UniCredit has been recognised by Euromoney, the leading global financial publication, in several categories in this years’ prestigious Awards for Excellence which was announced at a gala dinner in London last night. UniCredit won five awards in total, including “Best Bank in Italy”, “Best Bank in Croatia”, “Best Bank for Wealth in Central & Eastern Europe” and “Best Bank for Transaction Services in Central & Eastern Europe”. Further, Jean Pierre Mustier, CEO, was named “Banker of the Year 2017”.

Jean Pierre Mustier, CEO, said: “I want to congratulate and thank all colleagues, for everyone throughout the Group fully contributed to us winning these accolades, and I am dedicating the Banker of the Year recognition to them. I am grateful for the effort the teams have put in during these last 12 months. We shall continue to work tirelessly on driving the transformation of the Group, building on our simple successful pan-European business model and our strong competitive advantages which will make UniCredit the favoured bank wherever we are present”.

Euromoney said about the “Banker of the Year  2017” award: “Jean Pierre Mustier was appointed almost exactly a year ago and is already a long way down the road of transforming UniCredit, an Italian bank in difficulty, into a European bank with a positive future. His achievements include the successful completion of a 13 billion euro rights issue, disposals of non-core and non-performing assets and businesses at the right time and the right price, and a steady determination to stick to a pre-agreed strategy. Perhaps most importantly of all, UniCredit is the story of a management team, led by a pragmatic, determined and grounded chief executive, who has restored a sense of pride and purpose to a once-troubled institution. It seems appropriate to ask: Has any bank chief executive ever achieved so much in his first year in charge?”.

 

Please see below for Euromoney’s motivations for giving UniCredit the other awards.

ITALY'S BEST BANK

"The achievements of the past year go far beyond the sun of capital raised and non-performing exposures cut. A fundamental shift in culture should unleash the latent advantages of UniCredit's banking talents and pan-European strengths".

BEST BANK FOR TRANSACTION SERVICES IN CEE

"UniCredit continues to hold on to the top spot in emerging Europe transaction services, thanks to its strong market presence and a continued push to link up the countries in its network in the region".

BEST BANK FOR WEALTH MANAGEMENT IN CEE

"There are few banks that can advise wealthy clients across the multitude of different countries and cultures in CEE, but UniCredit has made itself the wealth manager of choice in nearly every single one".

CROATIA'S BEST BANK

"Zagrebacka Banka led the way in profitability, improving asset quality and NPL reduction over the past 12 months, while increasing mortgage and SME lending, to consolidate its position as the leading bank in Croatia".

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ABOUT EUROMONEY

For almost 50 years, Euromoney has been the leading publication for covering the growth of international finance. Over the past 12 months its coverage has included interviews with close to 100 bank CEOs, ministers of finance and central bank governors around the world.

Euromoney's Awards for Excellence are the awards that matter to the banks and bankers who matter. They were established in 1992 and were the first of their kind in the global banking industry. This year Euromoney received almost 1,500 submissions from banks in an awards programme that covers 20 global awards, more than 50 regional awards, and best bank awards in close to 100 countries.

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Additional media information:

Victoria Blajeva, tel +359 (0) 2 9264 993, wjlj/ebwjepwbAvojdsfejuhspvq/ch

Beatris Nikolova, tel +359 (0) 2 9232 528, cfbusjt/ojlpmpwbAvojdsfejuhspvq/ch

Ekaterina Ancheva, tel +359 894 518 193 , flbufsjob/bodifwbAvojdsfejuhspvq/ch