The ability to work seamlessly across markets and asset classes paid off for the US firm in a challenging year.

After depositors fled the wreckage of the US regional banks in 2023 and customers started jumping overboard from a sinking Credit Suisse, even more banks could have been dragged into a systemic crisis. But UBS, rebuilt after the global financial crisis as a strong, sustainable and well-managed institution, responded to the rescue call from a fellow G-Sib. It rescued Switzerland as a financial centre, stopped the panic from spreading and struck a good deal for its own shareholders. Credit Suisse was not a gift. The integration will be tough. But UBS has got off to a good start and could soon relaunch its own growth story.

In tough markets, changes in banks’ market share can be particularly telling. Mergers and acquisitions had another down year in 2023, with total volume falling to $3.13 trillion, from $4.3 trillion in 2022, when rates first started rising, and $5.7 trillion in the post-Covid boom of 2021.

Focusing on its core strengths has helped Deutsche Bank serve corporate clients amid intense geopolitical, technological and environmental challenges.

The bank’s 10-year ScotiaRise programme has gone from strength to strength, reaching out to indigenous communities and aligning with its truth and reconciliation committee’s work.

With a chief executive pushing sustainable finance from the very top, HSBC is leading from the front in the global banking industry’s response to the climate emergency.

Goldman is transforming its provision of research and insights to make it much easier for investors to form trade ideas.

The bank says it is succeeding with Open Account Automation, the first module of a long-term initiative to digitize trade finance through new platform CashPro Supply Chain Solutions.

It is in difficult times that the best franchises prove their mettle. JPMorgan’s formidable corporate and investment bank – now bolstered through its integration of commercial banking – was the one to beat over the last year. No rival can match its breadth, but the firm’s rejection of complacency means that it never stops improving.

The bank is willing to spend its considerable technology budget on both exciting new ideas and on existing services that improve the lives of its customers.

Public-sector clients had to tackle rising rates and geopolitical uncertainty in 2023, while undergoing fundamental restructuring in their sector. HSBC was instrumental in guiding them through the uncertainty.

A regional SME champion shows how to operate on the world stage.

The bank has become a global payments powerhouse, delivering innovation and outperformance.

The bank's ability to offer a full set of services almost everywhere around the globe sets it apart from the competition.

Few banks have navigated turbulent times so well, posting record revenues on the back of strong net inflows and rising markets.

The bank has made steady but still impressive improvement in its markets business over the last few years. And it was the firm among the 12 biggest to increase revenues in 2023.

As balance sheet pressures have intensified, Morgan Stanley has been at the forefront of a changing financial sector landscape.

Andrea Orcel’s long-awaited debut as a bank chief executive has won over the markets, largely thanks to capital returns. But his plans for UniCredit go far beyond balance-sheet management and costs. He now sees a chance to demonstrate growth.

The bank is leveraging all its resources to reach six million individuals by 2025. It is well on its way.

The bank’s chief executive has led from the front to create an institution that is more diverse and better reflects the society in which it works.

Societe Generale has accelerated its transition and is using important mandates to convince its internal and external audiences alike.

The bank has cleaned up its books, closed branches and improved its cost-to-income ratio. It also paid its first dividend since 2008.

The French bank has made steady progress in this business over the last decade and last year was a strong period of new mandates and client expansion.

It is not enough to have the data, banks also need to bring intelligence and financial analysis to bear in sustainable finance to keep progressing.

Christian Sewing has turned Deutsche Bank around. The firm has a resilience now that would have seemed unlikely when he was appointed chief executive five years ago. By his own admission, some of the toughest work is still to be done. But the past year and the most recent banking crisis have provided a striking validation of the strategy he set in place.

A bank’s sustainability strategy cannot exist without high-quality data. UBS has made it its mission to source the best.

The tokenization of real-world assets is spreading fast, requiring the leaders of traditional finance to respond.

The US firm provides the right strategic advice for volatile markets.

BNP Paribas has a well-earned reputation for steadiness and stability. In the past year, its chief executive, Jean-Laurent Bonnafé, has also reinforced his strategic credentials with the bank’s well-timed exit from its US retail business. Today, the bank stands as the eurozone leader on the global stage and is ready to play a pivotal role in the continent’s financial development.

Citi’s crown jewels sparkle in a record-breaking year for the business.