Numerous awards for Commerzbank’s expertise

Simply excellent quality: our comprehensive product and service portfolio is regularly awarded prizes by both independent customer surveys and expert juries. Convince yourself and benefit from our award-winning range of services. You will find an overview of some awards and prizes here.

2024

The Banker names Commerzbank Bank of the Year in Germany for the seventh consecutive year

Commerzbank has been awarded “Bank of the Year in Germany” for the seventh year in a row by The Banker magazine. The prestigious award recognises outstanding performance from across the financial sector, and such a consistent run of success is testament to the bank’s dedication to its clients.

The Banker noted that Commerzbank’s Strategy 2024 has bolstered financial performance, with the bank reporting the best quarterly net results in more than a decade. With revenues increasing to €2.7bn in the first quarter of 2024, Commerzbank’s goal now is to increase net profits to more than €3bn by 2027.

Commerzbank’s CEO Bettina Orlopp commented, “Commerzbank is the bank of the German Mittelstand — and has been for more than 150 years. Founded in Hamburg, it expanded with many of its customers in Europe and now is supporting them throughout the world. Our recent financial results emphasise that our strategy is paying off.”

Euromoney names Commerzbank as Germany’s best FX bank and leading FX bank for frontier markets

Commerzbank was recognised as the best FX bank for Germany and for the second consecutive year leading FX bank for frontier markets at this year’s 2024 Euromoney Foreign Exchange Awards. This award has recognised the best performers across the wholesale FX market for over 44 years, with the judging panel of global experts looking for examples of excellence and innovation in the market.

The two awards underline Commerzbank’s strength in both German and international foreign exchange trading. Internationally, this is clearly demonstrated by the Frontier Markets Award. This award shows the excellent offer of currency transactions in fast-growing emerging markets. Corporate clients as well as institutional investors such as banks, insurance companies and fund companies benefit from an excellent product offering in FX spot, FX swaps, FX forwards and FX options. Commerzbank is one of the leading banks in continental Europe in electronic FX trading. "Clients appreciate the individual advice on currency trading and our intuitive-to-use FX Live Trader trading platform. In addition, we have a strong presence on the relevant multi-bank trading platforms," adds Hinrich Paul, Global Head of Financial Markets.

"By focusing on an advisory -based approach around more complex FX product solutions in combination with digital trading platforms, we’ve successfully confirmed our leading position in FX trading and hedging currency risks for our clients in Germany. In the future, we will continue to innovate and support technological advances that benefit our clients and fit their needs,” adds Simone Heeg, Head of Financial Markets Corporate Sales.

This double award win is the result of close cooperation between the retail and sales teams, and colleagues from the e-commerce cluster.

Global Finance recognises Commerzbank as Germany’s best bank for the second consecutive year

Commerzbank is delighted to be named “Best Bank in Germany” by leading industry publication Global Finance.

The award takes into account both quantitative and qualitative criteria as well as perspectives from industry analysts and corporate executives. It is the second straight year that Commerzbank has been given this accolade, a testament to the bank’s commitment to providing top-quality client services and continued strong performance.

Global Finance heralded Commerzbank’s “turnaround story,” commenting on the bank’s best results in 15 years.

“Its Strategy 2024 plan met, and sometimes exceeded, significant milestones ahead of schedule,” said the publication. “More ambitious goals have been added for its new Strategy 2027, such as expanding its revenue base to be less dependent on net interest income.”

Read more in Global Finance.

Commerzbank named Germany’s Best Bank for SMEs by Euromoney

Industry publication Euromoney has named Commerzbank 2024’s Best German Bank for SMEs.

The award recognises banks’ improvements in their SME products, services, deals and overall strategy, market share, loans and financial performance.

Euromoney praised Commerzbank for its remarkable bounce back in profits and share prices over the past four years, highlighting its consistent ability to innovate, drive growth and deliver positive client outcomes.

Global Finance recognises Commerzbank as Germany’s Best Sub-Custodian Bank for the seventh time

Commerzbank is delighted to be named “Best Sub-Custodian Bank in Germany” by leading industry publication Global Finance.

The award is based on extensive market research into criteria such as customer relations, quality of services, post-settlement operations, business continuity plans and knowledge of local regulations and practices. Picking up this accolade for the sixth time is a reflection of the bank’s commitment towards delivering consistently excellent transaction settlement and custody services.

