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Top 1000 World Banks - National Bank of Uzbekistan is highest mover but all eyes on UniCredit

National Bank of Uzbekistan is the highest mover in The Banker's Top 1000 World Banks ranking but Italy's UniCredit is the most notable entry in the top 25 highest movers table. Joy Macknight reports.
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UniCredit, ranked 24th in The Banker's Top 1000 World Banks ranking, has joined the top 25 highest movers ranking in 2018, with a 79% increase in its Tier 1 capital. It is the biggest lender in the table, with $65.91bn in Tier 1 capital. The bank completed a €13bn capital increase to boost its flagging capital ratios in March 2017 – purported to be the largest in history by a company based in Italy.

In the 2017 highest movers ranking, UniCredit’s compatriot, Istituto Centrale delle Banche Popolari Italiane, (which was renamed Nexi in November) topped the list by posting a 181.6% capital rise.

But the bank that takes the accolade as 2018’s highest mover is National Bank of Uzbekistan (NBU), swelling its Tier 1 capital in 2017 by an impressive 188% to $1.35bn. In terms of the global Top 1000 ranking, NBU jumps 369 places, from 981st to 612th. It received a $15m injection from the Ministry of Finance and $51m from the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan, which was transferred to the bank’s Tier 1 capital by the end of 2017.

In second place is Bank Keshavarzi (Agribank), which increased its Tier 1 capital by 157% to $1.44bn. The Iranian lender moves up 314 places in the global Top 1000 ranking, from 910th to 596th. And Caixa Geral de Depositos bags third place this year. The Portuguese state-owned bank, which agreed a €5bn rescue plan in mid-2016, saw a 132% jump in capital to $9.44bn.

US lenders have had another good year and feature prominently among the highest movers. Five banks appear in the table: Sterling Bancorp, Pacific Premier Bancorp, Pinnacle Financial Partners, Independent Bank Group and South State Corporation. Although this is one less than in the 2017 ranking, it is enough to keep the US as the most represented country in the highest movers top 25.

In contrast, only three Russian banks have made the top 25 ranking, down from five banks in 2017. Tinkoff Bank remains in the table for the second year running and is the highest mover among the Russia contingent, with a 112% increase in Tier 1 capital, compared with a 55% rise in the 2017 ranking. It places seventh in the top 25 ranking, with Zenit Banking Group and Credit Bank of Moscow in 14th and 18th positions, respectively. Zenit Banking Group enters the global Top 1000 this year in 974th place.

Italy also has three banks in the top 25 highest movers. Banco BPM – which was formed in 2017 as a result of the merger of Banco Popolare and Banca Popolare di Milano – and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, which underwent a recapitalisation programme in July 2017 to the tune of €8.1bn, join UniCredit in the table.

After years of Chinese banks dominating the highest mover table, only two – Guangdong Huaxing Bank and Laishang Bank – have made it into the top 25 this year, the same number as in 2017. In comparison, Chinese banks occupied 15 of the 25 positions in the 2010 and 2011 rankings.

Two banks from south-east Asia are in the top 25 highest mover table. Thailand’s Land and House Bank, which is fourth highest, saw a 125% jump in Tier 1 capital, and Vietnam Prosperity Bank saw a 74% increase.

Volkswagen Bank, ranked 118 in the global Top 1000 and the second biggest lender to grace the highest movers table, saw a 84% rise in Tier 1 capital to $12.32bn in its 2017 figures. The German car company’s financial arm has been tapping the bond market to support its expansion plans.

Shawbrook Bank, a UK challenger bank focused on providing loans to small and medium-sized businesses, joins the top 25 with a 65% jump in capital. The business was acquired by a consortium led by BC Partners and Pollen Street Capital in July 2017.

Top 25 highest movers by Tier 1 capital (% change)

Rank World Rank Bank Name Country Tier 1 Capital %ch.
1 612 National Bank of Uzbekistan (NBU) Uzbekistan 188.02
2 596 Bank Keshavarzi (Agri Bank) Iran 156.52
3 154 Caixa Geral de Depositos Portugal 132.32
4 710 Land and House Bank Thailand 124.84
5 384 Sterling Bancorp US 123.79
6 129 Banco BPM Italy 114.83
7 739 Tinkoff Bank Russia 112.17
8 718 State Savings Bank of Ukraine Ukraine 107.61
9 504 Guangdong Huaxing Bank China 106.55
10 841 Pacific Premier Bancorp US 102.79
11 526 Pinnacle Financial Partners US 95.47
12 569 CIB Egypt Egypt 93.06
13 135 Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena Italy 91.38
14 974 Zenit Banking Group Russia 90.75
15 231 Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego Poland 87.82
16 534 The Co-operative Bank UK 86.52
17 118 Volkswagen Bank Germany 83.81
18 349 Credit Bank of Moscow Russia 82.01
19 24 UniCredit Italy 78.87
20 713 Vietnam Prosperity Bank Vietnam 73.53
21 450 Banco Macro Argentina 69.13
22 850 Independent Bank Group US 68.15
23 599 Laishang Bank China 66.15
24 837 Shawbrook Bank UK 64.63
25 604 South State Corporation US 64.57

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Read more about:  Rankings & data , Top 1000 World Banks
Joy Macknight is the editor of The Banker. She joined the publication in 2015 as transaction banking and technology editor. Previously, she was features editor at Profit & Loss, editorial director at Treasury Today and editor at gtnews. She also worked as a staff writer on Banking Technology and IBM Computer Today, as well as a freelancer on Computer Weekly. She has a BSc from the University of Victoria, Canada.
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