The Transaction Banking Awards

Transaction Banking Awards Criteria

The Cash, Payments and Trade services are considered as Transaction Banking Awards, using mostly the same criteria set. In any one year, we may or may not make an award for Transaction Bank of the Year, based on the submissions made under one or several of the three areas listed below.

1.	The International Transaction Banking Awards, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa
	The criteria below are for the following awards:
	-	The Best International Transaction Bank
	-	The Best International Cash Management Bank
	-	The Best International Trade Finance Bank
	The awards stated above are based on:
	i.	a survey of domestic banks in all of the different countries in the region on their opinion of foreign and international partner banks, corroborated by interviews.
	ii.	changes in market share of the different competitors in the respective markets or key business lines
	iii.	the size and strategic importance of the transaction business as a percentage of the bank’s corporate and FI business
	iv.	demonstration of the contribution of the business to total income
	v.	demonstration of the growing annuity value of the business by being able to demonstrate business or a customer base that is core and recurrent
	vi.	the ability to describe the benefits of processing efficiencies and cost management that are passed on to their clients
	vii.	the range and unique features of fee-based products and services that are not dependent on credit as the primary relationship and the value they provide to their clients
	viii.	the key achievements in the year under review.

2.	The Domestic Transaction Banking Awards, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa
	The criteria below are for the following awards:
	-	The Best Transaction Bank, By Country
	-	The Best Cash Management Bank, By Country
	-	The Best Trade Finance Bank, By Country
	The primary assessment for the above awards are for the trade finance and/or cash management awards as the case may be. The Best Transaction Bank may be given to the bank that excels in the full range of transaction banking services for that country, and may or may not be given in any year, depending on the nature of the competition and whether the different types of transaction banking services are dominated by different players. The awards stated above are assessed based on:
	i.	a survey of international banks and selected corporates in each of the different countries in the region on the transaction banks they work with in the country, corroborated by interviews.
	ii.	changes in market share of the different competitors in the respective markets or key business lines
	iii.	the size and strategic importance of the transaction business as a percentage of the bank’s corporate and FI business
	iv.	demonstration of the contribution of the business to total income
	v.	demonstration of the growing annuity value of the business by being able to demonstrate business or a customer base that is core and recurrent
	vi.	the ability to describe the benefits of processing efficiencies and cost management that are passed on to their clients
	vii.	the range and unique features of fee-based products and services that are not dependent on credit as the primary relationship and the value they provide to their clients
	viii.	the key achievements of the bank in the year under review.

3.	The Most International Asian Transaction Bank Awards
	-	The Most International Asian Transaction Bank
	-	The Most International Asian Cash Management Bank
	-	The Most International Asian Trade Finance Bank
	For a few years now, several Asian banks have been building world class infrastructure, and globalising their business reach to approximate the global players that dominate this industry. This award was instituted in 2012 to track “the most international of Asian transaction banks” that are being transformed step by step, first into regional players and then into global players. In the early stages, these banks will not have the capital, the skills or the infrastructure to compete globally. But as they put in place these capabilities, the emergence of Asian international banks has become an unmistakeable trend.
	This award is based on:
	i.	a survey of international banks in the region on their opinion of domestic Asian banks they consider to be competitors, corroborated by interviews.
	ii.	the size of the international transaction banking business in the region and globally, to determine whether the bank is able to participate in international mandates and deals alongside the global players.
	iii.	the percentage of the transaction banking business of the candidate bank that originates from outside their home market (which should be more than 30% to be considered a substantial part of its business orientation)
	iv.	the countries where this bank is represented to demonstrate an international presence
	v.	a technology infrastructure that is able to support a global cash, trade, payment and lending business.
	vi.	the CVs of the senior management team demonstrating international experience
	vii.	the ability to describe products, the processing efficiencies, cost management and service aspects of the infrastructure, products and services that are passed on to their clients as competitive value propositions.
	viii.	the range and unique features of fee-based products and services that are not dependent on credit as the primary relationship and the value they provide to their clients (we do not expect this area to be very competitive for Asian banks just now).
	ix.	the key achievements and mandates won by the bank in the year under review.

