Bcg Banking Report

Report

Global Retail Banking 2010/2011

The Road to Excellence

The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is a global manage-
ment consulting firm and the world’s leading advisor on
business strategy. We partner with clients in all sectors
and regions to identify their highest-value opportunities,
address their most critical challenges, and transform their
businesses. Our customized approach combines deep
insight into the dynamics of companies and markets with
close collaboration at all levels of the client organization.
This ensures that our clients achieve sustainable compet-
itive advantage, build more capable organizations, and
secure lasting results. Founded in 1963, BCG is a private
company with 71 offices in 41 countries. For more infor-
mation, please visit www.bcg.com.

The Road to Excellence

Global Retail Banking 2010/2011

Andy Maguire
Vincent Chin
Laurent Desmangles
Huib Kurstjens
Reinhold Leichtfuss
Reinhard Messenböck
Tim Monger
Nicole Mönter
Steven Thogmartin
André Xavier

December 2010

bcg.com

© The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

For information or permission to reprint, please contact BCG at:
E-mail: bcg-info@bcg.com
Fax: +1 617 850 3901, attention BCG/Permissions
Mail: BCG/Permissions
The Boston Consulting Group, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
USA

Contents
Executive Summary 4

The State of the Nation in Global Retail Banking 6
Financial Stress 6
Stricter Government Regulation 7
Changes in the Competitive Landscape 9
Changes in Customer Behavior and Expectations 10
The Shifting Roles of Products 10

Operational Excellence: Becoming a Process and Productivity Leader 12
The Profile of a Process and Productivity Leader 12
Different Ways of Differentiating 14

Customer Excellence: Reaching the Highest Level 17
The First Step: Remaining a Near-Perfect Retail Bank 17
Completing the Journey: Achieving Truly Perfect Customer Excellence 18

Appendix: From Global to Local—Trends in Specific Retail-Banking Markets 22

For Further Reading 29

Note to the Reader 30

The Road to Excellence 3

Executive Summary

T
he retail banking industry has been bat- ◊ In the best banks, a large majority of employees are
tered by the global financial crisis. But dedicated to customer-facing sales and service activi-
in many markets its resilience has ties. Processing is centralized in a small number of
helped enable a turning of the tide that centers across regions. Leading banks embrace a high
began in 2009 and continued into 2010. level of industrialization, characterized by simplified,
Overall, retail banking is on track to resume its sta- standardized processes that maximize the number of
tus as a reliable and profitable backbone for univer- new accounts and loan decisions per operations full-
sal banks. time equivalent. They focus on end-to-end sales and
service effectiveness, applying a holistic approach to
◊ Although the nature and impact of current industry streamlining processes and interfaces across the front-
dynamics vary by market, banks have generally under- line and operations.
gone significant financial stress, owing to margin pres-
sure, sharp rises in loan loss provisions, and declines in ◊ Although no retail banks have been able to achieve
asset volumes, revenues, and profits. Banks have also operational excellence in all areas, the scope of the op-
had to cope with stricter government regulation aimed portunity is vast and has led many banks to embark
at mitigating risk and beefing up consumer protection. on multiyear efforts to raise their game. Banks that ac-
Such regulation has been implemented in many coun- celerate these initiatives and invest wisely to reach a
tries and is on the horizon in others. high level of operational excellence will reap signifi-
cant benefits.
◊ The overall retail-banking landscape has undergone
measurable change, altering the competitive position In the wake of the financial crisis, retail banks must
of many institutions. Customer behavior and expecta- commit themselves to achieving a far higher degree
tions have also changed, with a greater premium being of customer excellence in order to win a greater share
placed on trust and reliability. The roles of traditional of their customers’ business. They must combine
products are shifting. sales and service excellence with low costs, take mul-
tichannel excellence to the next level, and create a
◊ In order to respond to the new environment in retail truly differentiated customer experience. These ini-
banking, institutions will need to push their perfor- tiatives are critical to showing customers that they
mance to the next level along two broad dimensions: need only one bank to meet their financial-services
operational excellence and customer excellence. needs. Many banks are aware of the need for a re-
newed focus on such goals, but their execution and
Banks must utilize three key levers in order to achieve attention to detail are frequently insufficient.
operational excellence and become process and pro-
ductivity leaders. They must streamline the organiza- ◊ Banks often hurt themselves by providing poor overall
tion, develop efficient and effective processes, and customer service and setting expectations that they
improve end-to-end performance. cannot consistently meet. To address these shortcom-

