It's never good when the best assessment of a given year is, “It could be worse.”
Rising protectionism, slowing economic growth, and increased uncertainty have fueled a challenging business environment over the past 12 months, particularly for banks around the world. If so, the most efficient banks stand out. Winners of the first round of the Best Bank Awards 2026, which includes regional and national categories, have demonstrated the high level of skills and expertise required to deliver superior performance to their clients. (The winners of the second round—honored around the world—will be featured in the October issue.)
When the Trump administration's Liberation Day imposed a 10% tariff on almost all countries last year, it upended the global trade system that had been in place since the end of World War II. Such an economic shock would have had a greater impact if the US had not imposed a 90-day delay in imposing new duties. That gave businesses enough time to load orders from their suppliers and reorganize their supply chains to minimize the effects.
Although new tax rates were the highest since the 1930s, the authors of the World Bank's Global Economic Prospects, published in January, estimated the effective rate had increased by about 17% at the end of last year, “well below the mid-April peak of 28%” due to Washington's negotiations for more bilateral trade agreements.
Countries are doing their best to mitigate the effects without triggering a full-blown trade war, but this has come at a cost. The International Monetary Fund expects global GDP growth in 2025, from 3.3% in 2024 to 3.2%. As the benefits of front-loading end in the latter half of the year, weak data suggests that growth will continue to slow to 3.1% in 2026.
Last year also marked the high point of a rapid, five-year global recovery from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. World Bank authors noted that per capita income is above pre-pandemic levels in 90% of advanced economies. However, more than a quarter of emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs) have not recovered their 2019 levels.
Even in advanced economies, growth remained uneven. According to World Bank data, US GDP grew by 2.2% last year, boosted by significant investments in AI-related technologies and data centers. The euro area recorded GDP growth of 1.4%, boosted by front-loaded exports and stronger-than-expected domestic demand.
Japan, on the other hand, enjoyed an increase in spending and capital spending and benefited from a frontloading of exports, which combined to deliver an estimated 1.3% improvement in GDP. Despite fiscal stimulus and consumer support, China saw its GDP contract to 4.9% due to slowing investment growth, particularly in the real estate sector.
Real GDP growth came from EMDEs, which delivered a growth rate of 4.2%, driven by exports and a strong services sector. The demand for semiconductors has contributed significantly to the growth of EMDE in the Asia-Pacific region.
Major changes in world risk in 2026—in particular, the oil price shock from the Iran war—have placed the world's energy and petrochemical sectors, as well as the world economy, at an unprecedented level. Businesses will need to hope for the best while preparing for the worst. – Rob Daly
How to do it
With input from industry analysts, corporate executives, and technology experts, Global Finance editors select the winners of the World's Best Bank awards using input and independent research, based on objective and subjective factors. You don't have to enter to win, but items brought in to enter can increase your chances of winning. Entrants may provide information that is not publicly available.
Judgments are based on performance from January 1 to December 31, 2025. We then use an algorithm to narrow down the list of contenders and arrive at a numerical result, with 100 representing perfection. The algorithm combines criteria ranked in relative importance, including knowledge of local conditions and customers, financial strength and security, strategic relationships, capital investment, and innovation of products and services.
Once we narrowed down the field, our final criteria included global scope, employee size, customer service, risk management, product and service breadth, execution capabilities, and smart use of technology. In terms of equity, our bias is towards a local provider rather than a global institution. We also tend to favor privately owned banks over government institutions. The winners are those banks that best serve the special needs of companies as they engage in global business. The winners are not always the biggest but the best: those with the qualities that companies should look for when choosing a supplier.
Meet the winners
The post The World's Best Banks 2026: Preparing for the New Standard appeared first on World Finance magazine.
