First Hawaiian Bank ranked in top 20 by Forbes

First Hawaiian Bank has cracked the top 20 in Forbes magazine’s 11th annual Best Banks in America list.

The state’s largest bank, with $21 billion in assets based on regulatory filings through Sept. 30, ranked 18th among the 100 largest publicly traded banks and thrifts. The financial institutions were ranked based on their growth, credit quality and profitability using 10 metrics.

First Hawaiian had been ineligible for the list in previous years because it was majority-owned by a foreign company, Paris-based BNP Paribas. On Feb. 1, 2019, BNP Paribas sold off its remaining shares of First Hawaiian.

Bank of Hawaii, the state’s second-largest bank with $18 billion in assets, ranked 27th. No other Hawaii banks made the list, which was released Jan. 22.

“First Hawaiian is proud to be recognized among the nation’s top 20 largest banks in terms of profitability, efficiency, credit quality and growth,” Chairman, President and CEO Bob Harrison said Friday. “This achievement is particularly satisfying as it follows an exciting year that culminated in our successful transition to becoming a fully independent bank. Our success continues to be through our dedicated teams building relationships with our customers, our legacy of supporting the communities that we serve and our strategic focus dedicated to delivering value to our customers and shareholders while being a company our team is proud to be a part of.”

The top three banks on the list were Ontario, Calif.-based CVB Financial ($11 billion in assets), Santa Clara, Calif.-based SVB Financial Group ($68 billion in assets) and Irvine, Calif.-based Pacific Premier Bancorp ($12 billion in assets).