4 The Boston Consulting Group

ings, they must be more actively supportive of their About the Authors
customers—for example, by warning them of poten- Andy Maguire is a senior partner and managing director
tial overdraft scenarios and helping them figure out in the London office of The Boston Consulting Group and
whether they can afford the car or house that they cov- the leader of the global retail-banking practice. You may
et without overextending themselves. Such support contact him by e-mail at maguire.andy@bcg.com. Vin-
can be offered only if the bank captures comprehen- cent Chin is a partner and managing director in the
sive customer information, updates it continually, and firm’s Kuala Lumpur office. You may contact him by e-
understands it in a holistic way that builds in under- mail at chin.vincent@bcg.com. Laurent Desmangles is a
writing risk and appropriate pricing. By developing partner and managing director in BCG’s New York office.
such integrated insights, banks can make every service You may contact him by e-mail at desmangles.laurent@
opportunity a sales opportunity and vice versa. bcg.com. Huib Kurstjens is a senior partner and manag-
ing director in the firm’s Amsterdam office. You may con-
◊ The primary checking or current account is clearly the tact him by e-mail at kurstjens.huib@bcg.com. Reinhold
anchor of the customer relationship. Because of the Leichtfuss is a senior partner and managing director in
cross-selling opportunities these accounts present, cus- BCG’s Dubai office. You many contact him by e-mail at
tomers who hold them are up to 10 times more profit- leichtfuss.reinhold@bcg.com. Reinhard Messenböck is
able than those who do not—and are up to 25 percent a partner and managing director in the firm’s Berlin of-
less likely to have overdraft or default difficulties. fice. You may contact him by e-mail at messenboeck.rein-
hard@bcg.com. Tim Monger is a partner and managing
◊ Multichannel excellence goes beyond making sure that director in BCG’s London office. You may contact him by
channels are not competing with each other and that e-mail at monger.tim@bcg.com. Nicole Mönter is a proj-
access to customer information is open and unified. It ect leader in the firm’s Brussels office and the manager
also means monitoring channel usage and using that of the global retail-banking segment. You may contact her
information to drive more high-quality interactions by e-mail at monter.nicole@bcg.com. Steven Thogmar-
with the customer. It means shifting from a passive ap- tin is a partner and managing director in BCG’s New York
proach—merely displaying products “on the shelf”— office. You may contact him by e-mail at thogmartin.ste-
to proactive, sales- and service-oriented, multichannel ven@bcg.com. André Xavier is a partner and managing
lead management. director in the firm’s São Paulo office. You may contact
him by e-mail at xavier.andre@bcg.com.
◊ Many, if not all, retail banks are genuinely afraid of
regulatory intervention. Yet customer excellence may
be the ultimate defense. Banks that take the time to
capture and maintain their customers’ profiles—such
as their demographic characteristics, attitude toward
risk, product history and preferences, channel behav-
ior, and financial boundaries and limitations—may
find themselves less troubled by regulation because
they really do know their customers and act in their
interests, which is what regulators care about most.


The State of the Nation
in Global Retail Banking

T
here is no doubt that the retail banking in- maries of the trends specific to individual markets.) In-
dustry has been battered by the global fi- deed, the crisis generally hit mature markets harder than
nancial crisis. Yet even in the darkest days developing ones, and it hit the United States—which con-
of the recession, there was a silver lining: tinues to face serious difficulties—perhaps the hardest of
the fundamental strength and resilience of all. These forces form the backdrop to the overall state of
the industry. This resilience has helped enable a turning the global retail-banking industry today.
of the tide in many markets that began in 2009 and con-
tinued into 2010. Overall, retail banking is on track to
resume its status as a reliable and profitable backbone Financial Stress
for universal banks.
The margin pressure that has long plagued retail banks is
But a full recovery will be neither easy nor without pit- gradually becoming less severe. Asset margins have wid-
falls. Over the past few years, the retail banking industry ened from unsustainable lows, and pressure on liability
has witnessed upheaval in five principal areas: margins, while still intense, has on average eased up from
the depths of the crisis. New mortgages are being sold at
◊ The industry has endured significant financial stress, higher spreads than were possible for many years, as a
owing to margin pressure, sharp rises in loan loss pro- significant percentage of existing mortgages come up for
visions, and declines in asset volumes, revenues, and repricing—and are rolled over at better margins. Retail
profits. banking customers in most markets are less able to refi-
nance regularly, extending the lives of loans. Many back-
◊ Stricter government regulation aimed at mitigating risk book mortgages that were not repriced are now earning
and beefing up consumer protection has been imple- better margins owing to slightly better, blended funding
mented in many countries and is on the horizon in costs than were possible in 2008 and 2009.
others.
On the liability side, the expensive fixed deposits and
◊ The overall retail-banking landscape has undergone high-interest-rate savings accounts—combined with the
measurable change, altering the competitive position flat interest-rate curve—that weighed banks down during
of many institutions. the crisis have begun to run their course and represent
less of an undue burden. However, the vicious fight for
◊ Customer behavior and expectations have changed, with savings is continuing in most markets. The still relatively
a higher premium being placed on trust and reliability. high interest rates offered on deposits are resulting in
continued downward pressure on liability margins and
◊ The roles of products are shifting. upward pressure on asset margins.

