On Monday, the markets will face one of the most serious geopolitical tests in recent times: they will open amid a de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and military strikes against oil-producing countries in the Middle East. Oninvest has collected the opinions of managers and investors on what market players should prepare for.

War in the Middle East: what should investors do at Monday's market open? 

The passage is now "practically" closed, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported

Tankers avoid the strait off the coast of Iran. 25% of all oil shipments pass through it

Exxon Mobil Corporation

Shell plc

Chevron Corporation

BP p.l.c.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation

And three scenarios for the global oil market

Risks, prices, escalation: four major questions about oil in light of the US-Iran war

Iran's possible restrictions on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz could potentially cause oil prices to spike to $84 or even $140 a barrel, analysts have warned

Oil at $140 a barrel: what analysts say about the escalation in the Middle East

The markets' obvious reaction to the conflict in the Middle East will be to reduce investors' appetite for risk, an analyst warns

Bitcoin falls to $63k, crypto market loses $128 billion amid US attack on Iran

European stocks have risen for eight consecutive months

EU stocks are experiencing their longest streak of gains since 2013. Is it too late to buy them?

Switzerland's financial market regulator (FINMA) <a href="https://www.finma.ch/en/news/2026/02/20260227-mm-mbaer-liquidation/">said</a> on Feb. 27 that it had begun the process of liquidating MBaer Merchant Bank after Washington <a href="https://oninvest.com/article/ssa-namereny-otklucit-svejcarskij-bank-ot-finansovoj-sistemy-za-svazi-s-iranom-i-rf">threatened to</a> deny the Swiss private bank access to the U.S. financial system for violating sanctions against Iran, Russia and Venezuela.

Switzerland has closed a bank that the U.S. has accused of having ties to Iran and Russia

US-Iran nuclear deal talks ended without an agreement

'Fear is pushing up prices': oil is at highs since summer

New inflation data could give the U.S. Federal Reserve "another reason to be patient in cutting rates," analyst says

US wholesale inflation in January far exceeded forecasts. What's in the markets?

Swiss MBaer Merchant Bank may lose access to the U.S. financial system due to alleged ties to Iran and Russia, Bloomberg <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-26/us-says-swiss-bank-mbaer-could-lose-access-to-financial-system?embedded-checkout=true">writes </a>. According <a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0408">to the </a>U.S. Treasury Department, its financial crime unit FinCEN is working to approve a rule that would prohibit U.S. financial institutions from opening or maintaining correspondent accounts for or on behalf of MBaer.

US set to cut Swiss bank off from financial system for ties to Iran and Russian Federation

NVIDIA Corporation

Coinbase Global, Inc.

ASML Holding N.V.

Amazon.com, Inc.

Nu Holdings Ltd.

Celestica Inc.

Super Micro Computer, Inc.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited

Vale S.A.

Adani Enterprises Limited

Palantir Technologies Inc.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras

Novo Nordisk A/S

Rio Tinto Group

Rheinmetall AG

Reliance Industries Limited

Constellium SE

LVMH Moet Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, Societe Europeenne

71% of asset management firms plan to <a href="https://www.grantthornton.com/insights/articles/asset-management/2025/ai-is-transforming-asset-management">incorporate</a> generative AI into their operations, according to data from a survey of 500 senior investment industry executives in key global markets conducted by Grant Thornton in partnership with ThoughtLab. Two-thirds say the payoff in AI is still modest, and 12% see no return or negative results. I don't have access to the same resources and infrastructure as BlackRock, for example, or another large money manager. But if the majority is going to implement generative AI, it is logical to ask whether it can already fulfill a basic investment objective at the retail investor level today.

I gave three AI chatbots €500 to invest. Here's what they did with my money

Tesla, Inc.

Ares Management Corporation

KKR & Co. Inc.

Eli Lilly and Company

"You can't bet against Trump, if he wants to impose duties, he'll find a way to do it," the analyst believes

USA