1. HSBC Holdings PLC . The largest bank in Europe is HSBC Holdings with more than US$2.5 trillion in assets. HSBC Holdings is also the 7th largest bank in the world. The name HSBC is originally derived from the initials of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation.

Compare HSBC Holdings with BNP Paribas - largest bank in France.

2. Barclays PLC. Barclays is a British multinational investment bank and financial services company, headquartered in London. It is the 2nd biggest bank in UK by assets (US$1.53 trillion) and the 6th largest bank in Europe.

Compare Barclays PLC with Banco Santander, the largest bank in Spain

Behind the scenes at Barclays' Global Head Office in London

3. Lloyds Banking Group. Lloyds Banking Group is UK's third largest bank and Europe's 9th largest by assets, managing assets of US$1.09 trillion.

Compare Lloyds Banking Group with Deutsche Bank, largest bank in Germany

Behind the scenes of Lloyds Bank's latest TV advert Epic Journey

4. Royal Bank of Scotland Group. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (also known as RBS Group) is a private, but partly state-owned and subsidized, British banking and insurance holding company, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It manages US$997 billion worth of assets and is the 12th largest bank in Europe.

Compare Royal Bank of Scotland with Crédit Agricole of France

A history of Royal Bank of Scotland bank notes

5. Standard Chartered. Standard Chartered PLC is a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, England. It is UK's fifth largest bank, holding up to US$663 trillion in assets.

Compare Standard Chartered Bank with HSBC Holdings

Brief history of Standard Chartered Bank

6. Nationwide Building Society. Nationwide Building Society is a British mutual financial institution, the seventh largest cooperative financial institution and the largest building society in the world with over 15 million members and managing over US$314 trillion in assets.

Compare Nationwide Building Society with Lloyds Banking Group

In 2018, HSBC Holdings PLC is the 7th largest bank by total assets in the world  (list of largest banks in the world).

You might be interested to know about:

• Europe: HSBC Holdings PLC and the largest banks in Europe
• France: BNP Paribas and the largest banks in France
• United Kingdom: HSBC Holdings PLC and the largest banks in United Kingdom
• Germany: Deutsche Bank and the largest banks in Germany
• Spain: Banco Santander and the largest banks in Spain

Interested in sovereign wealth funds (SWFs)? Learn about the world's largest sovereign wealth funds, the largest of which hails from Norway - the Government Pension Fund Global - with close to US$1 trillion under management. (list of world's largest sovereign wealth funds).