For banks with more than $50 billion in assets, there was no single formula for top performance in 2025. Instead, the strongest institutions generally followed one of two successful models: traditional spread-based retail and commercial banking, or fee-based wealth management. In some cases, the most successful banks combined both.
Capital Performance Group analyzed the results for American Banker, ranking institutions based on their three-year average return on average equity, or ROAE. According to CPG Principal and Marketing Practice Co-Leader Ally Akins, the differences among the top performers reflect the distinct operating models found at this scale, from institutions heavily focused on wealth management to banks driven primarily by traditional lending and deposit relationships.
Overall, 2025 was a strong year for the largest banks. The top 10 posted an average net interest margin of 2.89%, while core deposits grew 6.42% and net loans increased 7.18%. Favorable interest-rate dynamics helped improve spread income across the industry, while a more active mergers-and-acquisitions environment also supported noninterest income at several institutions.
The rankings demonstrate that top performance among the nation’s largest banks can come from very different strategies. Whether driven by traditional banking, wealth management or a combination of the two, the leading institutions successfully leveraged their business models to generate strong returns in a favorable operating environment.
See the rankings and read the full article on American Banker. For more information about how we rank the Top Performers, contact Claude Hanley or Matthew Prince. Visit our Strategic Planning practice area to learn more about our services.
