ICBC stays at top spot of global banks

With that adjustment in mind, the report suggests China's banks draw lessons from the practices being used by some in developed economies, which continue to perform well against a bleak overall financial market.

It uses Wells Fargo, the US bank that ranked second in the list, as an example of being able to outperform traditional giants because of a business model which focuses on developing retail business and accumulating low-cost deposits.

Two other organizations it highlighted were Visa and MasterCard, which have benefited from a stable revenue stream from payments and transactions, according to the report.

But Dayong He, a BCG principal, cautioned that "going global" might not necessarily be a good strategy for all Chinese banks, using those in Canada and Australia as examples.

Banks there - which have not historically followed the rapid global expansions of some Western counterparts - managed to keep their profitability at fourth and fifth in the world, as profits in the West fell sharply amid the eurozone debt crisis.

That was proof, the report added, that "focusing on a strong and stable domestic market" can be highly profitable.

"From a global perspective, the Chinese mainland is still one of the most attractive markets, and enjoys strong vitality. Therefore, domestic banks should seize the opportunity to strengthen the foundations of their leading domestic positions," Huang said.

ICBC's overseas expansion 

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