The exact nature and impact of these dynamics vary When it comes to asset volumes, the crisis obviously had
from market to market. (See the Appendix for brief sum- a marked effect. Overall sales declined, with the extent


varying across specific markets. Initially, the pressure on terms better than highly diversified banks—with the no-
credit supply was driven by banks trying to reduce risk in table exception of the U.S. market, where retail earnings
their portfolios and shore up their balance sheets. Later, have turned positive only relatively recently. The retail
restricted funding possibilities became a factor. Today, de- share of all global banking revenues rose to 52 percent by
spite the fact that funding constraints are less severe, a the end of 2009, compared with 49 percent in 2006, with
recovery in asset volumes has not yet occurred because ample variation by region. (See Exhibit 1.)
of the overall economic climate—which is keeping de-
mand low in most countries of the Organ- When it comes to overall profitability, the
isation for Economic Co-operation and industry is still recovering from the depths
Development. In several countries, al- When it comes to of the recession. On the cost side, the long-
though balance sheets are generally in bet- overall profitability, the term downward trend in cost-to-income
ter shape and funding is available, new- ratio has resumed, following a blip during
asset volumes remain sluggish because
retail banking industry the crisis driven by thinning margins. The
consumer and small-business demand has is still recovering. impact of efficiency programs begun two
not yet recovered. On existing mortgages, or three years ago, when many banks were
volume is naturally declining in markets under severe duress, is being felt. In addi-
where relatively short-term loans are the norm, remain- tion, while controls on operational costs are here to stay,
ing stable in markets where long-term mortgages are some investments that were put on hold during the crisis
more typical. are moving forward as many banks start to refocus on
growth. Impairments are also improving, having soared
Deposit volumes remain positive as many consumers, in during the downturn, when they helped drive profits to
a shift from precrisis behavior (especially in countries their lowest levels in the fourth quarter of 2008.
where savings ratios have been low or negative), are tend-
ing to save more. This change is being driven by a gener- The combination of a revenue rebound—albeit at a shal-
al sense of uncertainty about the future and, especially lower growth trajectory than in precrisis days—good
among older people, by uneasiness over the sustainabil- news on costs, and a brighter outlook on impairments
ity of various national pension programs. helped profits recover to 50 percent of their 2006 levels
by the end of the second quarter of 2010. (See Exhibit 2.)
The trend toward deposit rather than investment prod- Yet higher levels of capital, as well as more expensive
ucts is resulting in a decrease in fee and commission in- capital (as required by Basel III, addressed below), will
come for banks in developed countries. Indeed, up-and- increasingly pressure return on equity. In sum, the out-
down capital markets during the crisis prompted many look on profitability is positive, although we are a long
people to reallocate their money away from complex, way from the blue skies that characterized the precrisis
high-margin investment products into savings vehicles. years.
Banks contributed to this trend, focusing on attracting de-
posits in an effort to bolster their balance sheets. At the
same time, many consumers have drastically curtailed Stricter Government Regulation
shifting money among investment products, resulting in
further losses of fee and commission revenues. In the wake of the financial crisis, regulatory complexity
will add costs to retail banks in most markets. In addition
Nonetheless, despite the combination of margin pressure, to amendments to the existing Basel II regulations—
sluggish growth in new assets, and the decline in fee in- known as Basel III—new regulations on customer protec-
come, retail banking revenues overall have been relative- tion will be introduced in many countries.
ly stable throughout the crisis. The fact is that people al-
ways need basic banking services, and the retail segment While the principal aim of Basel II was to ensure that cap-
is traditionally less volatile than either the corporate ital allocation was efficient and that banks were well cap-
banking or the investment banking segment. Conse- italized, Basel III goes further. Not only are capital require-
quently, universal retail banks, having been exposed to ments measurably strengthened, but mandatory short- and
less dramatic attrition, weathered the crisis in revenue long-term liquidity standards will be introduced, as well as


Exhibit 1. Retail’s Share of Global Banking Revenues Grew to 52 Percent in 2009

Retail share of global revenues, 2009 [2006] (%)

52
[49]
48
[51]

Americas, Europe, Australia, Middle East, Asia,
2009 [2006] (%) 2009 [2006] (%) 2009 [2006] (%) 2009 [2006] (%) 2009 [2006] (%)

46
41 52 [70] 28
[42] 59 48 54 47
[45] [38]
[58] [55] [30] [39] 53 72
[61] [62]

