Recession hits finance firms' brand value

The brand value of many famous financial institutions has taken a battering over the past year but fast food companies are doing well in the recession, a new study found.

Coca-Cola topped Interbrand's annual best global brands ranking for the ninth year and McDonald's moved up two places to sixth.

By contrast, financial services companies were generally hit hard by the downturn, with UBS falling 29 places to 72nd in the list and Citigroup dropping 17 places to 36th.

The top 10 was dominated by technology firms, with IBM in second place, Microsoft third, Nokia fifth and Google moving up three places to seventh.

An Interbrand spokesman said: "This is the first year that the total value of all the brands in the table has declined, year on year.

"That said, the decline is smaller than that seen across the major stock markets on which the majority of brands are traded.

"This means that brands, as assets, are the more stable parts of the businesses that own and manage them, bringing a calming influence to profitability and business continuity."

:: These are 2009's top 10 global brands according to Interbrand.
Ranking Last year Brand Value (US dollars)
1. 1 Coca-Cola 68.7 billion
2. 2 IBM 60.2 billion
3. 3 Microsoft 56.6 billion
4. 4 GE 47.7 billion
5. 5 Nokia 34.8 billion
6. 8 McDonald's 32.2 billion
7. 10 Google 31.9 billion
8. 6 Toyota 31.3 billion
9. 7 Intel 30.6 billion
10. 9 Disney 28.4 billion