Grand Stevie® Winners Announced in 23rd International Business Awards®
Winners of these top prizes will be celebrated at event on 28 October in Paris, France
FAIRFAX, Va., Aug. 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Stevie® Awards, organizers of the world's premier business awards programs, have announced the winners of eight Grand ("best in show") Stevie Award trophies in The 2026 (23rd annual) International Business Awards®, the world's leading business awards competition.
Nominees in The 2026 International Business Awards were not able to apply for Grand Stevie Awards directly. Winners of "most honored" Grand Stevies were determined by a points system based on the total number of awards won in the IBAs, with a Gold Stevie win counting for three points, a Silver Stevie win for two points, and a Bronze Stevie win for one-and-a-half points.
This year's Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award winners in The International Business Awards were announced on 12 August. Those Stevie winners and the winners of the Grand Stevies announced today will be recognized during a gala event in Paris, France on 28 October.
Winners of the 2026 Grand Stevie Awards are:
Organization of the Year
Cathay Financial Holding, including Cathay Life and Cathay United Bank, wins this year's top honor with 76.5 award points, earned on the basis of 13 Gold, nine Silver, and 13 Bronze Stevie wins. Cathay Financial is a major financial holding company offering a range of financial products and services through its subsidiaries, including insurance, banking, and investment services. Cathay Financial is known for its strong presence in Taiwan and its expanding reach in the Asia Pacific region. This is the second year in a row Cathay Financial Holding has won this Grand Stevie Award.
Most Honored Marketing Agency
Above The Line Company Limited, Hong Kong wins this top honor on the basis of nine Gold, three Silver, and two Bronze Stevie Awards (36 points) for nominations submitted on behalf of clients the Development Bureau of the HKSAR Government and the Construction Industry Council.
Most Honored Public Relations Agency
LLYC, Madrid, Spain, with 28.5 points, is the Most Honored Public Relations Agency of the Year for the fifth time in the IBAs, this year with seven Gold, three Silver, and one Bronze Stevie Awards. LLYC is a global public relations, digital marketing, and corporate affairs consulting firm headquartered in Madrid, Spain, with extensive operations across Europe, Latin America, and the United States.
Most Honored Awards Agency
Purpol Marketing, Chippenham, Wiltshire, United Kingdom earned 39 points, the most among award agencies, for nominations prepared on behalf of themselves and clients CeCe Digital, Cherishers 811 CIC, SME Today, and W B Griffiths And Son Ltd. This marks the fifth Grand Stevie win for the firm, but the first in The International Business Awards.
Highest-rated Nomination of the Year
There is a three-way tie this year for the highest-rated nomination of the year, all scoring 9.71 out of a possible 10. The winners are:
Brasilprev Seguros E Previdência SA, São Paulo, Brazil for their nomination "Accessibility as a Strategy for Excellence In Serving Deaf Customers," which won the Gold Stevie for Achievement In Customer Satisfaction. This is the first-ever Grand Stevie win, in any Stevie Awards competition, for Brazil.
Grundfos Holding A/S, Bjerringbro, Denmark for their nomination "Stay or ALPHA GO," winner of the Gold Stevie Award for Achievement in Agricultural / Industrial / Building Marketing. This marks Denmark's first-ever Grand Stevie Award win.
MilliporeSigma, Burlington, Massachusetts, USA for their nomination "One Community at a Time," Gold Stevie winner for Achievement In Corporate Social Responsibility. MilliporeSigma is the U.S. and Canada Life Science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.
Highest-rated New Product or Service Nomination of the Year
This year's honor goes to Beyaz Kağıt San. ve Tic. A.Ş., Adana, Türkiye, for the nomination entitled "Asperox Sparx Hand Dishwashing Liquid," which won the Gold Stevie for New Product or Service Introduction of the Year. One judge acclaimed the nomination, "The company identified a genuine consumer frustration and turned it into a simple, practical, and easy-to-understand solution with Asperox Sparx. The combination of strong product performance, innovative packaging, and a well-integrated communication strategy made the launch stand out."
"The eight Grand Stevie Award winners represent the very best of this year's International Business Awards," said Maggie Miller, President of the Stevie Awards. "Their achievements reflect the innovation, leadership, and determination that distinguished this year's honorees. These organizations have demonstrated an exceptional ability to turn ambitious ideas into meaningful results and set new standards for excellence in their industries. We congratulate them on their outstanding achievements and look forward to celebrating their success in Paris this October."
The International Business Awards feature a wide variety of categories to recognize achievement in every facet of work life, including AI awards, management awards, new product awards, marketing awards, PR awards, customer service awards, website awards, and more.
Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award placements in the 2026 IBAs were determined by the average scores of more than 210 professionals worldwide in the three-month judging process. Winners were selected from more than 3,800 nominations submitted by organizations in 78 nations and territories.
The nomination process for the 2027 IBAs will open in February. For more information about The International Business Awards, including a complete list of all Stevie Award winners in the 2026 competition, visit https://iba.stevieawards.com/.
About the Stevie Awards
Since 2002, the Stevie Awards have been among the world's premier business awards programs, recognizing outstanding achievements in the workplace worldwide. The name "Stevie" is derived from the Greek word stephanos, meaning "crowned."
The Stevie Awards include nine business awards programs:
- Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards
- German Stevie Awards
- Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards
- The American Business Awards®
- The International Business Awards®
- Stevie Awards for Great Employers
- Stevie Awards for Women in Business
- Stevie Awards for Technology Excellence
- Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service
Each year, the Stevie Awards receive more than 12,000 nominations from organizations and individuals in more than 70 nations and territories, recognizing organizations of every size and the professionals behind their success.
Learn more at www.StevieAwards.com.
Media Contact:
Nina Moore
+1 703 547 8389
[email protected]
SOURCE Stevie Awards
Share this article