Russian bank tops European finance brand ratings

Russian state-run lender Sber (formerly Sberbank) has won the title of strongest brand among European financial institutions, according to the latest issue of the annual Brand Finance Europe 500 rating.

The London-based consultancy Brand Finance puts 5,000 of the biggest names to the test, and publishes over 100 reports, ranking firms across all sectors and countries. The world’s top 500 most valuable and strongest European brands are featured in the annual Europe 500 2023 ranking.

The strength of brands is based on marketing investment, stakeholder equity, and business performance, and shows how effectively a company invests, develops brand awareness, takes care of its reputation and establishes customer loyalty, and how successfully it operates its business.

Outpaced by HSBC, Santander and Barclays, Sber was also ranked the fourth most-valuable bank in Europe. In addition, the Russian banking giant entered the top 40 of the Brand Value Ranking, having been placed 37th.

Moreover, Sber was named as the seventh strongest European brand, with a Brand Strength Index score of 88.2/100, ahead of Michelin, Lamborghini and Rolex.

“The Brand Finance report shows that despite the difficult conditions in foreign markets, the Russian bank demonstrates strong financial results, keeps developing innovative products and world-class services, maintains the trust of more than 110 million private and corporate clients, remaining among the top most valuable and powerful European brands,” Sber's press office said in a statement.

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