Motoring broadcaster Jeremy Clarkson, who presented Euromoney's awards for excellence last month, kept things hustling along like a Mercedes-Benz S-600 on an autobahn.
Clarkson, famed for his caustic views, made a stream of off-colour jokes about politicians and countries before handing out the gongs to the leading award winners at London's Natural History Museum. Tony Blair and Greek wine making skills were just two of his targets as he warmed up.
"When your name is called out, don't stroll to the stage," he instructed the winners. "The only people interested in you are your immediate family, so rush."
Duly admonished, the recipients didn't hang around. For his part, Clarkson seemed a bit bemused by the jargon. "Best at custody?" he pondered. "Isn't that Liz Hurley?"
Other banking argot left him equally in the dark. Given his background it was no surprise that he took ABS to be an anti-lock braking system. FX he couldn't hazard a guess at and UBS, he decided, when he gave out the best bank award, could be Union Bank of Swaziland.
Anshu Jain, head of Deutsche Bank's global markets business, received the capital markets achievement award.