Bank stability remains a pressing concern for the world's corporations and investors. It is within this context that Global Finance announces its 21st Annual Ranking of the World's 50 Safest Banks. Europe's sovereign debt crisis and slowing growth are having a significant impact on bank ratings. Global instability is also in the spotlight. Companies are watching closely to see how these events are affecting their counterparties. Canadian banks are the best performing in North America with seven banks in the top 50 compared to five from United States. Banks from Singapore are the strongest in Asia and from Chile in Latin America. Credit ratings and rankings of most European banks have suffered except for those at the very top of the list which have explicit guarantees from AAA rated governments. With the Top 10 banks unchanged as of an April 2012 update to last year's rankings, the Global Finance list shows that most of the top echelon of banks is truly worthy of the distinction of being named World's Safest Bank. Winners were selected through an evaluation of long-term credit ratings—from Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch—and total assets of the 500 largest banks worldwide. Global Finance's annual ranking of World's 50 Safest Banks has been a recognized and trusted standard of creditworthiness for the entire financial world for more than 20 years. “Counterparty creditworthiness is a critical issue for companies and investors worldwide," says Global Finance publisher Joseph D. Giarraputo. “More than ever, companies around the world are reevaluating the long-term credit strength of their banks, and partnering with only those banks that have proven strength and stability." 1. KfW (Germany) 2. Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten (BNG) (Netherlands) 3. Zürcher Kantonalbank (Switzerland) 4. Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank (Germany) 5. Landeskreditbank Baden-Württemberg - Förderbank (L-Bank) (Germany) 6. Caisse des Depots et Consignations (CDC) (France) 7. Nederlandse Waterschapsbank (Netherlands) 8. NRW.BANK (Germany) 9. Banque et Caisse d'Epargne de l'Etat (Luxembourg) 10. Rabobank Group (Netherlands) 11. TD Bank Group (Canada) 12. Bank of Nova Scotia (Canada) 13. DBS Bank (Singapore) 14. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (Singapore) 15. United Overseas Bank (Singapore) 16. Caisse centrale Desjardins (Canada) 17. Royal Bank of Canada (Canada) 18. National Australia Bank (Australia) 19. Commonwealth Bank of Australia (Australia) 20. Westpac Banking Corporation (Australia) 21. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (Australia) 22. Kiwibank (New Zealand) 23. HSBC Holdings (United Kingdom) 24. Nordea (Sweden) 25. Bank of Montreal (Canada) 26. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (Canada) 27. Svenska Handelsbanken (Sweden) 28. China Development Bank (China) 29. Bank of New York Mellon Corp (United States) 30. Agricultural Development Bank of China (China) 31. National Bank of Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) 32. CoBank ACB (United States) 33. Pohjola Bank (Finland) 34. National Bank of Kuwait (Kuwait) 35. DZ Bank (Germany) 36. Banque Fédérative du Crédit Mutuel (BFCM) (France) 37. U.S. Bancorp (United States) 38. National Bank of Canada (Canada) 39. Northern Trust Corp (United States) 40. Qatar National Bank (Qatar) 41. Samba Financial Group (Saudi Arabia) 42. BancoEstado (Chile) 43. La Banque Postale (France) 44. Bank of Taiwan (Taiwan) 45. Shizuoka Bank (Japan) 46. Banco de Chile (Chile) 47. BNP Paribas (France) 48. Wells Fargo (United States) 49. Standard Chartered (United Kingdom) 50. SEB (Sweden)
