Meet Diva

TwentyFour Asset Management’s Diva Bashay reflects on a quarter which tested market sentiment through geopolitical tensions, shifting interest rate expectations and UK political developments.

Last week, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) published the results of its 2026 Dodd-Frank Act Stress Test, with all 32 large banks – including a few subsidiaries of European lenders – remaining above their minimum capital requirements under a severely adverse scenario.

European bank results for the first quarter of 2026 have revealed a strong start to the year, allaying some of the concern that the prolonged conflict in the Middle East might impact bank fundamentals to some extent.

Last week, European regulators took another step in their long journey towards a single European banking regime, otherwise known as “banking union”.

With most European banks having now reported their full-year 2025 results, we see the sector carrying solid momentum into 2026.