With clients demanding more clarity on their investments, and new regulations putting pressure on margins, wealth managers have their work cut out to remain profitable and relevant. Can they rise to the challenge?

Moves to establish an EU-wide banking union have developed at a rapid pace in recent months, and, if carried out properly, would complete the creation of a single market for financial services throughout Europe.

Turkey's banks are acquiring a global reputation for innovative products, particularly those that connect them with the country's youthful population through social media. As Duygu Tavan discovers, this is increasingly being done through smartphones.

Although his time as Dutch finance minister gives him a deep understanding of policy-making, ABN Amro chief Gerrit Zalm has mixed views on the current tide of regulatory initiatives in Europe.

France's Société Générale has responded to the long-awaited finalisation of European capital regulations with a new contingent convertible structure that could set a marker for the market.

Sharia-compliant banks have occupied only a small proportion of Turkey’s banking market to date, but with rising global demand and the government’s focus on Islamic finance, that looks set to change.

Following its acquisition of Dresdner Bank in 2008, Germany’s Commerzbank is now turning its focus back to developing products and services, its chief information officer tells The Banker.

The UK's relationship with the EU has rarely been harmonious, but in recent years the heavy-handed regulations and onerous taxes perceived to be emanating from Brussels have seen this marriage teeter perilously close to divorce. A referendum could be called in the UK in 2017 regarding its EU membership, but how would the country – and London in particular – look should the vote call for a permanent separation?

The resilience of the Italian economy should not be underestimated, says the CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, and the country, which is now on the road to recovery, should no longer be considered as part of the flailing eurozone periphery.