Awards for Excellence 2016
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Also shortlisted: UBS |
The post-crisis overhaul of the banking industry has affected every aspect of lenders’ balance-sheet management, risk controls and business models. In some cases, regulators and supervisors have, either through edict or moral pressure, forced bankers to allocate capital to favoured markets and clients while micro-managing lenders’ assets and liabilities. What unites the various regulatory initiatives over the past seven years is the attempt to simplify business models in order to reduce perceived systemic risk.
The transformation of Lloyds Banking Group is a dramatic illustration of this. From pulling out of foreign markets and investment banking, cleaning a toxic loan book, transforming its liquidity and capital base and delivering on key financial milestones, Lloyds is the winner of Euromoney’s inaugural award, given to institutions that demonstrate an ability to meet disruptive regulatory changes.
Chief executive António Horta-Osório has achieved a rare feat among his peers by implementing a clear strategic vision, first sketched out in 2011, to restore the bank to profitability and return taxpayers’ money; all in keeping with the new regulatory regime.