January 19, 2021 | Stamford, CT — Although liquidity disruptions caused by the COVID-19 crisis were thankfully short-lived for most large U.S. companies, corporate executives and treasury officials have not forgotten which banks stepped up to help in Spring 2020, and which didn’t.
About 80% of the companies participating in the 2020 Greenwich Associates U.S. Large Corporate Banking Study rate their banks’ performance during the crisis as “excellent” or “above average.” Those results stand in stark contrast to assessments by midsize companies and small businesses, many of whom felt abandoned by banks in the early stages of the pandemic.
When it comes to naming the banks that delivered during the crisis, large U.S. companies put Bank of America, Citi and J.P. Morgan at the top of the list. These banks won the 2020 Greenwich Associates Excellence Award for “Helpfulness During COVID,” a designation earned by banks receiving the most citations from large companies for their high-quality service and support during the pandemic.
2020 Greenwich Share and Quality Leaders
The 2020 Greenwich Share Leaders in U.S. Large Corporate Banking are Bank of America, J.P. Morgan, Wells Fargo, Citi, and U.S. Bank. These five banks amassed the largest market shares in corporate banking among the biggest U.S. companies last year.
Among those Leaders, Bank of America, Citi and J.P. Morgan won the designation of 2020 Greenwich Quality Leaders by receiving quality ratings that topped ratings for other competitors by a statistically significant margin from the 301 large U.S. companies participating in the annual research.
In U.S. Large Corporate Cash Management, the 2020 Greenwich Share Leaders are J.P. Morgan, Bank of America, Citi, Wells Fargo, and HSBC, with Bank of America, J.P Morgan and PNC Bank taking the title of 2020 Greenwich Quality Leaders.
The 2020 Greenwich Share Leaders in U.S. Large Corporate Trade Finance are J.P. Morgan, Citi, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and HSBC, and the 2020 Greenwich Quality Leaders are Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Citi, and J.P. Morgan.
Digital Capabilities: Approaching Escape Velocity
Most of the banks that came through for large companies during the crisis have one thing in common: They had a solid digital platform in place coming into 2020 that allowed them to maintain product and service quality during the pandemic.
Digital technology is becoming the lynchpin of a wholesale banking franchise, especially in areas like cash management, and banks with the best digital platforms are building a powerful competitive advantage. Bank of America and J.P. Morgan earned the 2020 Greenwich Excellence Award for Best Overall Digital Platform in U.S. Large Corporate Cash Management.