Will clear water emerge between US and European banks?

摘要

So here we are - four out of the five big US investment banks have reported their Q1 numbers (Morgan Stanley is out on Monday). And guess what? They're looking pretty good: just like in the third quarter of last year, FICC was up on the back of bouts of volatility, which boosted rates and currencies revenues. The numbers show that when market volatility picks up, clients come out to play opportunistically to try to make money from the confounded zero-rate environment I continue to postulate that, over time, client preparedness to get stuck in when the opportunity arises will continue to feed a more consistent earnings profile for banks that remain committed to them through this cycle of official stimulus and in-process regulation and the distorted markets that derive from them.