China

Small and medium-sized enterprises are the mainstay of the Chinese economy, given they account for about 97% of all firms in the country and play a vital role in providing employment opportunities.

Every bank in China has put corporate social responsibility firmly in its sights, especially over the past few years of pandemic-induced hardships. But the Asiamoney 2022 award for best bank for CSR in the country goes to China Construction Bank for going above and beyond the standard CSR focus.

As the world’s largest bank by assets, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has proven time and again that it is more than capable of navigating any headwinds and challenges that come its way.

As a US bank operating in China, Citi has had to balance difficult political relations between the two countries to run its business, navigating trade tensions, a sparring of words between the presidents of these two superpowers, disputes over US audits of Chinese firms, and the near-halt of lucrative China-into-US IPOs.

HSBC has operated in mainland China since 1865 and is a force to be reckoned with: it is the largest foreign bank in the country, operating in 50 cities, with 150 outlets and over 7,000 employees.

China Merchants Bank was a clear outlier among its domestic banking peers in the mainland in the past year as its 3.0 business model took shape and produced solid results.

Ping An Bank’s transformation over the last five years has given it an undisputed, and long, lead over its peers in digital solutions.

Bank of China has long been at the forefront of the mainland’s environmental, social and governance ambitions, and its pivotal role in driving the national agenda has gained steam in recent years.