LONDON: China's ICBC was the most profitable bank last year with earnings of $21.3 billion, according to new industry rankings yesterday.

The five most profitable banks were all from China or Spain. China Construction Bank ranked second with a $17.5 billion profit, followed by Santander ($15.8 billion), Bank of China ($12.6 billion) and BBVA (9.6 billion), according to The Banker magazine.

They were followed by Britain's HSBC ($9.3 billion) and Barclays ($8.9 billion).