Awards for Excellence 2008: Denmark

Danske Bank remains the dominant player of the Danish banking market, with almost one-third of the banking market and assets many times larger than its nearest rival. While others, such as second-placed Nordea and Jyske Bank may be growing more rapidly – Jyske Bank increased its core earnings by 14% in 2007 – Danske is no slouch either. Its assets grew around 14% in 2007 and shareholders have enjoyed a compound five-year growth rate in total equity of 11.86% – impressive for a bank that totally dominates its market – while return on equity is still a respectable 15.1%.