Press Release: The World’s 50 Safest Banks 2016



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NEW YORK, Sept. 8, 2016 — Global Finance has announced its 25th annual ranking of the World’s 50 Safest Banks. The full list of the 2016 safest banks appears on the following pages and will be published in the November issue.

Despite Brexit and the turbulent economic environment in Europe, the continent’s banks dominate the top ten of the World’s Safest Banks again in 2016. For the fifth year in a row, Germany’s KfW has taken the top spot, followed by Zürcher Kantonalbank of Switzerland and Germany’s Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank. Toronto-Dominion Bank, of Canada, maintained its spot in the top 10.

Asian banks put in a strong showing in the top 20, led by Singapore’s DBS Bank at #12, with OCBC, Korea Development Bank, United Overseas Bank and Export-Import Bank of Korea holding positions 14 through 17.

The top-ranking US bank this year is AgriBank, which comes in at 33rd, and the top-ranking Middle East bank is National Bank of Abu Dhabi, in 32nd place.

Sweden provided two of the new names on the list this year: Swedbank, leaping in at 30th, and SEB at 44th. US Bancorp is also new from last year, in 41st place. Finland’s OP Corporate Bank, formerly known as Pohjola, rounds out the list at 50th.

“The Safest Banks ranking for 2016 illustrates the impact of some the past year’s major political and economic shifts, with low oil prices in particular having significant impact on Gulf economies. With Brexit-like populism on the rise in many countries, political tensions threaten to derail reforms. Our ranking provides a consistent metric by which clients can compare the stability and security of banks across countries and regions,” says Global Finance publisher and editorial director Joseph D. Giarraputo.

Global Finance’s annual ranking of World’s 50 Safest Banks has been the recognized and trusted standard of financial counterparty safety for a quarter-century. Winners were selected through an evaluation of long-term foreign currency ratings—from Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch—and total assets of the 500 largest banks worldwide.

In addition to the World’s 50 Safest Banks, the full report also includes the following: World’s 50 Safest Commercial Banks, Safest Banks by Country, 50 Safest Banks in Emerging Markets, 50 Safest Banks in Europe, 50 Safest Banks in the Middle East, Safest Chinese Banks, Safest Islamic Financial Institutions in the GCC, and Safest Banks by Region (Asia, Australasia, Central & Eastern Europe, Latin America, Middle East/Africa, North America and Western Europe). The report will also compare the 2016 Safest Banks against our rankings from 5 and 10 years ago.

The full results of this exclusive survey will be published in the November issue of Global Finance. The safest banks will be presented awards at a special ceremony to be held during the Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington, DC on October 8.

Rank

Bank Name

Country

1

KfW

Germany

2

Zürcher Kantonalbank

Switzerland

3

Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank

Germany

4

L-Bank

Germany

5

Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten (BNG)

Netherlands

6

Nederalndse Waterschapsbank

Netherlands

7

NRW.BANK

Germany

8

Banque et Caisse d’Epargne de l’Etat

Luxembourg

9

Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations

France

10

Toronto-Dominion Bank

Canada

11

DZ Bank

Germany

12

DBS Bank

Singapore

13

Svenska Handelsbanken

Sweden

14

OCBC Bank

Singapore

15

Korea Development Bank

South Korea

16

United Overseas Bank

Singapore

17

Export-Import Bank of Korea*

South Korea

18

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Switzerland

19

Deutsche Apotheker- und Ärztebank

Germany

20

Royal Bank of Canada

Canada

21

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Australia

22

National Australia Bank

Australia

23

ANZ Group

Australia

24

Westpac

Australia

25

Industrial Bank of Korea

South Korea

26

Société de Financement Local (SFIL)

France

27

Pictet & Cie

Switzerland

28

Rabobank

Netherlands

29

Nordea

Sweden

30

Swedbank**

Sweden

31

Hang Seng Bank

Hong Kong

32

National Bank of Abu Dhabi

UAE

33

AgriBank

United States

34

Caisse centrale Desjardins

Canada

35

Kiwibank

New Zealand

36

China Development Bank

China

37

Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe (Sparkasse)

Germany

38

Scotiabank

Canada

39

Agricultural Development Bank of China

China

40

Bank of Montreal

Canada

41

U.S. Bancorp**

United States

42

Export-Import Bank of China

China

43

CIBC

Canada

44

SEB**

Sweden

45

DNB

Norway

46

HSBC France

France

47

Qatar National Bank

Qatar

48

CoBank

United States

49

National Bank of Kuwait

Kuwait

50

OP Corporate Bank (formerly Pohjola)

Finland

* Greatest gain over position on the 2015list
**New entry to the ranking

Ratings current as of August 9, 2016


METHODOLOGY


About Global Finance

Global Finance, founded in 1987, has a circulation of 50,050 and readers in 180 countries. Global Finance’s audience includes senior corporate and financial officers responsible for making investment and strategic decisions at multinational companies and financial institutions. Global Finance also targets the 8,000 international portfolio investors responsible for more than 80% of all global assets under professional management.

Its website — GFMag.com — offers analysis and articles that are the heritage of 29years of experience in international financial markets. Global Finance is headquartered in New York, with offices around the world. Global Finance regularly selects the top performers among banks and other providers of financial services. These awards have become a trusted standard of excellence for the global financial community.

For editorial information please contact:
Andrea Fiano | afiano@gfmag.com

To obtain rights to use Global Finance’s World’s Best Banks 2016logo, please contact:
Chris Giarraputo | chris@gfmag.com

The unauthorized use of Global Finance Award logos is strictly prohibited.

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