 430 trillion renminbi ($60.7 trillion) in assets.

Understandably, then, innovation is the common thread among Global Finance’s Stars of China award winners this year. Fifteen banks and three asset management firms shared 28 awards, including three newly added for 2024: Most Innovative Asset Manager, Best Bank for Overseas Branch Services, and Star of Hong Kong.

The honors are especially well deserved this year, given the growing problems in China’s economy, which is expected to see its GDP growth rate for 2024 fall short of the government’s target of around 5%.

While home sales and consumer spending have slowed since pandemic-related restrictions ended in early 2023, banks have been busy brainstorming, designing, and introducing clever business strategies, investment paths, and customer services to support and reinvigorate their sector. In particular, banks are finding new ways to reach specific demographics in areas such as payment services and pension fund investment.

China Construction Bank (CCB) introduced pensioner-friendly voice commands on its mobile app, in step with a government push to improve payment services for the elderly. Innovating to serve the “silver economy” was cited as a future focus for the nation’s banks by Agricultural Bank of China Chairman Gu Shu when he spoke in June at the annual Lujiazui Forum in Shanghai.

Banks are also seeking to support families, homebuyers, and small businesses with innovative services, supported by online credit programs. So many small banks have expanded online loan-processing services since 2023 that state regulators, wary of default risks, set new parameters in April for internet lending.

Big-picture business strategy is also becoming more innovative. Official media in July reported China Merchants Bank Chairman Miao Jianmin’s announcement of a strategic shift for his institution from “retail bank” to “value bank.” Miao described a variety of initiatives designed to strengthen management, accelerate innovation, and improve both wealth management and fintech risk management.

Beijing’s relentless efforts to reduce fossil fuel emissions and expand solar power, wind energy, and electric vehicle (EV) production are also spurring banking innovation.

Huaxia Bank’s private banking service now offers clients its CSR Huaxia Bank Green Economy Wealth Index, China’s first asset-allocation index following green and low-carbon activities. China International Capital Corporation (CICC) and China Bohai Bank have tweaked their services to support the national goal of reaching peak emissions by 2030. CICC underwrites green bonds, and Bohai offers low-interest loans to emissions-cutting manufacturers.

In the consumer arena, lending for EV purchases has become a specialty at Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC). China’s largest bank works directly with EV manufacturers such as Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Technology, Zeekr, and Li Auto to provide one-stop loan application, facility, interview, and issuing services.

Investment research and education is another trending area for consumer-oriented innovation. Bank of Communications has expanded to offer boutique research and training modules for private banking clients. At some institutions, even the front office offers clients guidance for portfolio management: Industrial Bank chief economist Lu Zhengwei recently recommended that clients practice dividend-focused stock picking.

Supporting innovative manufacturers with financing for research and development is also assuming a more prominent place on bank agendas. CCB’s Guangdong Province branch in March reported lending ¥160 billion to more than 50,000 local, technology-based enterprises. A CCB loan in June to a synthetics manufacturer with 15 patents was the nation’s first in line, with a PBC lending directive aimed at backing creative companies. Meanwhile, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank is tailoring services to work with science and technology enterprises in the city’s Lingang free trade zone.

Digitization is one of the biggest areas of innovation for China’s financial sector. Traditional banks have honed mobile apps by accelerating service provisions and streamlining digital-wallet connectivity. All-virtual banks, including the mainland’s WeBank, MYBank, and aiBank; as well as Hong Kong’s ZA Bank and Airstar Bank, are enormously popular with working-age adults and small businesses. WeBank claims its microbusiness loans have launched more than 300,000 startup enterprises.

Has China’s banking sector reached an innovation peak? No doubt the government’s policy push to address the country’s economic challenges has given birth to invention at banks large and small. However, whether the trend has legs could well depend on the direction the economy takes in coming months.

Meanwhile, it’s certain that the banking sector is responding to its challenges with new tools and an innovative spirit—a development exemplified by this year’s Stars of China.

