Discover receives top rating from Lafferty Group

RIVERWOODS - Discover rated fourth among 100 major global banks and was the only U.S.-based bank to receive four out of five stars as part of the quarterly Lafferty Bank Quality Ratings.

The new service from Lafferty Group evaluates quality and excellence in banking globally.

"Receiving a top rating for quality is gratifying to us given the emphasis that we place on it at Discover," said David Nelms, CEO of Discover. "We are focused on being a leading direct bank and payments partner and believe that if we serve our customers well, then our shareholders will benefit too."

Lafferty Group considers LBQR innovative and unique because it uses the banks' annual reports to assess both quantitative and qualitative criteria in areas such as strategy, culture, customer care, brand promise and financial performance, to arrive at a quality rating of one to five stars. The majority of major U.K., U.S., German, French, Spanish, Swiss, Australian, Chinese, Japanese, and Canadian banks received 3-star or 2-star Lafferty quality ratings.

"The LBQR uses the annual report because of its unique status. It is the primary vehicle used by bank management to communicate and account to shareholders and other stakeholders," said Michael Lafferty, founder and chairman of Lafferty Group.

Lafferty Group is a provider of knowledge services to the banking industry worldwide, from benchmarking research and councils to professional education. It rated 100 financial institutions in 28 countries for these initial results and expects to rate at least 400 banks in LBQR's first year. The ratings are published in the Lafferty Bank Quality Ratings Journal and will be updated as banks publish new annual reports.