Ask about the competitive environment for US and European banks and it’s easy to find people – especially those who work for American banks – who believe the ECB’s three-year LTRO is propping up European banks that would otherwise have pulled out of a variety of markets and business lines.

One senior US-based banker recently told Financial News that even some of his market-leading European competitors are "hooked" on the liquidity, which he sees as an unfair advantage. He cited a top-tier European bank that has made the decision to pull back from Italy, yet is able, in his view, to withdraw more gracefully thanks to the ECB support. He said: "When a revolving credit facility renewal comes up, they'll maybe go from providing €200m to €50m but they'll still be there, just to show they're relevant."