Global Finance editors select the winners for the Stars of China using information provided in entries and independent research based on both objective and subjective factors. It is not necessary to enter in order to win, but an entry can provide details that may not be publicly available. The editors incorporate insights from executives, academics and other industry experts. Judgements are based on performance from January 1 to December 31, 2023. We apply an algorithm to arrive at a numerical score on a 100-point scale. The algorithm incorporates criteria—including knowledge of local conditions and customers, financial strength and safety, strategic relationships, capital investment and innovation in products and services—weighted for relative importance.

Attending to millions of corporate clients while playing a key role in China’s economic expansion requires laserlike focus on a grand scale. That level of concentration defines ICBC, the world’s largest bank by assets and winner of this year’s Best Corporate Bank award. By focusing on satisfying both customer expectations and the economy’s needs, ICBC contributes to China’s development while building its own competitive position and reputation. As of June, ICBC ranked among the world’s leading commercial banks in terms of corporate clients and corporate loans. With 12 million corporate clients, the bank’s corporate loan balance that month was first among global commercial banks, exceeding ¥16 trillion and up nearly ¥1.4 trillion from January. ICBC topped its Chinese peers last year with more than ¥260 billion in corporate bond underwritings. The bank also reported a steady decrease in its nonperforming and delinquent corporate loan ratios.

The clients just keep coming—from homes, shops and farms—as PSBC continues to grow, taking the Best Consumer Bank award for a sixth year in a row. The institutional giant is accelerating its transformation into a new retail bank featuring efficient, data-driven interactions between its wholesale and retail operations. The result thus far has been solid growth in total assets, consumer loans, wealth management, and rural credit. Personal deposits at the end of 2023 totaled ¥12.49 trillion, up ¥1.21 trillion from the previous year. Personal banking income rose 6.3%, while thanks in part to a new online lending system, PSBC’s personal loan volume climbed 10.4% to ¥4.47 trillion. Micro lending has been particularly strong, jumping 22% to a record ¥1.39 trillion. And a new, 24-hour trading option for wealth management clients has taken off. PSBC reported more than 660 million customers for the past year but still has found plenty of room to grow.

To the average investor, China’s aging population and environmental challenges may seem unrelated. But investment specialists at Taikang AMC, a subsidiary of Taikang Insurance Group, are capitalizing on a convergence of demographic and green investment paths, earning the firm the inaugural Stars of China award for Most Innovative Asset Manager. A key to Taikang AMC’s innovative approach is its connection to a parent firm operating a leading life-insurance business, which has grown rapidly as the Chinese family structure changes. As more adult children work in cities far from aging moms and dads, pension checks have grown in importance to supplement traditional family support for the elderly; Taikang AMC plays a role in this evolving support system by managing more than ¥300 billion in pension funds. Taikang Insurance is also taking a proactive role in climate adjustment; in 2021, it signed the Principles for Responsible Investment, joining a UN-supported network of institutions working for sustainable investing. Since then, Taikang AMC has issued a variety of green bond products and two passive index funds with green themes: an electric-vehicle ETF and its Mainland Low-Carbon Economy ETF. In May, it became the first asset manager of its kind in China to issue a corporate green asset securitization product. Innovating and investing go hand in hand for Taikang AMC, which manages more than ¥1.5 trillion in assets.

In 1934, an international zone in Shanghai called The Bund was the scene of a debate over office buildings. The debate pitted the British owner of The Bund’s tallest building and a new building project spearheaded by Bank of China (BOC). The debate ended amicably, and today, BOC’s iconic building on The Bund testifies to its leading place in the global banking community. It also claims the first Stars of China prize for Best Bank for Overseas Branch Services. As a Chinese flagship, BOC operates more than 100 overseas branches with nearly 1,000 outlets in 29 countries, from Glasgow to Sao Paulo. BOC gives special attention to Chinese businesses, expatriates, students, and tourists. Offerings include corporate accounts, cross-border yuan settlement, litigation services, and foreign exchange trading. In recent years, BOC’s Dubai and Hong Kong branches have also started offering green bond investments. That building on The Bund was just a first step for a bank that today commands a global footprint.