Retail revenues
Other banking businesses
Retail revenues covered by database
Source: BCG Retail Banking Database.
Note: Retail shares based on segment reporting of banks in BCG’s Retail Banking Database of roughly 140 banks worldwide with retail banking
involvement.

a leverage-ratio requirement. Basel III will be adopted
worldwide, creating a level playing field internationally. In the United States, a Raft of Regulation
However, national regulators will have discretion to
strengthen Basel III’s minimum requirements as they see
fit in their local jurisdictions. For example, this is expected In the United States, the Credit Card Accountability,
Responsibility, and Disclosure Act of 2009 aims to curb
to happen in Switzerland, where the relative size of the
excessive interest-rate hikes and hidden fees. It is ex-
major Swiss banks is seen to pose substantial risk to the pected to reduce card profits by $3 billion to $5 billion
country’s economy. per year. The Durbin amendment aims to limit the in-
terchange fees that banks earn from their customers’
When it comes to new consumer-protection legislation, debit-card transactions. Its impact on profitability will
although emerging regulatory patterns are similar across amount to about $10 billion per year. Regulation E
some countries, there is considerable variation in the top- was recently modified to require customers to “opt in”
ics covered and in the strictness of the proposed controls. for debit point-of-sale and ATM overdraft protection
on their demand-deposit accounts (also known as
(See the sidebar, “In the United States, a Raft of Regula-
DDAs or checking accounts). This measure will likely
tion.”) It is safe to say, however, that the main themes are reduce profits by between $12 billion and $15 billion
the following: per year. Finally, with the establishment of the new
Consumer Financial Protection Board, the industry is
◊ Increased transparency on product design in terms of facing the prospect of additional compliance costs
the description of product details and pricing (for ex- and potential further curtailment of overdraft and oth-
ample, to avoid fine-print surprises such as up-front er fee sources. Overall, the combined effect of the new
legislation will be a sharp reduction in banks’ return
commissions, hidden fees, and penalties for actions
on equity.
like early redemptions)


Exhibit 2. The Outlook for Retail Profits Has Turned Positive

BCG Retail Banking Performance Index

Revenue performance Pretax proﬁt
index (2006 = 100) performance index
120 117 120
100 116 115
92 91 114 114 114 100
90 112 112
111 112 111 110
110 80
110 78
106 70 70 60
104 57 581
100 50 40
100 39
32 26 20
17 21
90 0
–1
–20

80 –40
2006 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3
2007 2007 2007 2007 2008 2008 2008 2008 2009 2009 2009 2009 2010 2010 2010

Revenue performance index Pretax proﬁt performance index

Sources: Company reports; press searches; BCG analysis.
Note: Banking performance was calculated on the basis of the aggregate total operating income of 26 leading banks in the retail banking segment.
Distortions due to merger and acquisition activities and changes in segmentation were accounted for to ensure consistent measurement. Performance
of banks for which Q3 results were not available was estimated on the basis of past performance and company press releases.
1
Excluding exceptional goodwill impairments booked in Q3 2010 to adjust for regulatory changes in the United States.

◊ Fairer representation of products in advertising (for ex- within domestic markets, some regional or global banks
ample, by forbidding ads that quote an interest rate of- have taken the opportunity to strengthen their profile on
fered to only a small percentage of the customer base) the broader stage. Examples include Santander, with its
acquisitions of Banco Real in Brazil and Alliance & Leic-
◊ Closer supervision of banks’ delivery models in order ester in the United Kingdom, and BNP Paribas, with its
to avoid saddling clients with inappropriate products acquisition of Fortis in Belgium.
(for example, through regulations on sales force incen-
tives, relationships with third parties, and advisory qual- The loss of market position by monolines, such as direct
ity and advisor documentation in the sales process) banks, deposit-only banks, and pure credit-card players,
is another important trend in most regions. Most mono-
It is worth noting that consumer protection legislation, by lines have exited the market, been acquired in a dis-
making the selling process somewhat more onerous, will tressed state, or are aiming to diversify their business
raise distribution costs. models. It seems clear that in times of financial duress, a
mistrust of niche players—or perhaps of foreign institu-
tions in any given market—arises. The result is that many
Changes in the Competitive Landscape consumers tend to flock back to names they know and
feel they can put their faith in.
In most major developed markets, the level of bank-
versus-bank competition has actually lessened as merg- It is also true across markets that during the crisis, banks
ers and acquisitions, along with the exit of standalone with a strong trust link with their customers—such as co-
monoline players, has winnowed out the overall number operative banks and a number of smaller banks in some
of competitors. Although most mergers have taken place countries—often fared better than the rest. What is more,


