Interest rates house - BNP Paribas

All banks have struggled over the past year, but BNP Paribas has been less troubled than most. Indeed, the French bank looks set to emerge from the financial crisis in a far more dominant position relative to its peers than when it entered. With a relatively healthy balance sheet, BNP Paribas was able to expand – most notably with the acquisition of Belgium’s Fortis Bank earlier this year – as much of the competition retrenched.

The bank’s interest rates business is also doing exceptionally well