As Hong Kong’s market integration with mainland China accelerates, financial institutions are clearing a channel. Appropriately, this year’s Stars of China competition honors a leader in market integration, CMB Wing Lung Bank, with the first-ever Star of Hong Kong award. A Hong Kong legend with a 90-year-plus history, CMB Wing Lung works with local and mainland clients in areas such as cross-border bond trading and a mortgage program helping Hong Kongers buy mainland properties through branches across the Hong Kong-Macau-Guangdong Province region and a seamless digital banking system used by 380,000 clients on both sides of the border. Since 2021, the bank has offered a rapidly growing wealth management service connecting mainland and Hong Kong financial markets. As a leader in integration, CMB Wing Lung reported a 7.4% jump in assets between 2022 and 2023 to more than HK$426 billion.

Quality and scale are not always congruent in the consumer credit field, especially during periods of economic stress when household incomes are stretched. Over the past year, however, ICBC has demonstrated that quality and scale can improve side-by-side, on the strength of unique strategies that earned it the Best Consumer Lending Bank award. These center on government-linked programs designed to boost household consumption, home improvement, and other housing-related spending. Other strategies support consumer purchases of clean-energy vehicles, including the electric cars for which China is now famous. All this has helped boost ICBC’s balance of outstanding personal loans to ¥1 trillion-plus. Personal mortgage loans rose ¥97 billion year-on-year to ¥6.2 trillion in 2023, helping Chinese families buy homes even in stressful times.

In Beijing’s state-directed economic model, supporting the real economy is a task shared by every bank. As the country’s largest bank, ICBC plays a critical role, among other things facilitating the largest block of mergers and acquisitions of Chinese companies year after year and earning it the Best Bank for M&A award. ICBC has ranked first on Refinitiv China’s list of financial advisers for onshore and offshore M&A transactions since 2014, chalking up nearly ¥1 trillion in financing and impacting more than 3,000 entities over that period. Between April 2023 and March of this year, the bank led its peers with more than 300 transactions completed and nearly ¥100 billion in M&A loans granted. Recent notable transactions include Huaneng Hydropower’s acquisition of Sichuan Energy for ¥8.6 billion and a shakeup in the electronic display sector when manufacturer BOE acquired HC Semitek for ¥2.1 billion. ICBC also supports cross-border M&A activity.

China’s retail banking customers are clamoring for more personalized financial services, forcing banks to adjust their customer offerings and even their business practices. PSBC has gone beyond adjustments, launching a sweeping effort to improve the quality and efficiency of its service to the real economy, particularly the three-part “sannong” encompassing the agriculture sector, rural communities, and rural residents. PSBC’s retail outlets already serve most of China’s rural areas, but under a transformation strategy called Five Plus One, it aims to expand sannong financing, microfinancing, credit extension services, wealth management, and financial markets trading. The bank has done particularly well in the consumer credit market with a digital online consumer loan product system. At the end of 2023, consumer loans totaled ¥2.86 trillion, up 4.77% from 2022, while personal microlending rose more than 22% to ¥1.39 trillion. PSBC’s ambitious embrace of the sannong earns it the Best Bank for Business Transformation award.

Successful partnerships in the financial world are built, not born. Ping An Private Bank stands out among its peers for building beneficial tie-ups with both family clients and foreign capital managers needing domestic partners to access the Chinese market. This ability to forge ties helped make Ping An this year’s selection as Best Private Bank. The preferred partner for numerous foreign-capital managers starting businesses in China, the bank saw a steady stream of agency sales last year, including products tied to New York-based Neuberger Berman’s qualified domestic limited partnership fund. Further highlighting its ability to cultivate partnerships is a recent upgrade of Ping An’s family office business, which now provides wealth and health management, generational development, charitable planning, and legal and tax-planning services. The bank’s charitable planning unit, an industry pioneer, managed more than ¥100 million as of January, with nearly 40,000 professionals supporting some 200,000 beneficiaries.

