Now or never: European banks strive for comeback against Wall Street

European lenders lost ground to US rivals during the pandemic because volatile markets boosted the earning power of US banks' outsized trading arms.

Replenished firepower and higher interest rates will give Europe's banks an ideal opportunity this year to reverse recent underperformance and claw back market share from rivals in the United States, industry experts say.

European lenders lost ground to Wall Street rivals during the pandemic because volatile markets boosted the earning power of U.S. banks' outsized trading arms. European rivals earn proportionately more from lending and benefit from a higher interest rate environment.

As the continent's biggest lenders prepare to report full-year earnings for 2021, kicking off with Deutsche Bank on Thursday, European banks must seize the opportunity that now presents