Another top performance! Best Mittelstandsbank once again, top rank in the lending business, and leading in digitalisation – according to FINANCE’s “Bank Survey 2024”

This year, Commerzbank has once again been named Best Mittelstandsbank in FINANCE Magazine’s “Bank Survey 2024”. The Bank remains “unchallenged at the top in its commitment to mid-market companies: 60 percent of respondents consider Commerzbank to be very firmly rooted in this crucial economic segment. This is the highest percentage of votes for any financial institution across all categories in the survey.”

Commerzbank also continues to be “the leading force” in the traditional lending business. And it doesn’t end there: As in the previous year, the Bank ranks No. 1 in the Corporate Banking Digitalisation category.

(FINANCE magazine, July/August 2024 issue)

International Finance Corporation recognises Commerzbank as a leading trade finance provider

Commerzbank is delighted to receive an honourable mention by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in its “Outstanding GTFP Confirming Bank” award category.

The award, which celebrates and recognises financial institutions with high-quality trade finance services, was presented at the IFC Global Trade Partners Meeting held in Barcelona in May.

The award is a reflection of Commerzbank’s commitment towards providing outstanding trade finance services and supporting our clients, especially within today’s changing global economic environment.

Commerzbank retains status as German leader in sustainable finance according to Global Finance

Commerzbank has been awarded the 2024 “Best Bank for Sustainable Finance in Germany” for the third consecutive year by Global Finance.

The 2024 Sustainable Finance Awards analyse ESG data collected by entries against evaluation criteria including governance policies and environmentally and socially sustainable financing.

Picking up this accolade three times in a row is a reflection of the bank’s commitment towards sustainability within its operations, client services and portfolio.

Read more in Global Finance.

Global Finance recognises Commerzbank as Germany’s top trade finance provider for the fifth time in a row

Commerzbank is delighted to have been named 2024’s Best Trade Finance Provider in Germany by industry publication Global Finance.

Global Finance’s editorial review board received input from industry analysts, corporate executives and sector experts, with winners being chosen based on excellence across various categories including transaction volume, global coverage, customer service, competitive pricing and innovative technologies.

“We are extremely happy to have yet again been recognised as experts in the trade finance sector in Germany, where we handle around one-third of the country’s international trade,” commented Jörg Motel, Head of Trade Finance. “Winning such prestigious industry awards continues to motivate us to maintain our consistent standards of excellence in providing innovative and effective client services.”

2023

Commerzbank is Global Capital’s Best Arranger of Mid-cap Loans for tenth year

Industry publication Global Capital has named Commerzbank its Best Arranger of Mid-cap Loans for the tenth consecutive year. In its 21st Syndicated Loan, Leveraged Finance and Private Debt Awards, Global Capital honoured Commerzbank with this distinction.

The Global Capital awards are regarded as unique in the market for gathering feedback through a poll of market participants across the loan, leveraged finance and private debt sectors. These awards therefore reflect the latest opinions of the market.

Commerzbank ranked as the second-best arranger of German, Swiss and Austrian loans, as well as second-best arranger of Schuldscheine. The bank was also involved in several award-winning deals as a partner bank.

Read more in Global Capital.

Acquisition International recognises Commerzbank’s M&A advisory achievements for 2023

Commerzbank is thrilled to have been awarded the best M&A Mid-Market Advisory for Germany by Acquisition International. Winning this prestigious award for the first time spotlights Commerzbank’s innovative and industry-leading M&A offering.

In the dealmaking landscape, the last few years have been defined by headwinds in the form of high inflation, high interest rates and global political turmoil. Throughout this period, and as the market has begun to stabilise, Commerzbank has acted as a resilient partner and advisor to its clients, helping to facilitate significant deals in 2023.

Leaning on years of extensive experience in financial markets, the Acquisition International adjudication team praised Commerzbank’s innovation, performance and achievements, highlighting its consistent ability to drive growth and deliver positive client outcomes.

Read more in Acquisition International.

Commerzbank awarded ‘Bank of the Year in Germany’ at The Banker Awards for 2023 for the sixth consecutive year

The publication is one of the world’s leading monthly journals for the banking industry and we are proud to have received this highly coveted award for the sixth year in a row. This win is a testament to our continued commitment to providing excellent and innovative services.