Private bank clients value market research that offers investment guidance. But a private bank that provides innovative market research, indexing, customized investment advice, and investor education events can be especially valuable. Huaxia Bank’s service is at the top of the value ladder, earning it this year’s Most Innovative Private Bank award. Entrepreneurs and pensioners are among the client groups receiving customized advice. A platform featuring asset allocation simulations lets the bank’s investment advisers predict outcomes based on a range of product portfolios and allocation strategies. Another investor advisory service is called CREATE (consulting, rational planning, exploring options, allocation advice, transactions, examining outcomes). Investor education events are regularly held for clients. Launched in 2021, the CSI Huaxia Bank Green Economy Wealth Index was China’s first asset allocation index following green and low-carbon activities. Huaxia reported its private-banking client base grew 7% between 2022 and last year, underscoring that value-focused innovation is good for business.

In China, tradition runs as deep as the country’s 5,000-year history runs long. Preserving tradition through culture-related activities plays an important role at the private banking division of Bank of Communications, named this year’s Best Private Bank for Sustainable Investment. Unlike similar awards in past years, BOCOM’s award recognizes that, in the investment field, cultural sustainability is as necessary as environmental and developmental sustainability. The bank leverages appreciation for Chinese culture by linking investment choices to value-added services and brand activities that promote traditional Chinese literature, education, and charity. Through a digital customer marketing center, private banking clients can participate in tailor-made cultural programs that also recommend charitable giving options; one recent success was a fundraiser for blind college students. BOCOM serves more than 80,000 private banking clients with combined assets under management exceeding ¥1.15 trillion.

Balancing business demands and family needs can be daunting for entrepreneurs who take both tasks seriously. BOC, this year’s Best Private Bank for Entrepreneurs, is addressing the problem. Since launching its Entrepreneur Office suite of services in 2022, BOC has fine-tuned the components to build an all-encompassing professional platform with personal, family, business, and social dimensions. One facet is a one-on-one consulting service blending standard, scientific, and professional asset allocation methods. Another integrates private bank, trust, asset management, and insurance elements across the legal and tax domains for a holistic approach to family wealth management. In August, BOC’s private banking unit launched the industry-leading Jia He Ri Xin Family Service Trust, focused on risk isolation, asset allocation, family care, and wealth inheritance. It tailors trust structures and investment strategies in areas such as bond investment and what the bank calls “fixed-income plus quantitative” strategies.

As the Covid-19 crisis fades into history, crossing borders has become common again for those with the means to travel for business, education, and leisure. Wherever Chinese private banking customers land, CMB aims to be there. CMB’s high-quality global service network was a key factor in its selection as Best Private Bank for Ultrahigh-Net-Worth Individuals, providing one-stop solutions for families and businesses in areas including overseas asset planning and management and listed company services. Family office clients can also access overseas health and leisure services as well as entrepreneur exchange and business cooperation platforms. Domestically, CMB has family offices in most major cities. Advisers specialize in investment portfolios, family governance, and corporate activities. The bank addresses legal, tax, and philanthropy issues through task forces focusing on specific client needs.

For many Chinese households, low-threshold wealth management has long been considered a bridge to financial improvement and even financial security. When ICBC specialists noticed their wealth management customers were struggling to understand, choose, and hold products, the bank launched an online financial information platform to make complex services more accessible, inclusive, and convenient. Its mobile platform has since expanded to include analysis and investing toosl for wealth management customers, and the bank has enhanced its online services to support ICBC client managers charged with personalizing products and services. Thanks to these and other customer-centric initiatives, ICBC earned this year’s Best Wealth Management Provider award. With more than 5,000 wealth management products on offer, ICBC dominates the race for clients, with nearly 30 million wealth management customers as of March. Financial education through the bank’s online platform helps customers make decisions, with 20,000-plus articles on investment research, product selection, and other topics.

Some investors argue that risk boundaries have been overstretched by efforts to target investments according to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals. BOC, winner of this year’s Best Bank for Sustainable Investment award, is responding to that criticism while continuing to support ESG as a valuable pursuit. Key to its response is risk management. BOC recently revised its risk management policy to incorporate “environmental [climate], social, and governance risks” in its comprehensive risk management system and updated its risk appetite policy to include a qualitative statement about ESG risks. In line with government policy, BOC has included binding requirements related to environmental and social risk management in more than 90 industry credit policies, including agriculture, forestry, mining, oil, and construction. BOC also requires biodiversity protection in credit policies for key industries such as wind power generation, pumped-storage hydropower, and coal power.

