The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that concern is mounting about the sustainability of banks' dividends after British and European lenders suspended payouts amid the health crisis. The Globe's James Bradshaw and Mark Rendell write that banks everywhere are bracing for a major shock as measures to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus shut down large parts of the global economy, putting millions out of work and making a painful recession a virtual certainty. Canadian banks made it through the last financial crisis with dividends intact, and they have built generous capital reserves since then. On Wednesday, the United Kingdom's largest banks bowed to pressure from Britain's financial regulator and suspended dividend payments. Several large European banks have done the same. European banks' dividend payments have also been more variable historically compared with Canadian bank dividends, which are considered "locked in," said Gabriel Dechaine, an analyst at National Bank Financial, in a note to clients. Bank stocks are widely held by millions of Canadians. Also, Canadian banks are in a different position politically, after some British banks needed government bailouts in the last crisis.