Hellenic Bank named best bank in Cyprus by international magazine

Global Finance Magazine recently released its annual list of the best banks in Western Europe for 2023, with Hellenic Bank taking the top spot in Cyprus.

According to an announcement by the bank, the magazine praised this year’s winning banks for their ability to respond to the needs of their customers in a challenging environment, achieving strong financial results and laying the groundwork for future success.

In addition, the magazine noted that the winning banks had managed their assets and liabilities exceptionally well, even in a rapidly changing interest rate environment.

The announcement also recalled that Hellenic Bank has received this distinction before, saying that this confirms its strong position in the market despite the pressure on banking institutions worldwide.

“The bank’s consistent focus on meeting the needs of its clients has contributed to its success, and it is committed to sustainable growth and maintaining strong performance,” the bank stated.

Moreover, the bank’s announcement noted that in March 2023, Hellenic Bank successfully issued a new €200 million Tier 2 Subordinated bond as part of the EMTN Programme.

The total bid book was oversubscribed by almost 4.5 times, with investors showing confidence in the bank and confirming the positive valuation of the capital markets in terms of the bank’s creditworthiness.

Furthermore, the issuance of the bond has further strengthened Hellenic Bank’s capital structure and is expected to increase the group’s Capital Adequacy Ratio from 20.6 per cent on December 31, 2022, to an adjusted ratio of 24.1 per cent.

The announcement went on to say that in addition to the successful issuance of the bond, Hellenic Bank recently completed Project Starlight, which involved the sale of most of the bank’s NPL portfolio and the simultaneous sale of APS Debt Servicing Cyprus Ltd.

“This has significantly de-risked the bank’s balance sheet, reducing its leverage ratio, excluding leveraged assets covered by the Asset Protection Programme (APR), to approximately 3.6 per cent,” the bank explained.

“With a strong capital adequacy ratio and excess liquidity, Hellenic Bank is well-positioned to support its retail and business customers during a period of increased uncertainty in global markets,” the announcement added.

Moreover, the bank said that its transformation journey continues with decisive steps towards digitisation, store network reorganisation, process simplification, cost management, and further strengthening of digital channels.

Finally, the bank stated that it remains committed to an approach focused on environmental, social, and corporate governance and is working towards transforming itself into a customer-centric organisation.