Awards for Excellence 2019
In investment banking, the first quarter of this year capped a particularly difficult period in the markets; one that has hit Europe and European firms hardest.
The continued woes of Deutsche Bank and the cuts announced by the big two French banks in February encapsulated the difficulties, with Société Générale looking like it was finally admitting defeat, at least in fixed income trading.
But there are still a few European banks giving the US banks a run for their money, especially Barclays, western Europe’s best investment bank. This was a year when it became clear that Barclays’ strategy in investment banking could come good and that Europe – not just the UK – is a central part of that success.
The most obvious sign of this is the bank’s rise to be the top European investment bank by EMEA revenues in Dealogic’s investment banking league table for Europe, Middle East and Africa in 2018, when it replaced Deutsche, while also leapfrogging Bank of America Merrill Lynch in the ranking.