“Commerzbank’s successful restructuring programme won it the title of Bank of the Year 2023 for Germany,” said Joy Macknight, editor of The Banker. “The bank returned to Germany’s benchmark DAX index in February 2023, which marked the resumption of dividend payments and its first share buyback programme for many years. Impressively, net profits increased to €1.43bn in 2022, the bank’s best result for more than a decade.”

Commerzbank retains status as Greenwich Share Leader in Germany

Commerzbank succeeded in retaining its title as a Greenwich Share Leader in 2023. With 71 per cent market penetration in Germany, the Bank once again ranked first in Coalition Greenwich's 2023 European Large Corporate Trade Finance Study.

Between April and September 2023, Coalition Greenwich conducted 444 interviews with corporates across Western Europe with annual revenues of €500 million or more. Respondents were interviewed primarily about product demand, quality of coverage and capabilities specific to trade finance. Market penetration refers to the proportion of companies interviewed that consider a particular bank to be an important trade finance provider.

Coalition Greenwich – a division of CRISIL, an S&P Global company – is a leading global provider of strategic benchmarking, analytics and insights to the financial services industry.

Euromoney names Commerzbank Africa's top Euro cash management provider

Commerzbank is the leading provider of Euro-denominated cash management services in Africa, according to Euromoney’s latest industry survey.

In the 2023 edition of Euromoney’s Cash Management Financial Institutions Survey, Commerzbank was recognised as the number one provider in the region for Euro, having excelled across eight different ranking criteria. Commerzbank was commended for our outstanding bank initiatives, products, range of transactions, projects, policies and data targets. The respondents from across the cash management sector commended our innovation, creativity and market impact.

This highly regarded award is based on the responses of 800 market players from across the sector. This win is testament to our continual commitment to providing excellent and innovative services to our clients across Africa.

Global Finance honours Commerzbank as "Best Bank in Germany"

Commerzbank is Germany's best bank! So says Global Finance, the leading international financial magazine, in its 30th annual awards for the world's best banks. This exercise, which takes into consideration both quantitative and qualitative criteria, is based on ratings and assessments from corporate executives, banks, analysts, and other finance experts.

“This year's Best Bank Awards recognise the financial institutions that offer the broadest range of services as well as the reliability required for long-term financial relationships,” commented Joseph D. Giarraputo, the magazine’s founder and editorial director. After three decades, the Global Finance awards have become a respected standard of excellence for the global financial community.

Global Finance names Commerzbank a leader in Sustainable Finance in Germany for second time

At a ceremony in London on 28 June, Commerzbank was presented with an award for leadership in Sustainable Finance in Germany by Global Finance.

This industry-leading awards programme recognises global, regional and local leadership in sustainable finance and celebrates financial institutions that stand out for their efforts to ensure adequate financing for the full range of initiatives that will ultimately be needed. Criteria include governance policies and goals as well as measurable achievements in environmental and social sustainability financing.

This is the second year running Commerzbank has won this award, following the inaugural country awards last year. This award is testament to Commerzbank’s commitment to sustainability across its operations and lending portfolio.

Best Trade Finance Provider in Germany by Global Finance

Commerzbank has been awarded Best Trade Finance Provider in Germany for the fourth consecutive year, as Global Finance announced the results of its annual industry-wide survey.

The Trade Finance & Supply Chain Finance Awards 2023, which are based on data gathered from banks, analysts, corporates and other industry players, were presented at the BAFT Europe Bank to Bank Forum in London on 25th January.

Commenting on the news, Head of Trade Finance Jörg Motel said: “We’re delighted to have been recognised with this award once again. Commerzbank’s consistent performance in Global Finance’s industry benchmarking process demonstrates our ongoing commitment to our clients, and we’re proud to be the partner of choice for German exporters.”

Euromoney names Commerzbank Market Leader - Technology

Commerzbank is Western Europe’s market leader in the use of technology in trade finance, according to Euromoney’s latest annual survey.

In the 2023 edition of Euromoney’s Trade Finance survey, which assesses responses from thousands of trade finance users to rank providers across a range of categories and geographies, Commerzbank placed first in the regional ‘Market Leader – Technology’ category. “This excellent result confirms that our efforts in the digital transformation journey of trade finance are being recognised by both clients and the wider industry,” commented Jörg Motel, Commerzbank’s Head of Trade Finance.

