WORLD'S BEST SUB-CUSTODIANS, THE

Global Finance,  Jul/Aug 2005  

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www.hsbc.com.in

ISRAEL

Bank Hapoalim

Bank Hapoalim, Israel's largest bank, is the country's leading sub-custodian, with a 30% market share overall and a 40% share with respect to the activity of foreign investors. Its brokerage subsidiary is the leading trader on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The bank's London-based Poalim Asset Management (UK), established in 2001, offers mutual funds, alternative investments and structured investment products to high-net-worth clients worldwide. Bank Hapoalim's first-quarter 2005 earnings rose 80.5% from the same period a year earlier. The gain reflected the sale of its shares in New York-based private bank, Signature Bank, in March 2005.

www.bankhapoalim.co.il

ITALY

Bariea Intesa

Banca Intesa, Italy's largest bank, with assets of euro275 billion at the end of 2004, is the country's leading provider of securities services. The bank offers custody, clearing and settlement services for foreign investors accessing the Italian securities markets. It asset-management subsidiary, which is being merged with that of Crédit Agricole, is one of the largest such operations in Italy. Banca Intesa has more than 3,000 branches in Italy and is on a buying spree in Central and Eastern Europe. In February 2005 it launched a tender for ABS Banka in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In March it acquired Delta Banka, Serbia's second-largest bank. In April it gained control of KMB Bank in Russia.

www.bancaintesa.it

JAPAN

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking, Japan's third-largest bank, is the country's leading provider of custody services. The bank recently launched a system to provide information on corporate actions through its website. It also has established a support desk for trading in Japanese government bonds, as well as an information and advice center for proxy voting. Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management, founded in December 2002, has more than $84 billion of assets under management. The bank posted a $2.2 billion loss for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2005, as it accelerated the process of disposing of its bad debts.

www.smbc.co.jp

MALAYSIA

HSBC Bank Malaysia

HSBC Bank Malaysia has had a presence in the country for more than 120 years. It is the largest custodian for foreign investors in the Malaysian market, where it has offered custody and clearing services for more than 30 years. The bank has 4,300 employees, an increase of 900 from a year ago. It operates 36 branches as well as a call center that serves the entire HSBC group. After Hong Kong, Malaysia is HSBC's second-biggest business in Asia. The bank is eager to take advantage of financial liberalization in Malaysia, which will be fully open to foreign bank competition in 2008 in line with World Trade Organization rules.

www.hsbc.com.my

MEXICO

Banamex

Banamex, owned by Citigroup since 2001, is the top provider of custody services for foreign investors in the Mexican market, with a market share of approximately 88%. The bank is the largest in Mexico, with 1,400 branches. It offers a full range of financial services, including an online securities brokerage, known as AcciTrade. Banamex introduced an online negotiation platform for securities lending in February 2005. The system enables institutional investors and fund managers to concentrate their debt and equity securities-lending transactions and related services in a single site.