There has been an important departure in The Banker's methodology for the Top 1000 World Banks ranking this year, owing to the advent of Basel III and its adoption by nearly two-thirds of the banks in the ranking. 

Almost two-thirds of the banks in The Banker's Top 1000 World Banks ranking for 2015 declared compliance with Basel III or transitional rules on the road to Basel III.

Basel compliance in the Top 1000 World Banks ranking

The effect of the EU’s single market is clear, with almost 90% of western European banks already moving to Basel III reporting. Levels of adoption are also high in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, with roughly even rates in other emerging markets. The US is the laggard in every sense – only the top tier of globally systemic banks has adopted Basel III, and the country accounts for more than two-thirds of the banks worldwide that are still using Basel I standards.

That said, Basel III compliance can be an ambiguous concept. The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision considers the China Banking Regulatory Commission to be administering a regime that is compliant with Basel III. Our own analysis of Chinese bank reporting suggests their disclosures do not cover all the aspects of the Basel III regime. For instance, there is no reporting of counterparty exposure, which is significant for the top-tier Chinese banks that participate widely in financial markets. We look forward to finding improved disclosure as Chinese banks adapt to Basel III.

This exert was taken from Top 1000 World Banks 2015: A new global picture, in which Philip Alexander examines the results of The Banker's Top 1000 World Banks ranking 2015. 

The charts and all the data for the Top 1000 World Banks ranking were produced using The Banker Database, which provides comprehensive financial data, news feed and executive contact data for more than 5000 of the world's leading banks. For more in-depth information on the global banking system, visit www.thebankerdatabase.com.

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