The survey – one of the most comprehensive in this space – recognises the leading providers of trade finance products and services worldwide, and is considered a key benchmark for the industry.

GlobalCapital Syndicated Loan Awards: An award winning strategy

A great success: Commerzbank received three awards this year at the GlobalCapital Awards 2022. The awards won were in the following categories:

Best Arranger of Mid Cap Loans
Best Arranger of German, Swiss and Austrian Loans
Best Arranger of International Schuldscheine

In a year that was characterised by many uncertainties, a strong and resilient partnership with our customers is particularly important. This is underscored by our positioning role in our core markets. We have now held the top position in financing Mid-cap companies for the ninth consecutive year. "Our strong customer orientation defines our strategy, which is why we are particularly pleased to receive these recognitions in our core markets and product areas," affirmed Reinhard Haas, Global Head - Syndicated Finance.

Commerzbank again named Germany's Best Trade Finance Provider by Global Finance

Commerzbank has been awarded Best Trade Finance Provider in Germany for the fourth consecutive year, as Global Finance announced the results of its annual industry-wide survey.

Euromoney names Commerzbank Western Europe's top trade finance bank for use of technology

Commerzbank is Western Europe’s market leader in the use of technology in trade finance, according to Euromoney’s latest annual survey.

The survey – one of the most comprehensive in this space – recognises the leading providers of trade finance products and services worldwide, and is considered a key benchmark for the industry.

Commerzbank has been awarded 'Best Bank in Germany' for the fifth consecutive year

Commerzbank has been awarded ‘Best Bank in Germany’ for the fifth consecutive year by The Banker magazine. The publication is one of the world’s leading monthly journals for the banking industry. A rigorous and highly analytical process is required to reach each Bank of the Year decision. The publication aims for the awards to highlight industry wide excellence within the global banking community.

The Banker commented: “Two major trends could be gleaned from the submissions. First, digital transformation is accelerating in every region and continent, with all banks refining their plans. The second trend is the embedding of sustainability in financial services.”

These trends are part of Commerzbank’s Strategy 2024 and the publication highlighted our numerous digitalisation collaborations as well as our targets for reducing the Bank’s Co2 balance sheet for its entire credit and investment portfolio to net zero by 2050.

Global Finance: Commerzbank again 'Germany's Best Trade Finance Provider'

For the third consecutive year, the editors of "Global Finance" named Commerzbank Germany's best provider of trade finance services by evaluating industry analysts and interviewing corporate executives and technology experts. Global Finance uses a proprietary algorithm that weights criteria such as knowledge of local conditions and customer needs, financial strength and safety, strategic relationships and governance, competitive pricing, capital investment and innovation in products and services according to relative importance. Each entity is rated on each separate criterion. The result: Commerzbank best meets the specific needs of companies in cross-border trade.

Global Finance: for the fifth time Best Sub-Custodian Bank in Germany

2022, the prestigious trade journal Global Finance awarded the best sub-custodian banks worldwide for the 20th time - and for the fifth time, Commerzbank took first place in Germany. The associated recognition is in particular for its great commitment to managing the increased diversity and complexity of financial instruments in order to provide world-class custody services. With its profound market knowledge, Commerzbank is the anchor of the investment value chain. In addition to providing a broad range of comprehensive transaction settlement and custody services, it provides offerings that implement operational efficiencies and apply technological resources. Furthermore, it serves as a trusted advocate, helping clients navigate the ever-changing regulatory landscape.

Global Finance: Sustainable Finance Award - Country Award Germany

Global Finance has announced its selections for the second annual Sustainable Finance Awards for 2022 (Global Finance, July/August edition 2022). This awards programme recognises global, regional and local leadership in Sustainable Finance – funding for initiatives designed to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change and help build a more sustainable future for humanity.

Honourees have been chosen in areas such as overall sustainability financing, excellence in bond issues, community support, resource management, transparency & reporting, infrastructure and emerging-markets sustainability funding. This awards programme focuses on activities from January 2021 to December 2021. Joseph Giarraputo, Global Finance publisher and editorial director: “Global Finance’s Sustainable Finance awards recognise the financial institutions that stand out for their efforts to ensure adequate financing for the full range of initiatives that will ultimately be needed, and their creativity in addressing these long-range issues.”

