Western Europe

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our April capital markets focus.

Capital markets bankers have spent much of the last five decades dreaming up products to help clients and themselves make money, but is process, which has largely taken a back seat, now becoming the battleground?

Few things age as ungracefully as technology, and the pages of Euromoney’s archives are a treasure trove of the weird and wonderful gizmos that banking has embraced.

Leveraged finance has contributed to plenty of crises over the last 50 years, and the market is bigger and deeper than it has ever been – does that make it more disciplined or more dangerous?

Big pools of private capital, led by sovereign wealth funds, private equity sponsors and family offices, now dominate capital formation in the key growth industry sectors of technology and biotech and the expanding markets of Asia. New tech will let networks of private investors connect and exchange it more easily.

Pricing new issues on intuition and market feel is ancient history – artificial intelligence and algorithms are setting the market price for credit, using factors and correlations humans can guess but not follow. Is AI the latest black box risk that will bring illiquid credit markets low or could it make them more efficient?

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our April capital markets focus.

Italy’s biggest bank is offloading choice bits of its 60,000-strong art collection – in doing so it is going in a different direction to peers like Intesa Sanpaolo.

Investors are using exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as tactical tools and strategic, longer-term allocations, so banks are investing heavily to capture this business.

Firms are funding social and environmental projects on the one hand and fossil fuels on the other – it’s time to show they care.

Germany may conduct a strange experiment in state-sponsored investment banking if a merger between Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank proceeds.

The news that Garth Ritchie, head of investment banking at Deutsche Bank, is being paid €250,000 a month for extra responsibility 'in connection with the implications of Brexit' has been condemned in Germany, where politicians and union leaders are preparing to oppose a potential merger with Commerzbank and associated job cuts.

The sharp sell-off in credit in December and rapid recovery in the first quarter is a worrying sign of market dysfunction.

Casper von Koskull calls for a supranational anti-money laundering (AML) authority in Europe, while pushing the ECB to relax its dividend leash to boost strong banks.

However the situation plays out, it might be the smaller firm that ends up in the stronger position.

Prospects for a European deposit insurance scheme (EDIS), together with technology, allow a relatively upbeat assessment on bank merger opportunities, according to Société Générale CEO Frédéric Oudéa.

Barclays doesn’t want Tim Throsby’s exit to be about Tim Throsby, but it is.

Little confidence profit warning relates to one-off; cost cuts not enough to compensate.

The bank confirms focus on transaction banking by strengthening ties with its investment banking unit through new appointments.

Bundling FX and non-FX services has become an established strategy for smaller prime brokers seeking a foothold in a market where the barriers to entry remain dauntingly high.

The rationale to accelerate cuts in its US investment bank is obvious, but an orderly withdrawal will be hard to execute.

Will Société Générale’s ambitions to become a transaction banking frontrunner be cut short without a unified vision?

Automating debt and equity new issues comes a step closer with $20 million funding round for a new regulated platform.

Back-office hubs are at greater risk than London.

Disastrous fourth-quarter results cast a long shadow over Société Générale’s business, especially its corporate and investment bank. Deputy chief executive Séverin Cabannes has given up on fixed income. But is his plan to refocus on core strengths enough to reverse its fortunes?

After disastrous fourth-quarter results, Société Générale’s growth and profitability targets lie in tatters. Read on for a guide to Dominic O’Neill’s report on Séverin Cabannes’ efforts to refocus the corporate investment bank he leads, and whether or not this can recoup the group’s credibility.

Features Analytics applies artificial intelligence developed for medical use to spotting capital markets manipulation.

The Greek banks’ bad debt reduction targets look eye-wateringly ambitious for a country that is only just getting to grips with a coordinated strategy to deal with the issue.

Option trading has grown, while forwards and swaps have fallen.

Banks talk a lot about being technology providers, but while concrete examples are rare, ING has built something useful for bond investors.