The equity markets across Europe rose after pro-business, pro-EU candidate Emmanuel Macron came top in the election and looked more likely to sail through a run-off vote for the presidency on 7 May.
The news eased post-Brexit fears on the future of the eurozone.
Behind the headline gains there was a dramatic rotation towards economically sensitive shares, which have previously suffered volatility amid the Brexit fallout of the past year.
At the epicentre of the rallies was the French banking sector, which had already been creeping higher in the days before the election as polls inspired hopes of a pro-business choice for leader.
The manager has long argued that Europe’s banks are overdue a recovery, and been prepared to suffer losses as his bank holdings proved volatile in recent years.
Banking giant BNP Paribas gained as much as 10.3% at one point during trading on Monday, while Société Générale hit a peak of around 10% higher.
The £372m Neptune European Opportunities fund run by Rob Burnett looked set for a major payday yesterday thanks to its 36% weighting in financials.
It has the current highest financials weighting in the IA Europe ex UK sector, according to data from FE Analytics.
For comparison, at the end of March the MSCI Europe ex UK index’s benchmark financials weighting was 22.5%.