Back at the top: Commerzbank is No. 1 in FINANCE's bank survey

Every year, FINANCE magazine conducts a survey to determine the best bank for corporate clients. This year, the 182 participating CFOs, heads of finance and treasurers were asked to assess their banking relationship against the backdrop of the Ukraine war.

Despite tough restructuring measures, Commerzbank regained its position at the top of the corporate client banks after just one year, taking first place in the overall ranking of Germany’s leading corporate client banks.

What is more, it also came first in the individual categories of “Mittelstand” sector, principal banks, cash management, lending, digitalisation in corporate banking, trade and export financing (FINANCE, July/August 2022 issue).

Euromoney FX Survey Award: One of the world's largest providers of FX-business

The Euromoney Foreign Exchange Survey is one of the most comprehensive annual studies available on the foreign exchange markets. The Euromoney FX Survey 2022 was Euromoney's 44nd annual survey of liquidity consumption in the global foreign exchange markets. In terms of total volume in the FX market, Commerzbank is ranked eighth as one of the world’s largest providers. One of the main drivers are FX-Swaps. Commerzbank improved from 23th place in 2021 to 3rd place in 2022 in the category Market Share - (inc. Short-Dated). Overall the market share of Commerzbank in FX-swaps is 7.53% according to the survey.

The improved market share is a result of the successful combination of our IT expertise with the specifics of trading OTC products aiming to digitize FX Swaps & Forwards. Clients benefit from a wide range of auto-executable FX products at competitive prices due to the enhanced internalization of flow.

International M&A Awards

We are proud to announce that we have been awarded the Cross Border Deal of the Year ($100MM - $1B) at the 13 th Annual International M&A Awards. The award was published by the M&A Advisor on the sale of Bayer’s drug product site and operations to WuXi Biologic, where our Mergers & Acquisitions team acted as exclusive M&A advisor to Bayer. “This award rewards not only our in-depth knowledge of the international pharma sector, but also our execellent ability to advise large corporates on divesting non-core assets-”, said Jens Krane, Head of Mergers & Acquisitions.

Commerzbank - the EBRD's top confirming bank of the 18th consecutive year

In May 2022, Commerzbank was named the Most Active Confirming Bank for 2021 as part of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) annual Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) awards. The EBRD Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) honoured its most successful partner banks 2021 in the context of the Bank’s 2022 Annual Meeting in Morocco.

With a record annual volume of more than €3.2 billion in 2021, the TFP supported international trade via almost 2,000 transactions. The TFP makes it easier for local companies to import equipment, raw materials and other goods necessary for their business by supporting local banks in their provision of trade finance.

The TFP Awards honour the most active issuing and confirming banks during the past year in delivering EBRD financing across its countries of operations. Launched in 1999, the TFP aims to promote foreign trade to, from and between the countries in which the EBRD invests. Through the programme, the EBRD provides guarantees to international confirming banks and short-term loans to selected banks and factoring companies for on-lending to local exporters, importers and distributors.

FStech awards: Commerzbank wins the award "Blockchain Project of the Year"

Blockchain has been one of the most significant emerging technologies in recent years, with use cases now being explored across the financial services sector. This FStech award for Blockchain Project of the Year looked to recognise an initiative or project that is utilising distributed ledger technology to increase the speed, efficiency, accuracy, security or cost-effectiveness of processes in any area of the financial services industry.

Commerzbank provides a solution which handles trade data in a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) network to provide an irrevocable abstract payment undertaking by the buyer’s bank to the supplier called Marco-Polo-Payment-Commitment. Manual checking of paper documents is replaced by means of a smart contract with automatic matching of electronic trade data. The data is extracted from a trade contract and trade documents, securely exchanged, agreed and matched in the blockchain environment between all relevant parties of the trade transaction.

For this game-changing solution, which helps to mitigate the potential issues for all parties involved in trade settlement and “increases the speed and transparency of trade finance and shows how blockchain can really support suppliers”, the judges chose to award Commerzbank Blockchain Project of the Year. They commended Commerzbank for a solution which requires no prior knowledge of blockchain technology and democratises its adoption, as all that is needed for corporates to access the network is an internet browser.