4.	Payments and Currency Clearing Awards, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa
	-	Best Global (Multi-Currency) Clearing Bank
	-	Best US Dollar (USD) Clearing Bank
	-	Best Euro (EUR) Clearing Bank
	-	Best British Pound (GBP) Clearing Bank
	-	Best Renminbi (RMB) Clearing Bank
	-	Best Japanese Yen (JPY) Clearing Bank
	The Best Global Clearing Bank award was introduced in 2015 to recognise the growing development and sophistication of multi-currency and cross-currency clearing capability of banks. Winning banks must ranked in the top 3 for clearing volume (as recorded by national/regional clearing/payment system) for at least 2 major currencies (including the USD plus one other) as well as meet the assessment criteria of single currency clearing awards below:
	i.	A survey of domestic and international banks as well as leading corporates on their preferred counterparty banks to settle transactions for the currencies stated.
	ii.	The total volume, the average per ticket size of transactions, the number of countries of origin or destination for payments to determine market share.
	iii.	The level of services inherent in the product including intraday liquidity, intraday clearing, the role of credit, fees charged and other values to the client.
	iv.	The backend products and services that support the clearing activity, such as the level of automation and “anytime, anywhere” capabilities and provides client institutions with a value that they benefit from.
	v.	KYC and other regulatory support services provided to ensure full compliance to domestic and international laws
	vi.	Are domestic banks in the markets they serve able to downstream and white label these capabilities for their own domestic clients?
	This award takes into account changes in market share of the different competitors in the region, the range and unique features of products and services provided and the key achievements in the year under review.

5.	The Counterparty Bank Awards
	-	The Best Counterparty Bank in Asia Pacific
	-	The Best Counterparty Bank in Middle East
	-	The Best Counterparty Bank in Africa
	-	The Best Counterparty Bank by Country
	This award was instituted to give banks from outside the region an idea of the banks they should be considering as their Counterparty bank for the region and for each country in which they wish to be represented. The criteria for leading counterparty bank are as follows:
	i.	A strong and stable balance sheet as assessed under The Asian Banker 500 Strongest Banks by Balance Sheet ranking, which is based on a well developed and tested scorecard
	ii.	Augmented by good international ratings by local or peer standards
	iii.	Brand value in the market in which the bank operates (we use market share of local deposits as a proxy for domestic brand value)
	iv.	Number of counterparty mandates secured in the year under review
	v.	Number and quality of transaction banking products and services (particularly trade, securities processing and FX) that are able to support counterparty relationships
	vi.	Case studies of working counterparty agreements where the bank provides services to its partner bank

6.	The Best Transaction Banking Product in Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa
	As more and more banks move towards a product-centered approach to compete on their transaction banking business, we are now able to look more closely at individual products and the difference these are able to make to winning marketshare and delivering value to clients. In recent years, there has been a focus on mobile phone apps as the platform for delivering transaction banking products. We believe this is a temporary phase that will evolve into more substantial areas. As part of our assessment process, we find that we need to distinguish between products and services first before recognising the salient aspects of the products themselves. As such the criteria are:
	i.	A discernible product distinguished by a name, and supported by a set of functionalities that customers are able to use. A platform is useful (as in an app) but not a requirement. A good product might well be platform independent.
	ii.	A strong set of core functionalities with data on volume and frequency of usage by customers
	iii.	Stated process and cost benefits in delivering service to customers.
	iv.	A strong level of ubiquity which enables a customer to use the product “anytime anywhere”
	v.	A review of the organisation of the bank itself – that it is organised around the ability to support the product – with clear support staff, sales staff with personal KPIs to ensure the success of the product
	vi.	Demonstrable testimonies and case studies of “solving actual business problems for clients” - clients actually benefiting from the product.

7.	The Most Improved Transaction Bank in Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa
	This award recognizes the transaction bank that has significantly improved its operations and made a successful transformation into a strong transaction banking franchise in the year under review.
	The awards stated above are assessed based on:
	i.	A survey of international banks and selected corporates in each of the different countries in the region on the transaction banks they work with in the country, corroborated by interviews
	ii.	Changes in market share of the different competitors in the respective markets or key business lines
	iii.	The size and strategic importance of the transaction business as a percentage of the bank’s corporate and FI business
	iv.	Demonstration of the contribution of the business to total income
	v.	Demonstration of the growing annuity value of the business by being able to demonstrate business or a customer base that is core and recurrent
	vi.	The ability to describe the benefits of processing efficiencies and cost management that are passed on to their clients
	vii.	The range and unique features of fee-based products and services that are not dependent on credit as the primary relationship and the value they provide to their clients
	viii.	The key achievements of the bank in the year under review

The China Transaction Banking Awards

In 2014, we started a cautioned expansion of the award programme for China to recognise the deepening of the domestic cash management and trade finance industry at a more domestic level in this huge and deep country. This development is substantially different from the more “wholesale” part of the industry, dominated by the more international Chinese banks with huge balance sheets. We believe that the transaction banking industry in China currently operates at the following levels:

Best Transaction Banks for Cash, Payments and Trade (providing wholesale funding and services that are able to support large corporates for the more international transactions, and an efficient wholesale mechanism that supports the international needs of smaller local banks)

Best National Transaction Banks for Cash, Payments and Trade (whose focus is on providing a more branch-based, process and service oriented infrastructure mostly for small businesses but on a national level, who may or may not also be players at the international level)

Best Regional Transaction Banks (whose focus is on providing a more service oriented infrastructure but at a regional or local level, who are usually not also players at the international level. The corporate customers of these banks tend to be small businesses and the best of the local transaction banks also provide business process outsourcing infrastructure for even smaller banks.)

