Nationalist desperation to get ahead in fintech surely explains some of the spectacular regulatory failure in the Wirecard accounting scandal.

Now an independent firm outside ING, Katana is upgrading its algos and scanning more bonds for correlation trades between pairs not normally linked.

A complex investment in Wirecard by Deutsche Bank veterans now working at SoftBank has effectively compounded the eventual embarrassment for Germany Inc from the failure of the online payments firm.

Hedge funds have profited handsomely from the boom in equity capital markets, but retail buyers haven’t been completely excluded.

Fewer exits at lower prices will depress private equity returns for now, but the time is fast approaching to snap up bargains to boost performance.

Claudio de Sanctis says that the new unit he heads is the next step on Deutsche Bank’s journey to global scale in wealth management.

Firms such as Deposit Solutions and Raisin are thriving, partly because Europe’s wealthy are so risk averse.

Scarred by the lockdown, suppliers now want payment upfront while customers demand extended terms: a problem is brewing in B2B payments and receivables.

Online trade finance provider Stenn has raised several hundred million dollars during the past month and reckons it is well placed to help close the funding gap for manufacturers in developing economies.

International diversification counts for little in a pandemic, so shares in Sweden’s Handelsbanken have done better than most other lenders in Europe – but its loan book faces a stern test.

A trend that was already under way is set to accelerate as companies realise the importance of better oversight of day-to-day financials.

Italy’s anti-trust authority could yet side with those who argue UBI Banca will serve Italy’s banking system better by doing acquisitions of its own.

The European Central Bank's purchase of more than €35 billion of commercial paper since late March shows just how rocky the early stages of the Covid-19 crisis were for short-term funding.

Capital markets volumes show how well the industry has adapted since the coronavirus crisis began, but as economies emerge from lockdown, bankers and clients need to look much further ahead.

Banks have to prepare for crises; if investors won’t make companies do the same, should someone else?

FX trading algorithms are getting smarter at dealing with crises – and getting more popular as a result.

Virtual meetings have afforded women greater visibility during the Covid-19 crisis, but little to nothing has happened. Will things finally start to change in the financial sector?

The May IPO of video conferencing platform Pexip was an all-round virtual success.

A new law prohibiting the return of banks to their former owners will unlock international funding for Ukraine. But is it really the game changer some are claiming?

Will it be back to business as usual as soon as lockdown restrictions are lifted?

Fears that the Covid-19 virus might live on banknotes and coins has focused public attention on once esoteric experiments with central bank digital currency. The virus has also exposed the slow pace of emergency government support payments through the conventional banking system, so what once sounded futuristic may be coming soon. CBDC just got real.

After a slow start, the processing of CBILS loans has picked up. Now finally accredited, the specialist SME lender says much more needs to be done.

Central bank intervention has delayed the deluge of insolvency that Covid-19 lockdowns will cause, but it can only plug the dike for so long. Lenders face the grim prospect of deciding who to save and who to let go.

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority may struggle to show anything explicitly wrong in the awarding of recent equity mandates.

Tinkoff Bank’s virtual assistant is good for eating out, but not food for thought.

UK banks’ returns on equity will still be below pre-virus levels in 2025, while CET1 ratios across Europe could fall to 8%.

Europe’s online-only challenger banks are still losing money, despite millions of retail clients in their home continent.

The digital bank struggled to make an impact in a fiercely competitive field.

Lessors and bondholders had little choice but to keep Norwegian Air alive, but bigger losses will come as the industry gets used to its new normal.

Leading firms in emerging Europe welcome a surge in interest in digital payments products and online lending.