Indeed, with a nice irony, apart from the post office, the best retail bank in Japan is Citigroup.

ECONOMIST: Buttonwood

Having the strongest retail presence, Erste Bank looks best placed to diversify, by cashing in on the strong growth in consumer finance, particularly credit cards and mortgages.

ECONOMIST: The advance of Austrian banks

But because the German bank has been schizophrenic about its own strategy, it has not made the best of opportunities in Italian retail or private banking.

ECONOMIST: Italy's way with bank reform