any limitations on the day-to-day operations of major fi- the most attractive (least risky) customers whom the
nancial institutions brought about by government guar- bank knows well. Moreover, and needless to say, there are
antees and shareholdings have not proved very onerous. market-by-market nuances in the ways in which product
Many governments seem to have adopted a relatively roles are changing.
hands-off attitude, hoping that banks will work their way
back to better financial health. The future divestiture of Deposit Accounts. For many years, savings accounts pro-
government shareholdings in some banks, particularly in vided wide margins from long-standing customers and
Europe, may offer further acquisition op- opportunities to manage margins with
portunities for retail banks with regional Financial institutions new customers. Funding was mainly an af-
or international ambitions. terthought. Now, with profit margins gen-
realize that they have
erally being squeezed—although they
to raise their game have improved since the worst days of the
Changes in Customer in terms of overall crisis—savings accounts have become pri-
Behavior and Expectations marily a funding vehicle for the asset side
reliability. of the balance sheet. Duration is rewarded
The recent focus on transparency in bank- much more than it was in the past (for cus-
ing, which has benefited institutions that have managed tomers, but also internally, in the transfer prices paid on
to develop deeper goodwill with their customers, is just the stickiest balances).
one facet of a more general shift in customer attitudes,
behavior, and expectations. By and large, customers are Checking Accounts. In the past, checking accounts en-
more guarded, more circumspect, and more in need of joyed standalone profitability in most countries, provided
clear communication and reassurance. They expect clar- a source of new customers, and represented an anchor
ity and full disclosure. And although switching retail product for cross-selling. The key metric was volume and
banks is often a burdensome process for customers—a price realization. Today, checking accounts have become
fact that in the past has made some dissatisfied clients an important funding source for assets and a vehicle for
think twice about “voting with their feet” and changing maintaining long-term relationships with high-value cus-
banks—financial institutions realize that they have to tomers. The key metric is customer quality and the depth
raise their game in terms of overall reliability. of the relationship. These accounts are increasingly criti-
cal for data gathering, credit underwriting, and providing
Indeed, in the post-recession era, deepening customer re- frequent customer touchpoints. The strongest banks are
lationships will principally be about the fundamental is- investing heavily in good customer on-boarding and up-
sue of trust. The financial crisis was a crisis not just of selling processes, and they are increasingly pricing for re-
markets but also of confidence in the banking industry as lationship value. Indeed, the growth of high-quality cur-
a whole. Many consumers felt disappointed, disillusioned, rent accounts is more critical than ever to building
even exploited by their financial institutions. primary, multiproduct banking relationships.

Unsecured Credit. Traditionally, cards and loans were
The Shifting Roles of Products cross-sold to checking account, deposit, and mortgage
customers—at increasingly thin (and sometimes nega-
Changing business models, largely prompted by the crisis, tive) margins—to solidify the banking relationship.1 They
have had important implications for retail banking prod- were vehicles for lucrative fee-income and payment-pro-
ucts. Many institutions have shifted away from a simplis- tection premiums. Today, they are a source of wider mar-
tic, volume-driven focus on new-customer acquisition, in- gins in the core product itself, funded by the liability side
stead placing more emphasis on the quality of the of the balance sheet. Payment protection income has dis-
customers acquired and the lifetime value they create. appeared in many markets, seriously challenging the fun-
This shift has been reflected in the roles that individual
products play and how they are positioned and priced.
1. This has not generally been the case in the U.S. market, where
On the asset side, in particular, there has been a notable unsecured credit has traditionally been managed in product silos or
return to “in franchise” lending, with loans reserved for monolines.


damental business economics. As banks attempt to rec- of deepening customer relationships and value—both
tify the loose credit standards of the recent past—and the now and in the medium term. In the United States, how-
havoc those standards wrought—they are placing greater ever, there are reasons to fear a rapid return of the credit
emphasis on managing underwriting risk. Banks are in- cycle as banks look for scarce opportunities to gather as-
vesting heavily not only in better front-end scorecards sets and the most creditworthy businesses remain reluc-
but also in more differentiated treatment of customers tant to borrow.
going through the bad-debt process.
Obviously, Basel III will have an impact on the future
Mortgages. In many markets, mortgages used to be a characteristics and dynamics of certain retail-banking
source of margin from long-standing customers and a products.
means of acquiring new customers. Losses were minimal
as housing prices escalated. Today, mortgages are a game

