Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are responsible for remodelling the Top 25 western European banks in this year's listings. As ABN AMRO is consolidated onto the balance sheets of its three purchasers, it disappears from our rankings, while RBS, Santander and Fortis all move up the table. RBS vaulted over Credit Agricole to take second place in the region, and surged to third in the world from eighth last year. Santander remained fourth in Europe and rose just one place in the global rankings, but its Tier 1 capital climbed by almost 12%. Fortis was the most striking immediate beneficiary, leaping nine places in Europe and 10 worldwide, as its Tier 1 capital expanded by more than 50%. Merger activity also accounted for a new entrant to the Top 25, as the combination of Intesa and SanPaolo in Italy - 43 and 46 respectively in last year's global rankings -pushed the new entity to 14 in western Europe and 25 worldwide. The only other new entry is Spain's largest savings bank, La Caixa of Barcelona, following the flotation of several strategic portfolio holdings, such as Criteria CaixaCorp. Tier 1 capital ended the year more than 55% higher, lifting the bank to 35 in the global rankings, from 68 last year.
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