Tuesday, August 2, 2016 Stamford, CT USA — Despite tumult in the banking industry across Europe, German middle-market banking has been remarkably stable over the past three years, and all five of the market’s leaders are strongly positioned to win additional business in coming months. 

According to new research from Greenwich Associates, the names and rank order of the top five banking groups to German middle-market companies in 2016 are identical to those of 2013. Nearly 64% of German middle-market companies do business with Deutsche Sparkassen, which lead the market. Commerzbank is second with a market penetration of approximately 50%, followed by Deutsche Bank at 31%, Volksbanken und Raiffeisenbanken at 28%, and UniCredit at 23%. These banking groups are the 2016 Greenwich Share Leaders℠ in German Middle Market Corporate Banking.

“Based on feedback from the middle-market companies participating in Greenwich Associates study, all of these top five banks are positioned to win new business in the months ahead,” says Greenwich Associates Managing Director Dr. Tobias Miarka. 

Middle-market banking relationships in Germany are extraordinarily durable, averaging roughly 25 years in length. These low turnover rates are reflected in the stable market penetration scores of most of the top five banks. 

According to a new Greenwich Report, Global Banks and Pan-European Banks See Benefits in Internationalization, other pan-European and global banks should benefit from their ability to provide expertise in products that support international business. With traditional banking staples like cash management becoming increasingly commoditized, a bank’s ability to provide advice in international markets, transaction banking and other areas is likely to become an even bigger point of differentiation.  Traditional leaders who have already secured long-term relationships and are competitive in catering for the increasing international needs of clients will naturally be in the best position to take advantage of changing client needs.

Greenwich Quality Leaders
The 2016 Greenwich Quality Leaders℠ in German Middle Market Corporate Banking are Bayerische Landesbank, Commerzbank and UniCredit.

For its 2016 study, Greenwich Associates interviewed 616 financial officers at corporations and financial institutions in Germany with sales between €50 and €500 million. Participants were asked to detail their usage of specific products, to name their banking providers and to rate the quality of service delivered by providers in a variety of products and services. Banks with client ratings topping those awarded to competitors by a statistically significant margin were named Greenwich Quality Leaders.