Some smaller banks compete with the big boys by stressing their know-your-name friendliness.
Unlike the investment-banking business, in which banks compete internationally for custom, the retail financial-services industry is not yet a global one.
Banks compete in similar lines of business, lending against commercial or residential property or (in the late 1970s) channelling money to developing nations.
If five banks compete to finance something, four may present prudent terms, but the borrower will probably pick the fifth offering more financing than they can afford.
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Banks mostly compete with other banks, but on mutually accepted terms.
It left responsible community banks to compete with non-banks and other non-bank institutions in an unlevel playing field, often irresponsible and often unregulated competitors.
That will make it tougher for banks to compete with private-equity firms that don't face such a rule.
The single European currency, the cost of information technology and more demanding customers all mean that the co-op banks must compete harder.
Britain's exceptionalism in trying to reinvent Glass-Steagall reflects its twin desires to tame banking and allow British banks to compete in global markets.
Japanese authorities have endorsed legislation that, from June, will make it easier for the country's banks to compete on the same terms as American and European firms.
It includes dangerous carve outs for payday lenders, debt collectors, and other financial services operations, and hurts the ability of community and local banks to compete by creating an unlevel playing field with their non-bank competitors.
"This fall, we will almost surely be told by the Bush Administration that Eximbank and Commodity Credit Corporation loan guarantees are needed for U.S. firms and banks to compete with our allies in the Soviet market, " noted Roger W. Robinson, Jr.
Freer competition might benefit brokers and investment banks, which compete with exchanges and post-trade services as well as use them.
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If banks were to compete by offering higher deposit and lower lending rates, they would reduce their income and therefore face liquidity risks.
Starting with Bank of Scotland's operation of payment cards for Marks and Spencer, a retail chain, they have shattered the old convention that English and Scottish banks did not compete on each other's turf.
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Bank regulators are becoming more concerned to ensure transparency in the way that banks operate and compete, and have realised that the real engines of an economy are the users of banking services, be they savers, consumers or businesses.
Banks have also had to compete with other intermediaries, many of which have better ratings than the banks themselves, and are thus able to raise money and lend more cheaply.
If the banks enjoy too much protection, they have little incentive to compete on price or quality with other banks, or indeed with non-banks offering similar services.
To compete, Japanese banks have to merge, cut overheads drastically and combine their computer systems.
As long as they do, banks should be left to compete as hard as they can.
Removing subsidies from the huge number of state-owned enterprises and allowing foreigners to compete with Chinese banks are touchy issues with far-reaching domestic consequences.
Community banks and credit unions have been particularly opposed to the measure even though they would technically be exempt, contending that it would force them to lower fees in order to compete with larger banks.
The crux for all investment banks is to be able to compete for the best talent.
First, in the long run they can compete with big commercial banks like Wachovia.
With funding markets closed, banks have little choice but to compete fiercely for deposits or lend less.
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"Overbanking and vicious competition forced many banks to take greater risks to compete in lending, " said the Harvard-educated former deputy finance minister.
Itau argues that around 60 percent of the quarterly drop was due to credit mix changes and around 25 percent because of spread reduction to compete with the government banks.
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One reason these small financial institutions can compete with the big banks is that under the Durbin Amendment, they get higher swipe fees on debit cards, and they can use that to level the playing field with their giant competitors.
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