Magazine Cover

Cover Story

World’s Best Banks 2011

COVER STORY: AND THE WINNER IS…   By Gordon Platt   Global Finance unveils its annual list of the best banks globally, regionally and by country.   Many of the world’s leading banks have posted significant increases in earnings so far ...

Features

Regional Report: Africa

CLOUDY HORIZONS   By Antonio Guerrero   While South Africa is attempting to get out from under its recession, countries in sub-Saharan Africa are dealing with the impact of volatile global oil markets and decreased investment from their neighbor to ...

Award Winners

Best In Class

ANNUAL SURVEY: WORLD’S BEST BANKS   A selection from Global Finance ’s best banks awards from the past year.   WORLD’S BEST FOREIGN EXCHANGE PROVIDERS 2011   WORLD’S BEST DERIVATIVES PROVIDERS 2011   WORLD’S BEST SUB-CUSTODIANS 2011   WORLD’S BEST ...

World’s Safest Banks

ANNUAL SURVEY: SAFE AND SOUND   By Andrew Cunningham   Global Finance presents it annual ranking of The World’s Safest Banks.   Despite the ongoing debt crisis, European banks continue to dominate the ranks of the World’s Safest Banks in ...

World’s Best Banks 2011: Global Winners

Global Winners Best Corporate Bank JPMorgan Chase JPMorgan Chase provides many of the world’s most prominent corporations with the financial services they need to succeed in global markets. With $2 trillion in assets, the bank operates in 60 countries and ...

World’s Best Banks 2011: Regional Winners

Regional Winners Best Bank in North America JPMorgan Chase Jamie Dimon, chairman, president and CEO www.jpmorganchase.com   JPMorgan Chase is a top-three bank in most of its business lines across North America. Its relative stability has helped it to increase ...

Central Banker Report Cards 2011

MIRACLE WORKERS REACH END OF THE ROAD   By Gordon Platt, Antonio Guerrero and Anita Hawser   Boosting employment and production are the elusive goals of today’s central bankers.   If it’s broke, fix it. Central bankers are taking on ...

World’s Best Banks 2011: Country Winners

LOCAL POWERHOUSES IN WORLDWIDE BANKING MARKETS   Country Winners     World’s Best Banks 2011: Country Winners World’s Best Banks 2011: Global Winners World’s Best Banks 2011: Regional Winners Back To Main Article

World’s Biggest Banks

SPECIAL REPORT: THE BIG LEAGUES   By Andrew Cunningham   Global Finance presents its ranking of the World’s Biggest Banks.   Assets sizes of the world’s biggest banks have stabilized, after three years of deleveraging and asset write-downs. The 50 ...

Emerging Markets

Company To Watch: Hero MotoCorp/India

HERO GROUP EYES AFRICAN MOTORCYCLE MARKET   By Gordon Platt   Hero MotoCorp, India’s leading manufacturer of motorcycles and scooters, bought out its joint venture partner, Honda, earlier this year.   Honda wanted to focus more intently on the fast-growing ...

EM News: Emerging Markets Prove Haven in Global Storm

EMERGING MARKETS INVESTOR: NEWS   By Gordon Platt   Emerging markets continue to outperform developed markets and were a relatively safe haven during the recent global equity market volatility.   Emerging market bond funds and currencies were stellar performers during ...

Emerging Markets Roundup: Africa

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS TO FINANCE INFRASTRUCTURE UPGRADES   By Antonio Guerrero   Tanzania plans to invest $742 million by the end of 2012 to tackle its crippling energy deficit.   African energy projects to get PPP boost Under an emergency power rescue ...

Emerging Markets Roundup: Brazil

INVESTMENT SPREE FOR FIFA WORLD CUP AND OLYMPICS   By Antonio Guerrero   Brazil is preparing for a major investment spree ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games.   Brazil prepares for FIFA World Cup 2014 Brazil’s ...

Emerging Markets Roundup: China

RISING RATES ARE ENCOURAGING LENDING   By Thomas Clouse   Strong demand for loans and higher interest rates boosted profits at several Chinese banks to record levels.   Record-high net profits at China Construction Bank Strong demand for loans and higher ...

Emerging Markets Roundup: India

FOREIGN INSTITUTIONAL INVESTOR FLOWS START TO DECLINE   By Aaron Chaze   Inflation fears, monetary tightening and slowing corporate growth may reduce foreign institutional investor interest.   Reserve Bank of India cites strong outward investment by Indian firms Worries over inflation, ...