“This award is a great confirmation for our pioneering work in using blockchain technology for trade finance”, confirms Nikolaus Giesbert, Divisional Board Member Transaction Banking.

2021

For the 8th time: Commerzbank is Best Arranger Mid Cap Loans

For 2021, Commerzbank has again been awarded the title of "Best Arranger of Mid Cap Loans" at the GlobalCapital Awards. The fact that we have now received this award for the 8th time in a row is once again proof that our footprint is recognised and appreciated, particularly in the mid-market, both in Germany and in the European context. In 2021, we also provided our mid cap clients with advice and support on the topic of ESG compliance, which was well received and underlines our claim to make an active contribution in this area as well. Currently, many of our clients have to deal with the geopolitical situation in Europe and the consequences for energy supply and the maintenance of supply chains. Our advice and active support as the corporate financier will therefore continue to be in high demand from our clients," confirmed Reinhard Haas, Global Head - Syndicated Finance.

Commerzbank wins "Best Bank in Germany" from The Banker magazine

Commerzbank has been awarded ‘Best Bank in Germany’ for the fourth year in a row by The Banker magazine. The publication is one of the world’s leading monthly journals for the banking industry.

Given travel and social distancing constraints imposed this year by pandemic, the awards were announced virtually with Commerzbank receiving the coveted ‘Best Bank in Germany’ award for the fourth year in a row. This year, the judges have continued to focus on resilience and service to customers in the face of the global pandemic but with emphasis on digital transformation and sustainable growth. The winning banks this year have truly demonstrated a level of stability that is testament to their organisational strength.

The Banker commented “In these difficult circumstances, Commerzbank performed admirably to offer support to the wider economy, as well as its customers and staff. Notably, the lender created a dedicated Mittelstand loan facility of €700m to support corporates with pandemic-linked funding requirements.”

A rigorous and highly analytical process is required to reach each Bank of the Year decision. The publication aims for the awards to highlight industry wide excellence within the global banking community.

CMD Portal awards Commerzbank the "Best German CP Dealer"

The Best German Commercial Paper (CP) Dealer Award is given to institutions, which are active in the international money and capital markets, with international ECP (Euro Commercial Paper) and ECD. It recognises the ability to offer the best comprehensive service for all types of issuers and investors.

Commerzbank is one of the leading banks in Germany. Headquartered in Frankfurt, it has a presence in nearly 50 countries worldwide and provides more than one third of Germany's trade finance. The bank is known renowned for its strong relationships with corporate clients.

2020 was a challenging year for all sectors of the money and capital markets. However, Commerzbank's ECP desk in Frankfurt delivered strong results, despite the market conditions. The bank provided liquidity to the market by bringing together ECP issuers and investors. In addition, Commerzbank continued to expand its international ECP business by winning a number of new mandates and selling them to international capital market investors.

Further information on CMD Portal

Global Finance - Best Bank for Export Finance and Best Trade Finance Provider in Germany

Specialist publication, Global Finance, has again recognised Commerzbank as the world’s best export finance bank and Germany’s best trade finance provider for 2021; the latest in a series of consecutive award wins for these categories. The awards commend Commerzbank’s high-quality client service and longstanding commitment to innovation and excellence within the trade finance space.

Upon news of the award wins, Stephan Müller, Divisional Board Member Corporate Clients – Transaction Banking at Commerzbank, said, “We are delighted to have been recognised by Global Finance in the area of trade finance. Our mission has always been to seek ways to consistently improve and enhance client service, and we see digitalisation as a key facilitator in this regard. New technologies such as blockchain/DLT, Optical Character Recognition and Artificial Intelligence are all gaining greater impetus, particularly in the new remote-working environment the pandemic has necessitated, and Commerzbank remains committed to harnessing the myriad benefits to help our clients overcome challenges and fulfil their business objectives.”

“The trade finance sector was hit particularly hard by the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, and providers were forced to respond and adapt to the unforeseen challenges it presented,” said Joseph D. Giarraputo, publisher and editorial director of Global Finance. “The winners of our annual Trade Finance awards are institutions that responded to the unprecedented landscape of 2020 with new technologies and improved capabilities that helped their clients succeed.”