Technologically advanced, next-generation nuclear power is part of China’s effort to cut emissions, achieve carbon neutrality, and raise funds for relevant projects through green bonds. A 2023 bond issue for Guangxi Energy Group’s Fangchenggang Nuclear Power Plant attracted considerable attention, helping earn underwriter CICC this year’s Best Bank for Green Bonds award. CICC has pledged to lead in sustainable finance by encouraging companies to embrace environmental principles. As a state investment bank, its green-bond underwriting activity highlights a national commitment to global sustainable development as well as the plans of the Communist Party Central Committee and State Council. In the year ended March 31, CICC provided financing for ¥349 billion in domestic and $881 million in offshore green bonds. Projects included a ¥821 million issue for photovoltaic installments benefiting rural homes served by Chongqing Electric Power, an electric-vehicle leasing fundraiser for Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Technology worth ¥975 million, and an offshore bond issue for the government of Hainan Province. A standout was CICC’s underwriting of ¥300 million in bonds for the Fangchenggang project, to financing the plant’s second and third phases utilizing Chinese reactor technology.

Banks are playing a major role supporting China’s ambitious plan to reach peak emissions before 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060; China Bohai Bank, this year’s Best Bank for Corporate Responsibility, is a leader in this effort. Its location in the industrial port city of Tianjin places it in a unique position to contribute to emissions-cutting, green energy-promoting activities and it is a key lender to companies in chemicals, manufacturing, automotive, logistics, and bulk commodities—traditional sectors that are transitioning to clean energy. A recent recipient of a low-interest transition-finance loan was chemical concern Tianjin Bohai Chemical Industry Group. Bohai has also launched special products including green-specific asset-backed loans, carbon-emission rights pledge financing products, and sustainability-linked bonds. Other products, including supply chain financing, are also geared toward industrial projects that harmonize with national emissions goals and improve manufacturing productivity.

Financial sector technology is advancing so rapidly that today’s innovation can quickly spawn tomorrow’s standard practice. So, an innovative bank needs a steady stream of new ideas, programs, and applications. CMB has an especially productive and innovative pipeline, earning it this year’s Most Innovative Bank award. Three product areas have been particularly visible: investor custody services, family trusts tied to private banking, and digital services for retail customers. CMB’s custody offerings include professional, basic, and value-added services, some of which are automated. The result is a full-flow digital investment management system covering securities and equity investments with research, risk control, and data processing, including visual analyses. CMB’s custody portfolio ranks first in the domestic market, at ¥22 trillion. CMB has also been an innovator in family trust offerings, including the first app to give clients one-stop access to trusts, vastly reducing project initiation time and securing the highest market share for the bank. CMB was the first Chinese commercial bank to offer trusts based on equity holdings, insurance, charitable giving, real estate, and investment rights; it also offers products integrating elder care management and family trusts. Other CMB innovations fall into the digital retail side of the business; its CMB APP integrates artificial intelligence and remote consultant services, while a new wealth assistant, Xiao Zhao, provides one-stop wealth management services. As of late 2023, 117 million clients were using CMB APP and CMB Life APP every month.

Some banks let the spirit of innovation guide payment system upgrades in only one or a few client areas. CCB has embraced the spirit systemwide, reaping this year’s Innovation in Payments award. In harmony with a recent State Council directive aimed at optimizing payment services for China’s elderly and foreign visitors, CCB implemented a series of innovative measures including pensioner-friendly, voice-activated commands on the bank’s mobile app and a digital wallet, enabling foreign exchange functions for major currencies including the US dollar and the Thai baht. Some 46,000 CCB ATMs now allow cash withdrawals with foreign credit cards, and the bank has implemented coin-specific cash services for taxis and other public transportation providers. In a green innovation, CCB’s physical credit cards are now being made from environmentally friendly materials.