Emerging Markets Roundup: Middle East

BAHRAIN: PROTESTS IMPACT THE ECONOMY   By Gordon Platt   Political unrest in Bahrain in February and March may have cost the economy as much as $2 billion.   New governor at Dubai International Financial Centre Essam Fakhro, chairman of the ...

Emerging Markets Roundup: Russia

PRIVATIZATION PLANS MAY GROW   By Kim Iskyan   Putin ally Valentina Matviyenko became the speaker of the Federation Council in Russia’s national parliament.   Oil producer Rosneft may be fully privatized Governor of St. Petersburg and longtime Putin ally Valentina ...

The World's Safest Banks

Trade & Supply Chain Finance 2011

WEATHERING THE STORM   Following the 2008 financial crisis, trade finance was a term often uttered in the upper echelons of global political circles. Treasury secretaries bandied the term around at G20 meetings, stressing the importance of keeping the wheels ...

Country Report

Country Report: India

INNER GAZE   By Michael Shari   Global food and fuel inflation, undeveloped infrastructure and a correction in emerging markets are leading India to look inward.   It’s not easy to keep a straight face in response to a banker’s ...

Country Report: Turkey

RIDING THE WAVE   By Justin Keay   Turkey’s economy has performed quite well, but reform is needed at home to build sustainable growth.   Early August saw unprecedented turbulence on global financial markets, and Turkey’s was no exception. On ...

Country Report: Israel

RESPONSIBILITY AND REFORM   By Gilly Wright   Responsible fiscal and monetary policies and a host of reforms aimed at liberalizing the economy have allowed Israel to become one of the world’s most attractive places for foreign investment. But change ...

Country Report: Taiwan

THE TIES THAT BIND   By Gordon Platt   Taiwan is expanding its ties to mainland China, boosting its own economic prowess.   Taiwan’s economic ties to China are likely to continue to expand and deepen, no matter the outcome ...

Milestones

Denmark Extends Claim In Arctic Seabed

MILESTONES: ARCTIC   By Paula L. Green   The Danish government is embarking on a precarious high-wire act as it presents an Arctic seabed claim to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.   Danish Arctic claims clash with ...

Corporate Finance

Debt: No Spike In Corporate Defaults

CORPORATE FINANCING NEWS: CORPORATE DEBT   By Gordon Platt   Credit spreads widened dramatically during the turmoil in the credit markets this summer as the global economic outlook worsened, Standard & Poor’s stripped the US of its triple-A credit rating, and ...

DRs: Market Volatility Hinders IPOs

CORPORATE FINANCING NEWS: GLOBAL EQUITY/DRS   By Gordon Platt   The recent volatility in global equity markets and the heightened uncertainty around the global economic outlook forced a virtual shutdown of the market for initial public offerings in early August, just ...

FX: Europe's Unresolved Crises

CORPORATE FINANCING NEWS: FOREIGN EXCHANGE   By Gordon Platt   Safe-haven buying drove US bond yields to the lowest level since 1950, and the dollar rose as the tumultuous summer of 2011 drew to a close with no solution in ...

M&A: Google, HP Lead Tech M&A

CORPORATE FINANCING NEWS: MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS   By Gordon Platt   Transformations of technology companies are fueling multibillion-dollar mergers and acquisitions and divestitures, as the industry consolidates and develops new businesses to compete for corporate IT budgets.   Google’s $12.5 billion ...

Newsmakers

Daunting Task For New Economy And Finance Minister

NEWSMAKERS: NIGERIA   By Antonio Guerrero   Nigeria’s new economic chief, former World Bank managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, says she will focus much of her efforts on diversifying her nation’s economy away from overdependence on oil and gas revenues.   ...

Lagarde Prepares To Put Her Stamp On The IMF

NEWSMAKERS: GLOBAL   By Michael Shari   Not since the reconstruction of Western Europe in the aftermath of World War II has an incoming managing director of the International Monetary Fund come under such tremendous pressure to prove that it ...

Uniting Divided Factions In Japan

NEWSMAKERS: JAPAN   By Thomas Clouse   Yoshihiko Noda became Japan’s sixth prime minister in the last five years after the lower house of parliament voted the 54-year-old finance minister into office on August 30.   Noda is Japan’s sixth PM ...