HSBC has jumped from third to first place according to the latest edition of annual magazine The Banker. In a survey of the world’s top 1000 banks (Top 1000) carried out by this influential magazine, HSBC is the first non-US company to lead the survey since 1999 and tops the rankings by virtue of its Tier 1 capital and profit before tax, which last year reached a new high.

The survey found that European bank profits remained flat at 41 per cent of the total. US banks now account for just 14 per cent of aggregate Top 1000 pre-tax profits, down from 24 per cent last year, while Asian banks rose to 19 per cent from 12 per cent.

In April, HSBC also topped the Forbes 2000 list of world’s largest companies. HSBC was the first non-US company to do so, having delivered 26 per cent growth in annual revenue and 31 per cent in net income over the past five years.