Ordeal by slide deck

摘要

From Frankfurt to Madrid, Zurich to London, it was a big week for PowerPoint. Executives from Barclays, Deutsche Bank, bnp Paribas, Santander and others spent their early mornings wading though slide after slide of second-quarter results for analysts and investors. The jargon was prolific. At Barclays the talk was of creating the "go to" bank and running down "exit quadrant" businesses; at Deutsche bosses affirmed "Strategy 2015". Everyone droned on dutifully about cultural change and values, while setting aside ever more billions in litigation-related charges.