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JPMorgan Wins Revenue War, Goldman Sags

U.S. group JPMorgan kept its top position in investment banking revenue last year, with Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse losing most ground in a tough year for the industry, a study showed on Thursday.

LONDON -- U.S. group JPMorgan kept its top position in investment banking revenue last year, with Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse losing most ground in a tough year for the industry, a study showed on Thursday.

The world's 10 top investment banks all saw revenues drop in 2011 from the year before, as the euro zone crisis hit dealmaking and trading confidence, according to a report by industry analytics group Coalition.

JPMorgan's investment banking revenue - from advising on deals and trading in equities, bonds, currencies and commodities - was $22 billion last year, down 13 percent from 2010.

Revenue at both Goldman and Credit fell by 26 percent, to $16.8 billion and $11.6 billion, respectively.

That saw Goldman matched by Germany's Deutsche Bank in second spot, after the latter saw an 18 percent drop in revenues.

Deutsche Bank is often touted by analysts as one of the few European investment banks set to do well in a worldwide shakeout of the industry.

Coalition said revenue across the top 10 investment banks was $141 billion last year, down 17 percent from 2010 and down 36 percent from 2009.

Its study mines data from banks' results and aligns this to a common standard to produce a top 10 league table of investment banks by revenue. Most rankings for the industry tend to focus on advisory fees and do not include trading data.

Such league tables have increased in focus for investment banks in the past two years as big firms, under pressure from new regulations, rising costs and weak markets, jostle for market share and consider shedding unprofitable areas.

Deutsche gained ground in fixed income, currencies and commodities trading (FICC). Goldman, which ranked second in FICC in 2010, was overtaken not just by Deutsche but also by U.S. rivals Citigroup.

Goldman is still the leading revenue-maker in equities trading, and a top player in advisory, where it rakes in fees from advising on mergers and acquisitions, stock market listings and debt issues.

Fixed income trading, still one of the most lucrative businesses around, has become tougher to make money in as regulators ask banks to put up more capital against it, and firms are banned in the United States from trading with their own money, a practice that used to help profits.

JPMorgan was the top fee earner in advisory in the first quarter, according to Thomson Reuters data.

The bank is set to report first quarter results on April 13.

(Reporting by Sarah White and Steve Slater; Editing by Mark Potter)

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