“The last mile” is a phrase often heard in China’s big cities to describe the role of bike-share services in moving commuters from subway station to office or home. It also describes the role of one of many fintech services offered by CZ, winner of the Innovation in Fintech prize. To help companies in foreign trade navigate the last mile in exchange-rate hedging, CZ operates an online platform for life-cycle exchange-rate management called Zheshang Trading Treasure. The platform, which launched in 2018 and was upgraded last year, encompasses the entire production and operation cycle of companies engaged in foreign trade, helping them improve exchange-rate hedging and control exchange-rate risk. CZ’s fintech prowess also excels with Shuyi Loan, a digital credit products platform for small companies, and Shuke Loan, a similar platform for micro businesses. As of June, Shuyi Loan’s balance topped ¥1.1 billion, with 3,200 customers repaying an average loan of ¥360,000 per household. CZ’s digital empowerment campaign also extends into philanthropic finance as it employs blockchain technology to record the fundraising and utilization of charitable funds on the chain, ensuring that key information is open, transparent, and traceable.

Digital finance has revolutionized transactional elements of supply chain finance, cross-border trade, and e-commerce. Efficiently putting digital technology to work in these and other commercial areas is China Guangfa Bank, winner of this year’s Best Transaction Bank award. For companies needing supply chain finance, Guangfa’s E-Second billing and financing process applies fintech to daily supply chain operations and management, improving the quality and efficiency of its financial services offerings. Companies relying on import- and export-related transactions can avail themselves of the bank’s Cross-border Instant Messenger system and China International Trade Single Window digital platform. Guangfa also deploys blockchain and big data processes for its transaction services. In the e-commerce arena, its Guangshanghui 3.0 system offers unified, one-stop transaction services for merchants with multiple online stores and currencies, including the US and Australian dollars, the euro, and the yen. The service integrates collections and payments, allowing clients to use collected funds for overseas expenses.

Small, medium- and micro-size companies far outnumber big corporations in China and drive much of the nation’s economy. PSBC serves this vital segment, distinguishing itself especially at supporting client risk control to win this year’s Best SME Services Bank award. Smaller companies are notably susceptible to changes that harm their financial health; PSBC addresses these threats with risk control strategies including automatic early warnings and support for customers in default. The bank has popularized intelligent tools such as digital customer profiles, intelligent analysis of statements, and multidimensional risk monitoring, which have boosted risk identification and lowered the bank’s nonperforming loan ratio for this business segment. Recently launched automated services include E Bill Connect, for handling banker’s acceptance bills applications, and online signing and receipt notification. At the end of 2023, the value of PSBC’s inclusive loans to more than 2.1 million SMEs stood at ¥1.46 trillion, accounting for nearly 18% of its total customer loans. The average interest rate was 4.61%, a year-on-year decrease of 24 points.

Coordinating investor services and policy goals for investors living in the world’s second-largest economy calls for both creativity and initiative. This year’s choice for Best Asset Manager, ChinaAMC, consistently answers the call. Sheer size affords the firm a powerful voice; with some $304 billion in assets under management, ChinaAMC serves about 219 million retail and 265,000 institutional investors with more than 400 mutual funds. Initiatives launched last year included the Zhisheng Xinrui Equity Fund, which uses artificial intelligence and quantitative models to build portfolios and optimize trading, and the CSI All Index Medical Device ETF, which offers innovative medical device investing backed by policy support. Other ChinaAMC’s ETFs focus on science and technology companies in the categories of large-cap and over-the-counter trading; mid-caps featuring prominent high-tech companies in strategic emerging industries traded on ChiNext, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange’s Nasdaq-style subsidiary; and index investment tools covering A-market listings ranging from large-cap to micro-cap. ChinaAMC prides itself on having achieved carbon neutrality at the operational level over the past two years and leading peers in ESG investment.

