Six months ago, I used to joke to colleagues that the position of the world's largest investment banks reminded me of the closing scenes of the film Terminator II.
Near the end of that movie, as film buffs will recall, the Terminator robot is smashed into pieces over the floor, powerless – in much the same way that Wall Street and the City of London seemed to be flat on its back, after the financial panic of 2008.
But, then, in the film, the pieces of that robot crawl back together, until – “thwack!” – it is back on its feet. So too, by late 2009, the world's largest banks appeared to be regrouping with surprising speed, as profits soared, bonus expectations rose – and the financial lobby appeared to fob off any radical reform.