Santander targets US retail deposits, as Goldman's Marcus finds online lending tougher than expected.

European bank shares have sunk to levels not seen since 2008, and even some of the region’s bank CEOs admit it is hard to make a compelling investment case for them. Euromoney speaks to the people at the top about their potential to re-emerge as global leaders.

European banks don’t have a continental market, right? Wrong. Even if they cannot do full-blown mergers, the cross-border consolidation of specific business lines offers a way of gaining some of the economies of scale that US and Chinese banks enjoy.

The Trade Club Alliance, a new 14-bank partnership to match SME exporters and importers, reflects greater willingness among banks – especially in Europe – to work together against low-cost newcomers, while relinquishing their own global ambitions.

Banks’ track record on lending to small and medium-sized enterprises, the growth driver of the economy, remains a mixed one in Europe.

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Argentina Best Bank

DBS named world’s best bank in Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2019; JPMorgan is the world’s best investment bank; Erste’s Treichl recognized as banker of the year.

Despite the headwinds for region’s banks, there were some outstanding performances that demonstrate what can be achieved without macroeconomic support. The best example of this was Santander Brasil, Latin America’s best bank.

Regulate big tech or deregulate banks.

Master of the merger of the 2000s.

From Deutsche Bank to Santander or ING, banks in Europe need to change with the times and accept accountability to a wider public, represented by their governments: as with weak capital, deficient ethics will only entail greater state control.

The region’s leading banks produce some of the best numbers in the global industry, and success in retail banking – and a hard-learned approach to risk management – are core; could the growth of digital banking bring a new era of change?

The bizarre communications management of the announcement prompts more head shaking than the actual event itself.

UBS Wealth Management voted best global private bank; private banks expect revenues to grow, but at slower pace.

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Branch closures in the name of digitalization, on top of wider woes in the retail sector, could exacerbate the kind of community breakdown that led to Brexit.

Spanish-based group will struggle to overcome fall-out of recruitment U-turn, while Orcel’s situation raises broader questions for banks’ hiring and compensation strategies.

Banco Santander’s board has botched the appointment of the bank's next CEO in the clumsiest way possible.

Investors will be watching closely for indications of what Andrea Orcel will do as chief executive.

Santander’s Brazilian bank took lots of deserved acclaim when Santander released its global third-quarter results, but keep an eye on Mexico.

Large numbers of domestic retail shareholders mean that public ill-will in Spain hurts Santander and BBVA just as much as other more domestic-focused lenders.

Asset management is one of the few opportunities European banks have for growth and good returns, but regulation is challenging the captive market and margins are falling. Can banks build their own versions of the low-cost US fund management firms – or are these few remaining crown jewels heading the same way as their investment banks?

Jon Macaskill profiles the two new co-heads of investment banking at UBS.

A new CEO at the Spanish group was not expected, and neither was the name of the appointee. What will Andrea Orcel bring, and why did chairman Ana Botín turn to him?

From the United Nations and the European Commission to customers and shareholders, the world’s banks face increasing pressure not only to consider their broader role in society but also to take actions that have a positive impact on it. There is no doubt that most chief executives take this challenge seriously. Whether they take it far enough remains to seen.

Bank chief executives in Europe are increasingly obsessed with their new or rebooted digital arms. These businesses promise to fend off new competitors and capture a next generation of clients, while piloting front- and back-office innovations. They could even offer the best chance of expanding in the eurozone, making banking union a reality. But will these investments merely play into the hands of the new rivals and hasten the banks’ decline?