I
of microsegments for new customers—constrained by
funding and compromised by risk, but with wider mar- n order to respond to the new environment in retail
gins across the book. There are some early signs of in- banking, the best players will need to push their per-
creasing competitive pressure from the stronger players, formance to the next level along two broad dimen-
but it will take several years for sufficient balance-sheet sions: operational excellence and customer excellence. In-
capacity to wear away today’s high spreads. Regulatory deed, it will become increasingly critical for retail banks
intervention and more-stringent risk processes have re- to have highly efficient yet flexible operating models
moved many of the market’s excesses. We expect this to amid continuing margin pressure. At the same time,
remain the case in the medium term but are equally con- banks will need to achieve a far higher level of customer-
vinced that the cycle will return as memories fade. centricity, trustworthiness, and overall service excellence
if they hope to thrive in the post-crisis environment. In
SME Banking. In the recent past, small- and medium- the next two chapters, we explore these dimensions in
enterprise (SME) banking was a transactional and lend- detail.
ing-based business with very low loan losses, low funding
costs, and many options for highly profitable growth in
specialized lending. The key metric was book size. Today,
SME banking remains attractive as a relationship-based,
full-service business. Deposit gathering is highly compet-
itive, but specialist lending offers high returns in ex-
change for high risk. In a balance-sheet-constrained
world, skillful SME lending can be a very powerful source


Operational Excellence
Becoming a Process and Productivity Leader

T
he Boston Consulting Group recently con- The Profile of a Process and Productivity
ducted an operational-performance bench- Leader
marking of 12 of the top 30 retail banks
across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pa- Our benchmarking indicates that no bank has achieved
cific. Altogether, these 12 banks account for excellence across all three levers and underlying capabil-
roughly 450 million customers, 51,000 branches, and ities. But top retail banks are striving for this goal.
more than $14.5 trillion in assets.
A Streamlined Organization. In the best banks, a large
Each bank is unique—a product of its own history and majority of employees are dedicated to customer-facing
the nature of its principal markets. But a number of im- sales and service activities. (See Exhibit 3.) Processing is
portant insights can be drawn from the ways in which centralized in a small number of centers across regions.
these institutions approach processes and productivity Sales, product, and operations management functions
and how these approaches influence their overall retail- are lean, keeping overhead expenses extremely low.
banking strategies. These banks carefully investigate subscale, repetitive, and
nondifferentiating activities for sustainable outsourcing
While typical operational-benchmarking exercises focus possibilities. They explore in-sourcing for activities where
on back-office processes and metrics, our effort took a scale provides a competitive advantage. And when reli-
comprehensive, end-to-end perspective. This exercise, able, mature vendors are available, they near- or offshore
along with our client work for financial institutions glob- some activities to low-cost locations.
ally, has enabled us to identify three key levers that banks
must utilize in order to achieve operational excellence. Efficient and Effective Processes. Process and produc-
They must streamline the organization, develop efficient tivity leaders embrace a high level of industrialization,
and effective processes, and improve overall end-to-end characterized by simplified, standardized processes that
performance. We have also found that these levers must maximize the number of new accounts and loan deci-
be supported by some core, underlying capabilities that sions per operations full-time equivalent (FTE). (See Ex-
create winning conditions. hibit 4.) Activities are shared across products and chan-
nels, typically starting within product families. Processes
Overall, our benchmarking revealed a wide range in per- and data flows are designed for quality assurance of in-
formance among banks, reflecting the vast potential for puts, as opposed to repetitive quality-control checks. Proc-
improvement. Below, we first examine the profile of a essing is channel and location agnostic.
process and productivity leader. How would such a bank
look in terms of these three levers and the necessary un- The best banks also possess a high level of process auto-
derlying capabilities? We then look at two players that mation that features straight-through processing (STP).
have used a narrow set of sublevers to push the boundar- Up to 90 percent of new-account openings and 70 percent
ies of excellence, allowing them to create and export stra- of consumer unsecured-credit originations are processed
tegic differentiation. with STP. Such banks are capable of automated decision


Exhibit 3. At Top Banks, the Majority of FTEs Are Customer Facing

1
FTE activites (%)
100

82
80
69

60

40

24
20
10
7
3
0
Sales and service Operations Management

Best-to-worst 1.5x 3x 4.5x
spread

Median Best2

Source: BCG Retail Banking Process Performance Benchmarking 2010.
Note: Totals do not add up to 100 because no one bank had the best performance in all of the three activities.
1
Full-time equivalents do not include corporate functions, such as risk, finance, HR, and IT.
2
“Best” is defined as the highest level of performance in each standalone activity.

making at the point of interaction with the customer. right” interactions across channels. These interactions are
Workflow-enabled processes with prepopulation of re- codified in explicit service-level agreements, differentiated
quired documentation, intelligent validation, skill-based by client segment where appropriate. (See the next chap-
routing, and minimized data entry are the norm. ter for a discussion of overall customer excellence.)

