By Amandine Victor

Time flies on stock markets. One month after the panic caused by the banking system's setbacks, the indices have been in the green for several sessions. Historic records have been broken. As a reminder, three American banks went bankrupt - Silvergate, Signature Bank and SVB - while in Europe, the systemically important bank, Credit Suisse, was narrowly saved by its compatriot UBS. The stock prices of the entire sector fell by varying amounts. The release of earnings reports of large American banks, led by JPMorgan and Citigroup last week and Bank of America at the beginning of this week, was an opportunity to take stock of the consequences of this mess.

The least we can say is that the big American banks did not get out their handkerchiefs to cry for their regional compatriots. Savers rushed to place their deposits in institutions deemed less dangerous, in order to secure their savings. JP Morgan, for example, increased its deposits by $37 billion during the first quarter. For its part, Bank of America has noted a reluctance among savers, who now fear the banking system as a whole. The big banks have also learned from the events. Citigroup has increased its reserves astronomically to face possible future problems, in a delicate macroeconomic environment where visibility is relatively low.

Let's be realistic though, the appreciation of the trio's publications was mainly justified by the increase in rates and the interest income that comes with it. They increased by 25%, to $14.4 billion at Bank of America. The main thing is that investors have stopped panicking. Confidence seems to be back already. Isn't this the best reason for satisfaction for the banks, when we know that fear is the greatest evil of the banking system?