A bank sign.
A bank sign. A study by S&P Global Market Intelligence says most of the largest banks in the country are growing. File photo

Most of the nation’s biggest banks are growing, even though the largest is shrinking, based on a list of the 50 biggest U.S. banks and thrifts in the nation compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

S&P Global Market Intelligence assembled the list based on data from the third quarter of this year, placing Manhattan-based JPMorgan Chase & Co. at the top with $2.6 trillion in assets, retaining the distinction of being the biggest bank in the nation.

But even as many other banks grew their assets, JPMorgan Chase & Co. bucked that trend, shrinking since the end of the second quarter.

“Thirty-five of the 50 largest U.S. banks posted quarter-over-quarter asset gains, but the nation’s largest bank, JPMorgan Chase & Co., actually posted a $100 million decline compared to June 30,” Farhan Husain, a spokesman for S&P Global Market Intelligence, said.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. was followed by other banks that retained the same ranking as last year, with Charlotte, N.C.-based Bank of America at $2.3 trillion in assets as the second biggest bank.

“By comparison, No. 2 Bank of America Corp. added $29.37 billion in assets,” Husain said, “more than any other bank in the country, bringing its total to $2.284 trillion at Sept. 30.”

San Francisco-based Wells Fargo & Co. was the third largest at a little more than $1.9 trillion, edging ahead of CitiGroup, after which banks fell below the trillion-dollar mark.

Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp had about $459.2 billion assets, making it the fifth biggest bank, followed by Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services at $375.2 billion and Wilmington, Del.-based TD Group US Holdings at $3743 billion as seventh.

McLean, Va.-based Capital One Financial rose from nine to eight with $361.4 billion, while Bank of New York Mellon Corp. fell from eight to nine with $354.4 billion.

Manhattan-based HSBC North America Holdings was tenth once again with $286.4 billion, rounding out the top ten.

Synovus Financial Corp. debuted on the list as No. 50 with $31.64 billion in assets, replacing F.N.B. Corp.

S&P Global Market Intelligence compiled the list based on the largest U.S. banks and thrifts based upon assets with a deposits-to-assets ratio of at least 25 percent for the quarter ended Sept. 30.

Some financial institutions regulated as savings and loan or bank holding companies, such as Goldman Sachs Group and Morgan Stanley, did not meet this criterion.