Ben T. Smith IV, a longtime Silicon Valley executive and currently head of the Communications, Media and Technology practice at Kearney, speaks to Global Finance about the post-SVB venture capital industry and the pace of innovation.
Many of the world's richest countries are also the world's smallest: the pandemic and the global economic slowdown barely made a dent in their huge wealth.
Global Finance editor Andrea Fiano interviews Ásgeir Jónsson, Central Bank Governor of Iceland during Global Finance's World's Best Bank Awards at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on October 15th.
For the second year in a row, TD Bank Group sits at the top of Global Finance’s ranking of the Safest Commercial Banks. The Canadian financial institution carries an AA+ rating from Moodys and AA- ratings from both Fitch and S&P.
The three large Singaporean banks—DBS, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation and United Overseas Bank—boast the same ratings as last year, but are ranked below TD Bank Group on the basis of smaller asset size.
TD Bank placed 10th in Global Finance’s overall list of the 50 Safest Global Banks. DBS came in at number 11. OCBC took the 12th spot; United Overseas Bank was one notch below that.
Seventeen of the World’s Safest Commercial Banks are based in Western Europe. It’s a strong showing, but not as impressive as how Western European banks fared in our Global Safest Banks ranking, where banks located in that region hold the top nine places on the list. Overall, they contribute 22 banks to the top 50. Germany’s DZ Bank is the only financial institution from Western Europe to be ranked in the top 10 (at number 10) on the list of the Safest Commercial Banks.
US banks have a bigger presence on the Safest Commercial Banks list than the Safest Global Banks ranking, where they claimed only three spots. All told, American banks occupy eight places in the commercial bank rankings. Led by TD Bank, Canadian financial institutions take seven of the 50 positions. Australia contributes five banks.
This year’s ranking of the World’s Safest Commercial Banks includes four new entries: Pictet & Cie and EFG, both from Switzerland; LGT Bank from Lichtenstein and New Zealand’s Kiwibank. Shizuoka Bank, based in Japan, was downgraded by Moody’s in December 2014 and thus falls out of the top 50 ranking. Three other financial institutions drop off the list: Norinchukin Bank and Shinkin Central Bank from Japan and Germany’s WGZ Bank.
Only five Asian banks appear in the Safest Commercial Banks ranking, compared with 10 in the Global Banks ranking. No commercial banks in China or South Korea scored high enough to make the list. The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ is Japan’s sole representative among the 50 Safest Commercial Banks, and it falls 17 places this year to 50th. The drop stems from Moody’s downgrade of the bank in December 2014. No Japanese banks appear in the global ranking.
Five banks from Gulf Cooperation Council member states appear in the Safest Commercial Banks ranking: three from Saudi Arabia, and one from Kuwait and Qatar.
Two Chilean banks appear in the ranking. Banco de Chile’s score lands it at number 37 and Banco Santander Chile at number 49. The highest-rated bank in Chile, BancoEstado, is state-owned and so not eligible for inclusion in the Safest Commercial Banks rankings. The same is true of National Bank of Abu Dhabi, which heads the rankings of the World’s Safest Emerging Markets Banks.
Global Finance’s ranking of the World’s Safest Commercial Banks is made up of financial institutions that are not majority-owned by a government or state agency. The other criteria are the same as those used for ranking the Safest Global Banks and the Safest Emerging Markets Banks.
A score of 18 points, equivalent to three A+ ratings, was needed to ensure inclusion in the Safest Commercial Banks ranking, although Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ claims the final place with 17 points. Seven other banks have 17 points, but with lower asset sizes than the Japanese bank they were not included in the top 50 ranking. The seven banks were: Credit Suisse, Norinchukin Bank, Shinkin Central Bank, Shinhan Bank, Shizuoka Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi and SABB.
