Bob Diamond, the former chief executive of Barclays who ran the UK lender during the 2008 financial crisis, says that “leanest and most focused” banks will thrive in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.

Profitability will be an issue for the world’s largest investment banks, he told Financial News, as lenders have booked billions in loan loss provisions during the first half of 2020. Profit slides across the sector were offset by a 25% increase in trading revenues to $89bn during the first half of 2020, according to data from Coalition.