A strong commitment to supporting the Chinese economy is essential to success for foreign firms jockeying for a share of the country’s huge asset management market. Regulators acknowledged BNP Paribas’ success at this last year when they approved the formation of a joint venture linking the French multinational’s asset management divisions and state-owned Agricultural Bank of China, earning the new joint venture, BNP Paribas ABC Wealth—51% controlled by the French partner—this year’s Best Foreign Bank Asset Manager award. Official media reported the new firm’s assets under management exceeded ¥7.6 billion as of June 30. Ma Shuguang, chairman of ABC Wealth Management, said the tie-up “combines the benefits of the BNP Paribas Group’s global asset management capabilities with ABC Group’s vast customer base, channel advantages, and deep understanding of the local market.” BNP Paribas Asset Management CEO Sandro Pierri says the venture “cements our commitment to a key growth market in Asia. We look forward to supporting investors and savers in China with innovative solutions that complement traditional wealth management services.”

Fundraising collaborations between banks and securities firms are playing an increasingly prominent role supporting China’s push for high-tech industrial development. Particularly prominent is a tie-up between Guotai Jinan Securities and Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank, helping the latter win the 2024 Most Advanced Trading Technology award. The collaboration steers investments to a variety of manufacturers in the Lingang New Area, a four-year-old Shanghai industrial zone hosting companies that produce integrated circuits, artificial intelligence products, biomedicine, and clean energy goods. Trading technology deployed through a so-called “investment firm-commercial bank” arrangement streamlines equities funding for manufacturers that have been vetted by regulators and placed on an industrial park “whitelist” of approved companies. The new tie-up also makes financial advisory, underwriting, asset allocation, credit supply, and policy-related resource services available for select manufacturers. Shanghai Rural Commercial’s collaboration with Guotai Jinan, and the trading technology underpinning their effort, gives high-tech development strong support in Lingang.

It’s been said that in sports as in warfare, the best defense is a good offense. Something similar is at work for Bank of Jining, which in recent years has coupled defensive risk control with expanding loan portfolios in an effort to foster localized economic growth. That strategy has earned the bank this year’s Best Bank for Risk Management award. Serving the third-tier city of Jining, the bank in June reported more than ¥212 billion in assets, ¥173 billion in deposits, and a loan balance of ¥119 billion. Those figures were up, respectively, 17%, 23 %, and 10% from a year prior. Risk controls tied to compliance, auditing, and nonperforming loan disposal paved the way for expansion despite the recent economic strain many of China’s smaller cities are suffering. Bank of Jining employs risk managers in each of its 100-plus branches and follows a multistep credit approval process involving independent teams, review committees, and a bank president with veto power.

Strike while the iron is hot is an apt characterization of the recent acceleration in activity supporting global acceptance of the yuan currency, or renminbi. Banks are taking advantage of a global trade climate favoring the Chinese government’s ongoing currency promotion effort, and none has accomplished more in this vein over the past year than CCB, the 2024 Best Bank for Renminbi Internationalization. Between January and June, CCB provided cross-border services in the currency for more than 50,000 current account and capital market clients. It integrates domestic and foreign currency services while offering renminbi solutions to Chinese companies operating abroad, mainly in countries participating in Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade group of Asia-Pacific countries. CCB has a history of overseas renminbi support dating to 2014, when its London branch became a UK clearing bank for the currency, operating an offshore renminbi infrastructure. Since then, its cumulative clearing value in the currency has topped ¥100 trillion, making it the largest renminbi clearing bank outside Asia. CCB says its goal is to steadily promote renminbi internationalization in line with China’s Central Financial Work Conference and enhance the ability of cross-border business in the currency to serve the domestic economy.

Between January and August, China’s Ministry of Commerce reported a 2.2% year-on-year increase in investment by Chinese companies in the more than 130 countries served by the ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). A powerhouse behind this global activity is ICBC, this year’s Best Bank for Belt and Road. A go-to for cross-border financing, ICBC has played a decisive role in hundreds of successful projects situated in more than half of all BRI countries, providing export credit, syndicated loans, lease factoring, and financing for mergers, acquisitions, and purchases of aircraft and ships. The bank’s advisory services cover oil and mineral projects, pipelines, and terminals. ICBC also leads in supporting BRI’s contribution to lowering carbon dioxide emissions, aiming for carbon neutrality through green finance. The bank is a driving force behind BRI-related growth, including a 21% year-on-year increase in project contract value to $149 billion in the January-August period.