Challenger banks creep into the worldwide ranks, but it might not be time to celebrate just yet
Challengers are making their presence felt in the banking world, with two well-known names making their way into a worldwide ranking for the first time this year.
According to The Banker's Top 1,000 Banks rankings for 2016, which was published today and ranks institutes by their tier one capital, Metro has placed 969th, while Sainsbury's Bank ranked at 803th.
"As much as they are expanding their franchise and growing, it's quite likely [we'll see more on the list in 2017]," Brian Caplen, editor of The Banker, told Morning Wire "They're still very small, individually and collectively, so, as much as it's nice to see them there, it also makes the point that banking is still a game for the big banks."
He added: "It's a very long journey for them and it's difficult to see that any one of them will ever come close to challenging a Lloyds, or a Barclays, or a NatWest."
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The report was less than glowing for the UK banking sector in general, as it showed that total profits dropped by 22 per cent.
Only HSBC managed to bag itself a spot in the top ten, coming in at number nine and a far cry from the second place slot it held in 2006.
Meanwhile, while UK banks were responsible for 10 per cent of profits worldwide when The Banker carried out its research in 2006, they now account for just 2.6 per cent.