Best Bank:
Bank Pekao SA
Best debt house:
Bank Handlowy/Citigroup
Best equity house:
BRE Bank
Best M&A house:
CSFB
Shirish Apte |
BRE Bank and Bank Pekao SA, last year's winners for best domestic and best foreign bank, are still the most promising candidates for the title of best bank. While BRE made itself a name as dynamic, flexible and share-holder oriented institution, Bank Pekao is often considered an inflexible giant.
But it is partly because of Pekao's strong coverage - a network of 800 branches that earns it the second-highest market share, 19%, after PKO the savings bank with 24% - that the bank wins our award. Although BRE equipped with 25 branches shines with larger corporates clients, Pekao is unchallenged in servicing higher-margin SME businesses across the country.