The Banker, one of the leading international publications focused on banking and finance, has named Bank of Cyprus (BoC) the island’s Bank of the Year at its 2024 awards.

The award recognises BoC’s strong financial and operational performance, the significant increase in the Bank’s distribution to shareholders year-on-year while expanding its digital offering to customers, through Quickhub and Jinius, and its commitment to sustainability. The evaluation period ran from July 2023 to June 2024,

On naming BoC the Bank of the Year in Cyprus, Silvia Pavoni, The Banker’s Editor in Chief, hailed the lender’s accomplishments. “Bank of Cyprus has spent the past decade transforming its operations, leading to the commendable improvement of its balance sheet and profitability, as well as to new, interesting digital initiatives. Its efforts to create more sustainable products should also be noted,” she said.

Commenting on the award, Panicos Nicolaou, CEO of Bank of Cyprus expressed satisfaction at the accolade. “We are delighted to be named the ‘Bank of the Year in Cyprus’ by The Banker. This award is international recognition of the success of our customer-focused strategy, which includes leading the digital and sustainable transitions in Cyprus, with strong financial and operational performance and sustainable shareholder returns,” he said.

“A ROTE of 22.9 per cent for the first nine months of 2024, a six-fold increase in our shareholder distribution year-on-year, the launch of the B2C marketplace on Jinius, our digital economy platform, and our highly-successful inaugural €300mn green bond are testament to this,” he added.

The Banker’s article on Bank of Cyprus’ award win can be seen here.