End-to-End Performance Focus. Process and productiv- Underlying Capabilities That Create Winning Condi-
ity leaders focus on end-to-end sales and service effec- tions. Process and productivity leaders create winning
tiveness, including excellence in new-account openings conditions inside their organizations that enable opera-
and loan approvals, applying a holistic approach to tional excellence. They manage down business complex-
streamlining processes and interfaces across the frontline ity in order to reduce fragmented demands on resources
and operations. (See Exhibit 5.) This approach includes and systems, shorten time to market, and facilitate sales
using the tools and processes necessary to enable front- force training. They routinely examine and prune their
line staff to focus on customers (instead of on low-value product portfolios. They achieve a high degree of opera-
administrative tasks). It also fosters efficient multichan- tional harmonization across channels, business units, and
nel lead generation and routing, as well as scripted and regions.
systematic approaches to sales—with an emphasis on
products that generate “stickiness.” Another way that these banks foster winning conditions
is through rigorous and systematic performance manage-
Such banks leverage common sales and servicing plat- ment across sales and operations. The result is a produc-
forms, including customer relationship management tivity culture within the bank that supports efficient
(CRM) systems, to deliver relevant information succinctly growth. This involves setting expectations clearly and
and with minimal complexity. Customer service is effi- succinctly, adopting highly transparent and continuous
cient and effective, with consistent, high-quality, “first time performance monitoring, and developing incentive


Exhibit 4. Industrialization Is Critical to Good Performance

Best-to-worst
Metric Best Median spread
New accounts per operations FTE in account opening (and
decision making on loans) per year
Current/transaction accounts (thousands) 31 8 5x
Real estate secured loans (thousands) 0.4 0.2 4x
Consumer unsecured loans (thousands) 3 2 3x

Existing accounts per operations FTE
in post-sale administration per year
Current/transaction accounts (thousands) 29 19 6x
Real estate secured loans (thousands) 3 2 4x
Consumer unsecured loans (thousands) 11 7 5x


schemes that are both simple to understand and based have put enough emphasis on reducing business com-
on aggressive yet realistic targets. Robust training and plexity and pruning the product portfolio.
coaching are part of the culture and are tailored to spe-
cific resource needs. At the same time, a very small number of retail banks—
in addition to making progress at becoming process and
productivity leaders—have chosen to concentrate on a
Different Ways of Differentiating highly focused subset of these levers, using IT and opera-
tions to create strategic differentiation. They have come
Achieving operational excellence using the three levers up with a winning formula—typically developed in their
and underlying capabilities described above is a journey home market—and applied it to their cross-border, inter-
that all the banks in our benchmarking survey have em- national activities, reinforcing their competitive advan-
barked on. They have taken varying paths and have pro- tage and creating global scale. Two examples are the “in-
gressed at different speeds. And for all of these institu- tegrated multichannel-sales champion” and the “CIR
tions, the journey is far from complete. champion” described below.

For example, most banks have made significant progress The Integrated Multichannel-Sales Champion. This in-
in streamlining their organizations. The same goes for im- stitution opted to differentiate itself through superior
proving process efficiency and effectiveness, although no sales productivity with strong integration across chan-
banks have been able to improve consistently across nels—even though it was still catching up in terms of
product portfolios and product life cycles. In addition, process and productivity performance. The bank has
while many banks have increased their focus on end-to- achieved a high level of sales channel integration, includ-
end performance, achieving a truly holistic balance re- ing common IT and customer-information databases, and
mains a challenge. has enabled a shared-contacts infrastructure. It places
a heavy emphasis on multichannel cohesion and navi-
One reason for this is that most banks are unable to gation.
measure end-to-end performance using current metrics,
which often focus on the frontline and back office as silos. What is more, this bank optimizes the division of sales-
Similarly, a number of institutions have begun to estab- oriented value-chain steps across channels. For example,
lish the underlying capabilities critical to success, but few branches focus on product sales. Call centers arrange ap-


pointments via shared calendars with branch employees limited number of hubs, and its single, core IT platform
and can handle sales of simple products. The online chan- supports standardized, industrialized processes across
nel provides product information and, increasingly, sales markets.
and servicing of core banking needs. The bank has a
strong multichannel CRM infrastructure that provides In addition, the bank’s organization structure supports
comprehensive and consistent client knowledge for effi- this strategic differentiator. Management of IT and opera-
cient contacts across all channels. tions is integrated under a fully empowered CIO. Global
shared services across IT and operations capture syner-
The CIR Champion. This bank has zeroed in on cost-to- gies and share knowledge. The bank’s globally integrated
income ratio (CIR), driven by IT and operations. It has model is rigorously replicated for every acquisition.
become a leader in organizational streamlining and im-
proving process efficiency. The bank focuses on central- It is worth noting that this bank does accept a certain
ized processing. All new-account openings, for example, number of tradeoffs in implementing its centralized, in-
are processed at the Europewide (not the individual dustrialized model. Laserlike focus on CIR can create
country) level. The bank concentrates its workforce in a wrinkles in the overall customer experience, such as re-

