Unprecedented oil volatility and gold at a record high may tempt banks back into commodity trading, but conflicts of interest with ESG goals could quickly emerge.

Goldman Sachs’ chief executive David Solomon could become a symbol of Wall Street indifference to the plight of others.

JPMorgan chief executive Jamie Dimon indicated that trading revenues could fall by 50% from their current elevated levels, but the boom has already helped to offset Covid-related loan provisions.

Goldman Sachs’s first ever investor day in January 2020 might have left more questions than answers around the firm’s forays into the brave new worlds of consumer and transaction banking. But one thing was unshakeable – its investment bank franchise. This year it is our choice as the US’s best investment bank.

Income, racial and gender inequality have been at the top of the news agenda for months. The financial sector now needs to go beyond programmes, initiatives and box-ticking and embed diversity and inclusion into all it does.

To succeed, you have to be national: for Bill Demchak, chief executive of PNC Financial Services, it’s the mantra that has guided his strategy since taking over the reins of the firm in 2013.

How one US health-insurance plan looked after itself and the providers its policyholders rely on when routine treatment demand started to dry up.

A quick reaction to warning signs in Asia meant Atlantic Natural Foods was better positioned than some to deal with Covid-19 – but it still needed flexibility from its bank

Bill Demchak, CEO of PNC Financial Services, has spent years building the firm into a formidable force; its exit from BlackRock now sees it on the cusp of a new era.

Goldman Sachs has launched its transaction services business in the US, trusting that its superior tech will be enough to beat the incumbents.

The US investment bank is finally enjoying the fruits of a decade of investment in Asia. It has spent big to hire the bankers and analysts it needs to drive deal activity in China, Japan and Australia. Now the hard part starts – making money.

Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon’s decision to back a rival to Democratic politician Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez may come back to haunt him.

The Hertz share sale saga has baffled many in the industry, but it has illuminated a new type of feral retail investor that is winning grudging respect from some of the financial industry’s aristocrats.

US users see weaknesses in transaction cost analysis and order management integration.

Will forcing all foreign firms to comply with US audit standards be the straw that breaks the camel’s back in Beijing?

BlackRock’s contract with the Federal Reserve to support the corporate bond market leaves the world’s biggest asset manager with no room for governance error.

Investors looking to profit from – and hedge against – credit deterioration due to Covid-19 will need to pick their spots when fighting the Federal Reserve.

Companies never want to sell equity at rock bottom prices, but bank lenders will often only relax covenants and hold off seizing assets if new capital comes in below them. Enter private equity managers with dry powder, snapping up big preferred stock deals to help cash-strapped issuers bolster their capital structures.

Appetite for Special Purpose Acquisition Companies is growing as investors find comfort in their new structure. Market participants expect more to come this year along thematic lines, with the first ESG Spac launched in May.

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.

JPMorgan is in discussion with more global banks, corporates and third-party service providers to join its Interbank Information Network.

Bank of America has seen mandates increase in the last month as digital solutions become increasingly important to overcome isolation and social-distancing rules.

After brief illnesses, JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon and Morgan Stanley’s James Gorman were back on form in this month’s earnings calls.

Some parts of US investment bank earnings in the first quarter of the year looked more like boom than bust as record trading and debt issuance helped offset weakness elsewhere. Now the banks are building reserves to prepare for coming out of lockdown

Alternative data can tell in near real time the story of economic and financial market disruption now playing out, but asset managers need artificial intelligence to read it.

With offices deserted across the world as coronavirus takes its toll, a virtual dataroom and online M&A software service company may be more relevant than ever

Private lending vehicles that are structured to maximize fees are looking dangerously fragile, and mismarking of asset values could spark legal disputes.

The world’s community banks, credit unions and CDFIs have been taking concrete action to help their clients, communities and employees respond to the coronavirus Covid-19 crisis.

The Federal Reserve’s expanded bond buying commitment underscores that the safest hedge at the moment is a security that can be sold to a government.

Digital asset manager Wave Financial may have found just the right moment to launch its whiskey fund.