The China Transaction Banking Awards are as follows:
-	Best Cash Management Bank, China
-	Best Small Business Cash Management Bank, China
-	Best Trade Finance Bank, China
-	Best Small Business Trade Finance Bank, China
In addition, for Best Small Business Transaction Banks, the client base must be substantially non-State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and classified as Small Businesses which range from $1 million to $1 billion in annual turnover.
-	The Best Counterparty Bank, China
The criteria for the above awards are the same as that for the Counterparty Bank awards mentioned in a previous section above.
-	Best National Cash Management Bank, China
-	Best Regional Cash Management Bank, China
-	Best National Trade Finance Bank, China
-	Best Regional Trade Finance Bank, China
The criteria for any one of these awards are broadly similar and as follows:
i.	The client base must be substantially non-State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and classified as Small Businesses which can range from $1 million to $1billion in annual turnover.
ii.	a survey of medium sized corporations in China on their opinion of the banks that serve them, corroborated by interviews.
iii.	A survey of the smaller financial institutions who are also clients of the banks under consideration
iv.	the size and market share of the transaction business relative to competitors in the marketplace.
v.	The total income from this business as a percentage of the total income of the bank that demonstrates the importance of this business to the overall business of the bank to its customers.
vi.	The regions of China where this bank is represented to demonstrate a national presence.
vii.	An auditable description of its technology infrastructure that is able to support cash, trade, payment and lending business for its corporate clients.
viii.	An audit of its products, the processing efficiencies, cost management and service aspects of the infrastructure, products and services that are communicated to their clients as competitive value propositions.
ix.	the range and unique features of fee-based products and services that are not dependent on credit as the primary relationship and the value they provide to their clients (we do not expect this area to be very developed in China just now).
x.	Case studies (size of deals and complexity) of companies that the bank has assisted in the year under review.
xi.	Key achievements and mandates won by the bank in the year under review.

9.	Transaction Banker of the Year
	As we grow our coverage to include the Middle East and Africa, we track the development of individuals who are making a difference to each of these different markets.
	-	Transaction Banker of the Year, Asia Pacific
	-	Transaction Banker of the Year, Middle East
	-	Transaction Banker of the Year, Africa
	The industry is made of a long list of individuals who demonstrate considerable skill and perseverance. As such, making the choice of one individual for this personal awards is very difficult indeed. The overall purpose of this award is to set high standards in personal conduct and professional standards. The award is given to individuals who stand out heads and shoulders amongst their peers based on the following criteria
	-	A distinguished career in the financial services industry in general that should span a sufficient amount of time to demonstrate the acquisition of sufficient experience and expertise in the industry and the ability to build or run a sustainable and profitable business. This can be in a bank or non-bank, as many new players are emerging to make a difference in the industry.
	-	Record of having led successful institutions, supported by robust performance of the businesses he or she has or is managing, that is already well regarded by peers in the industry. This can be evaluated by the value of franchise, its performance track record and its leadership position in the marketplace. Small institutions will qualify as much as large institutions if they are known for their innovation and tactical advantages in the marketplace.
	-	Vision, verve and fortitude. We look for specific and inspiring stories of achievements during periods of transformation or difficulty, and the long term outcome of the decisions the candidate made in those times. The candidates work should have a significant impact on the institutions he has worked in.
	-	An impact that stands over and above those being achieved by his or her peers across the region, in a manner that can stand as a benchmark to the rest of the industry. Here we look at the sum total of his or her career achievements, and come to conclusion that it stands well above that of their peers, who are also high achievers themselves. This criteria brings into focus leaders who may be from banks but also from non-bank players that are pushing the frontiers of the industry to new levels, either in expansion of the institution itself, or new products or customers that are made possible because of innovation, or new values that shaped the industry as a whole

If you are a domestic or international bank in any Asian or Middle East country, please contact us for a survey form to be completed as submission for this award.

Related Events




Important Links
	Transaction Banking Working Group
	Award Winners 2016
	Photo Gallery 2014