OREANDA-NEWS. UniCredit has won five prestigious awards attributed by Euromoney, one of the leading international business magazine worldwide. The 2013 Euromoney’s Awards for Excellence were announced last night during an official ceremony in London. UniCredit was named:

Best Bank in Italy - UniCredit led USD 20.6 billion-equivalent of debt-raising for Italian issuers for the 12 months under review in 56 deals, giving it a market share close to 20%, almost double that of main local competitor;

Best Bank in Austria - UniCredit Bank Austria is the only big Austrian bank to have neither reported losses nor received state aid since the financial crisis;

Best Bank in Bosnia and Herzegovina - Growth and profitability were maintained in the first quarter of 2013, and an emphasis on innovation looked set to ensure another strong result in 2013;

Best Cash Management House in CEE - UniCredit introduced more than 50 payment and collection products throughout the network last year, and the pace of innovation at the bank in cash management in central and Eastern Europe looks likely to be maintained through 2013;

Best Project Finance House in CEE - UniCredit continued to show the highest degree of geographical diversification of any CEE-focused project finance, providing project finance loans in a total of seven countries including Poland, Turkey, and Russia, as well as such markets as Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania and the Czech Republic.

Federico Ghizzoni, CEO of UniCredit, said: “It’s an honor to receive the five Euromoney awards, which testify the strength and solidity of UniCredit as a European commercial bank who puts customers at the center of its business. The recognition of Best Bank in Italy shows that the Turnaround program outlined in our Strategic Plan is bearing fruits, while the Best Bank awards in Austria and Bosnia Herzegovina and the regional prizes for Cash Management and Project Finance in CEE are further evidence of the strength of our franchise and product lines in both Western and Central & Eastern Europe”.

Mr Ghizzoni added: “These achievements are testimony of the commitment of all our employees across the Group, working through challenging times in a difficult economic environment. I would like to congratulate them and share with them this new important success”.

The Euromoney Awards of Excellence are a benchmark for high-quality products and services in all areas of commercial and investment banking and define banking excellence in global categories and across 110 countries.