In 2014, Michael Corbat, chief executive officer of Citigroup, referred to the multinational lender as “a technology company with a banking licence” – a remark that drew snickers at the time.

Today, bank chiefs fight over the label. US banks vie to outspend each other on fintech, with some throwing double-digit billions at software to build products and systems that work at blur-speeds and slash costs.

In Europe, however, that spending lags. And capital treatment doesn’t help.