Stéphane Boujnah, chief executive, Euronext
In 2025, the global economic and geopolitical order was shaken by Donald Trump’s return to the White House. As Europeans, we can no longer ignore that we have to fight for ourselves, for our sovereignty, for our strategic autonomy, for the survival of our democratic values.
If we act together, we will succeed in preserving what we have been building for more than 70 years. 2026 will be a year of acceleration of the European integration process.
Because Europeans have decided to succeed together, not to fail separately. Integrated European capital markets are part of the solution, as European companies seek fundings to finance their innovation and remain competitive on a global scale.
As the leading European capital market infrastructure, Euronext will continue to integrate capital markets and to provide European companies and global investors with the one-stop shop solution to finance their growth in the long term.
Alison Higgins, head of markets, UK and Europe, and head of prime services at Standard Chartered
As we head into 2026, the mood feels cautiously optimistic – but don’t mistake calm for certainty. Rate cuts from the Fed and European Central Bank are widely expected, which should ease pressure on credit markets and support risk assets. Yet, politics and geopolitics will keep traders on their toes.
The US midterm elections could inject bursts of uncertainty into fiscal policy and rates, while Asia offers a different dynamic. North Asian economies – Japan, Korea and Taiwan – continue to hold substantial UST reserves, which acts as a stabiliser but also caps currency appreciation despite strong trade balances. This creates a tension: policy makers want competitive FX levels, yet reserve diversification remains slow, leaving dollar liquidity dominant.
For investors, this means FX volumes may cluster around emerging Asia rather than the majors, especially if US yields swing on political headlines.
The bottom line is: 2026 is unlikely to be a year of systemic shocks, but volatility will rotate across asset classes making active positioning and geopolitical awareness more important than ever.
Becki LaPorte, principal, AML strategy and innovation, FinScan
Over the next 12 months, the greatest market impact will come from tariff-driven financial risk. The global tariff environment, particularly US-led tariff policies, has created an entirely new challenge for financial institutions. Unlike traditional trade-based money laundering, tariff evasion can involve otherwise legitimate companies routing goods through complex pathways to reduce costs. This exposes banks to new credit, fraud, and sanctions-adjacent risks they’ve never had to categorise before.
The global tariff environment, particularly US-led tariff policies, has created an entirely new challenge for financial institutions. Tariffs will likely raise the prices of foreign goods for US consumers, potentially impacting companies’ bottom lines. Companies that have historically been good investments could see a decrease in their overall rating or stability. In an effort to maximise shareholder earnings, some companies may be tempted to circumvent normal trade routes to minimise costs.
Unlike traditional trade-based money laundering, tariff evasion can involve otherwise legitimate companies routing goods through complex pathways to reduce costs. Tariff evasion is illegal and presents an emerging risk in the securities and investments industry.