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The merger, 20 years ago, of Chemical and Chase ushered in the era of global banking. It was driven by competition from growing regional competitors, the threat of disintermediation, technological challenges, capital constraints, the desire to serve clients more efficiently and, above all, the need to boost returns to shareholders and unlock value. Those challenges sound all too familiar today. So why aren’t more banks looking at consolidation as a way to beat the post-financial crisis blues?

For several years, bank chief executives have harmed their credibility by promising medium-term earnings targets that they have never come close to hitting. Some have been ousted as a result. No more. In 2015 and beyond, 10% is the new 15% when it comes to projections of future returns on equity. Few are even hitting that lower target, which barely covers their cost of their equity. But there are signs that investors are starting to see the value in lower, less risky, more sustainable returns. And capital costs are falling. Could this be the end of the ROE roller coaster?

Farouk Shami is a small man with a big personality and a not inconsiderable mouth. He likes to recall that he left Palestine for America in his youth with about $70 in his pocket; in the intervening 50 years he has invented the world’s first ammonia-free hair colour, made his fortune with a Houston-based hair and skin care company, run for governor of Texas as a Democrat (he wrecked his campaign, he says, by saying that white people don’t want to work in factories) and formed a highly unlikely friendship with Donald Trump.

Rich in resources, Mongolia has yet to find a way to mine them in such a way to enable the country to throw off its communist legacy. There are high hopes the new head of the state investment bank may be the man for the job.

Look beyond the gyrations of its stock markets, and you can see one thing clearly in China: equivocation. The regime of Xi Jinping is fundamentally flawed because of its public espousal of the markets, but private refusal to cede any real control. Optimists hope the latest crisis could be the impetus for real reform. Most experts warn investors hoping for a recovery in their stock purchases not to hold their breath

Brazil deal lifts Bradesco; UK bank fights to retain Mexico.

No start date for project; canal would turbocharge GDP.

Parallel FX rate rockets; default more and more likely.

China’s struggle to communicate effectively with markets was demonstrated by its scapegoating of journalists for supposedly worsening the crash in local stock prices.

The return of market volatility in late August put a focus on asset managers, with investment banks for once ceding the spotlight during a period of turmoil. There will surely be some bank trading mishaps, but the main threat to revenues is likely to come from diminished demand for investment products rather than dealing room blow-ups.

Current and former governors trade blows; Mahendran and Cabraal at loggerheads.

Indonesians hold $300 billion in Singapore; controversial tax amnesty on the cards.