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Saudi Arabia hosts 5 out of 10 safest banks in ME

MANAMA: Saudi Arabia tops the list of the safest banks with hosting five out of top 10 safest banks in the Middle East, according to the rankings released by the Global Finance Magazine (GFmag.com).

The magazine has named the top 10 safest banks in the Middle East in an exclusive survey to be published in the October 2011 issue. 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.

The full report evaluated the safest banks in Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, the Middle East, North America, Latin America and Australasia.

"More than ever, customers around the world are viewing long-term creditworthiness as the key feature of the banks with which they do business," said Joseph D. Giarraputo, publisher of Global Finance.

"These banks have solid capital positions and superior risk management capabilities."

The top ten world's safest banks 2011 in the Middle East list includes National Bank of Abu Dhabi at the top ladder followed by the National Bank of Kuwait , Qatar National Bank , Samba Financial Group (Saudi Arabia), National Commercial Bank (Saudi Arabia), tie for ranking number six between Al-Rajhi Bank (Saudi Arabia), Riyad Bank (Saudi Arabia), Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank , Kuwait Finance House and Saudi British Bank (Saudi Arabia).

During ranking a tie is assigned when two banks with the same score have total assets within a $5 billion range.

Global Finance also announced its 20th annual ranking of the World's 50 safest banks. "Bank stability is an ever-more pressing concern for the world's corporations and investors. It is within this context that the sovereign debt crisis is still raging in Europe and renewed fears of contagion from southern European countries are affecting banking and market outlooks throughout Europe. Global political instability is also in the spotlight, from the upheavals in the Middle East and Africa to the US debt downgrade by Standard & Poor's, companies are watching closely to see how these events are affecting their counterparties," Global Finance said in a statement.

"With more than 40 of the top 50 banks from last year once again making the list, the Global Finance ranking shows that most of the top echelon of banks is truly worthy of the Moniker 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," it added.

Global Finance's annual ranking of world's 50 safest banks is a recognized and trusted standard of creditworthiness for the entire financial world. "Counterparty creditworthiness is a critical issue for companies and investors worldwide," said 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."

This exclusive survey will be published in the October issue of Global Finance. The banks ranked 1-10 will be presented awards at a special ceremony to be held during the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington in September.

© Arab News 2011