SAFEST COMMERCIAL BANKS 2015
Rank
Bank
Fitch
Moody’s
S&P
Total Score
Reporting Assets $mn
Country
1
TD Bank Group*
AA-
Aa1
AA-
23
837,909
Canada
2
DBS Bank
AA-
Aa1
AA-
23
333,510
Singapore
3
Oversea-Chinese
Banking Corporation
AA-
Aa1
AA-
23
303,660
Singapore
4
United Overseas Bank
AA-
Aa1
AA-
23
232,147
Singapore
5
Royal Bank of Canada*
AA
Aa3
AA-
22
834,191
Canada
6
National Australia Bank**
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
773,062
Australia
7
Commonwealth Bank of Australia***
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
745,527
Australia
8
ANZ Group**
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
675,733
Australia
9
Westpac**
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
674,639
Australia
10
DZ Bank
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
488,701
Germany
11
Svenska Handelsbanken
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
364,072
Sweden
12
Deutsche Apotheker- und Ärztebank
AA-
Aa2
AA-
22
42,508
Germany
13
Pictet & Cie
AA-
Aa2
N/R
21.5
34,519
Switzerland
14
Rabobank
AA-
Aa2
A+
21
826,862
Netherlands
15
Nordea
AA-
Aa3
AA-
21
812,604
Sweden
16
Bank of Nova Scotia*
AA-
Aa2
A+
21
714,560
Canada
17
Hang Seng Bank
A+
Aa2
AA-
21
162,980
Hong Kong
18
AgriBank
AA-
Aa3
AA-
21
94,425
United States
19
Caisse centrale Desjardins
AA-
Aa2
A+
21
38,213
Canada
20
Kiwibank
AA
Aa3
A+
21
14,634
New Zealand
21
Bank of Montreal*
AA-
Aa3
A+
20
522,092
Canada
22
CIBC*
AA-
Aa3
A+
20
367,985
Canada
23
DNB
N/R
Aa2
A+
20
356,573
Norway
24
HSBC France
AA-
A1
AA-
20
244,043
France
25
Pohjola Bank
A+
Aa3
AA-
20
134,062
Finland
26
Qatar National Bank
AA-
Aa3
A+
20
133,614
Qatar
27
CoBank
AA-
N/R
AA-
20
107,428
United States
28
National Bank of Kuwait
AA-
Aa3
A+
20
74,399
Kuwait
29
LGT Bank
N/R
Aa2
A+
20
31,031
Liechtenstein
30
AgFirst
AA-
N/R
AA-
20
29,503
United States
31
Banque Fédérative
du Crédit Mutuel
A+
Aa2
A
19
519,903
France
32
U.S. Bancorp
AA-
A1
A+
19
402,529
United States
33
BNY Mellon
AA-
A1
A+
19
385,303
United States
34
SEB
A+
Aa3
A+
19
341,396
Sweden
35
Swedbank
A+
Aa3
A+
19
274,190
Sweden
36
Samba Financial Group
A+
Aa3
A+
19
57,973
Saudi Arabia
37
Banco de Chile
N/R
Aa3
A+
18.5
45,517
Chile
38
EFG Bank
A
Aa2
N/R
18.5
25,623
Switzerland
39
HSBC
AA-
A1
A
18
2,634,139
United Kingdom
40
BNP Paribas
A+
A1
A+
18
2,522,471
France
41
Wells Fargo
AA-
A2
A+
18
1,687,155
United States
42
Standard Chartered
AA-
Aa3
A-
18
725,914
United Kingdom
43
State Street
AA-
A2
A+
18
274,119
United States
44
National Bank of Canada*
A+
Aa3
A
18
182,199
Canada
45
Northern Trust
AA-
A2
A+
18
109,946
United States
46
Al Rajhi Bank
A+
A1
A+
18
82,056
Saudi Arabia
47
Riyad Bank
A+
A1
A+
18
57,224
Saudi Arabia
48
Suncorp Metway***
A+
A1
A+
18
56,577
Australia
49
Banco Santander Chile
A+
Aa3
A
18
50,272
Chile
50
Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ*****
A
A1
A+
17
1,752,159
Japan
Source for ratings: Fitch Ratings, Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s Investors Service
Source for Reporting Assets: Fitch Solutions Ratings current as of August 14, 2015
All Statement Dates Current As Of 12/31/14
* Statement Date Current As Of 10/31/2014
** Statement Date Current As Of 9/30/2014
*** Statement Date Current As Of 6/30/2014
**** Statement Date Current As Of 8/31/2014
***** Statement Date Current As Of 3/31/2015
No comments yet