The first is that the market is highly concentrated, with just five big consumer banks.
ECONOMIST: A computer glitch reveals much about Britain��s banks
There are ways to enhance consumer protections without limiting the ability of banking regulators to use their considerable resources and powers over banks to directly enforce consumer compliance in banks.
There is still an inter-bank credit crunch across Europe and all three sectors - consumer, banks and governments - are still overwhelmed by bad debt.
For another, many banks' consumer and commercial-property lending businesses have been affected by the slowdown.
Under his guidance, Mr Forster is belatedly putting in place a new scheme for consumer finance with local banks.
And this week, the allies of banks and consumer finance companies launched a multimillion dollar ad campaign to fight against the proposal.
WHITEHOUSE: Weekly Address: Time for Action on Financial Reform for the Economy | The White House
Some are already inserting themselves between incumbent banks and their customers, in effect hijacking the relationship and reducing the value of the banks' consumer franchises.
Consumer advocates have criticized banks for playing games with customer accounts, like manipulating activity to levy overdraft penalties on the maximum number of small transactions, and then increasing them based on how long it takes for a deposit to post to an account.
Consumer advocates and some industry analysts contend that the agency long courted big banks to choose the OCC as their regulator by offering a lax approach to supervision and taking the side of banks in striking down state consumer-protection laws.
Portfolio investors in Europe should concentrate on such areas as consumer staples, healthcare and banks.
One potentially alarming trend is banks pulling back consumer credit lines, says Oppenheimer analyst Meredith Whitney.
You have to focus on the long-term beneficiaries: the banks, the consumer stocks and real estate.
Financial Regulations need to separate proprietary trading from banks that take consumer deposits.
But doing so would carry greater economic risks, potentially raising already-high levels of bad debt in the banks and curbing consumer spending.
Consumer deposits, as the banks are now counting on, exhibit incredible inertia.
FORBES: Are Consumer Bank Customers Mules -- Or Will They Move if Kicked Hard Enough?
The aim of the amendment was to push some debit card transaction costs from retailers onto their banks that assume consumer credit risks and process transactions.
FORBES: Now's The Time To Promote Legal Challenges To Dodd-Frank
Furthermore, consumer credit is becoming scarcer as banks anticipate a rise in bad loans.
"Banks are boosting their consumer lending, in such products as home mortgages and credit cards, " says Mostrous.
By promoting mobile transaction apps, banks are nurturing a consumer behavior that could cost them billions if a new leader emerges as king.
FORBES: What CIOs Need To Understand About Apple's Passbook Service
Many consumer advocate groups feel strongly that banks and credit unions charge too much in overdraft fees, and do so in an unfair way.
Of course, while Fannie Mae's securities state that the company is explicitly not backed by the American taxpayer, large national banks finance mortgages with consumer deposits insured by the government.
Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko warned on Monday that Ukraine was heading for stagnation, with global demand falling for its key exports - steel and chemicals - and banks unable to extend consumer credit.
In order to maintain a good, consistent consumer experience, both telcos and banks should stick to their current methods of registration, authentication (SIM based) and other data checks deemed necessary for checks while registering a user for financial transactions.
Ten years ago there were approximately 12, 000 FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.) insured Banks and Thrifts (financial institutions with a predominant consumer emphasis) in the U.S. That compares with 8, 000 banks today.
Consumers and banks seem to have reversed roles: the long-beleaguered American consumer seems to be making a comeback, while formerly high-flying banks are once again struggling.
Meanwhile, banks report that demand for consumer loans continues to drop, although at declining rates.
As the chart indicates, in Stage II the best sectors are banks, technology, and consumer discretionary.
FORBES: The Week Ahead: What Do Sectors Say About the Economy?
What went wrong for the banks was that firstly, consumer groups like Citizens' Advice and Which? started campaigning against PPI sales.
Citi and other banks face mounting costs from consumer and business loans.
Many banks, building societies and consumer groups have criticised the claims industry.
应用推荐