Exhibit 5. Leaders Focus on End-to-End Performance

Sales effectiveness and retention
Best-to-worst
New accounts per sales FTE per year1 800 400 7x
Sales conversion per inbound call (%) 10 4 5x
Customer attrition rate (%) 4.5 6.0 2x

Service activities
Best-to-worst
Teller, wait time (minutes) 2 4 4x
Call center, call wait time (minutes) 0.5 1.0 5x
Call center, call-handling time (minutes) 2.5 4.0 2x
Call center, first-call resolution (%) 95 85 1.3x

New-account openings and loan approvals
Transaction/
current Consumer
accounts Real estate secured loans unsecured loans
Time from first Time from Time from Loans Loans
Time from
customer touch- application to approval booked booked
application to
point to account conditional to funds (% of total (% of total
funds available
readiness approval available applications) applications)
Best < 20 minutes < 1 hour < 1 hour 80 < 1 hour 80
Median < 40 minutes Same day > 3 days 70 > 3 days 50

1
Sales FTEs include branch customer-facing advisors and nonbranch-based sales FTEs (such as agents, hunters, and third-party and mobile sales
forces).


duced online functionality after an acquisition or a thin- has yet become a full-fledged leader in this area, the
ner product range following standardization of the port- scope of the opportunity is leading many banks to em-
folio. Also, a centralized, global model combined with bark on multiyear efforts to raise their operational game.
tight cost controls can delay important strategic invest- Cutting-edge banks have made such initiatives a high pri-
ments across the enterprise. ority, pushing them to the top of their leadership
agendas.

T
We strongly believe that banks should continue this en-
he banking industry’s recent focus on managing deavor. Better still, they should accelerate their efforts
out of the crisis proves that cost reduction alone is and investments in order to reach a high level of opera-
not enough. Succeeding in the new environment tional excellence as quickly as possible. Those that do will
clearly requires excellence in process and productivity. not only reap vast benefits but also create the ability to
Although our experience with clients and our bench- sustain them.
marking survey show that none of the top retail banks


Customer Excellence
Reaching the Highest Level

W
e have already gone on the record efits may relate to cost, service, convenience, transparen-
regarding a number of steps that re- cy, high rates on savings accounts, or other features. Top-
tail banks need to take in order to tier banks emphasize simple, targeted relationship
win in the postcrisis era. (See The propositions—the more targeted, the better. They devel-
Near-Perfect Retail Bank, BCG White op creative marketing initiatives that focus on specific
Paper, November 2009.) But as the industry has evolved, customer segments. For instance, affluent women and
the need for further actions has become clear. In fact, it ethnic minorities sometimes require a specialized ap-
is not sufficient for leading institutions to be merely proach to their financial needs. Relatively few institutions
“near perfect” in terms of customer excellence. They have developed products and services specifically de-
must become “truly perfect”—or as close to that ideal signed for such segments, but many that have done so—
as possible. Initiatives undertaken to achieve this goal and marketed their offerings intelligently—have been
are highly relevant not only for top-tier banks seeking to glad that they did. (See Leveling the Playing Field: Upgrad-
take their game to the next level, but also for second- ing the Wealth Management Experience for Women, BCG
and third-tier banks, which should analyze their White Paper, July 2010.)
strengths and weaknesses relative to leading players in
order to identify best practices and key priorities for Optimize branch networks. There are some basics that
gradually raising their performance level. For leading too many banks seem to ignore. For instance, banks need
banks, however, the first step is to ensure that they main- to redesign and develop branch networks in order to
tain their top-tier status. achieve just the right density in both urban and subur-
ban locales, with carefully chosen formats aimed at max-
imizing visibility and attracting both established custom-
The First Step: Remaining a Near-Perfect ers and passersby. Interiors should be light and bright
Retail Bank with clear, user-friendly signage. A greeter should always
be on duty to welcome and direct customers, to help max-
Much of what is required to remain a near-perfect bank imize utilization of sales and service personnel, and to
will be familiar. What distinguishes such banks from their drive usage of ATMs, IDMs, telephones, and Internet
less effective peers in achieving customer excellence is at- points. Flexible formats with extended hours of opera-
tention to detail and quality of execution. tion, sometimes staffed but otherwise consisting of digital
self-service kiosks, can offer 30 to 50 percent more conve-
Make marketing meaningful. Effective marketing cam- nience to customers.
paigns drive traffic to all channels and do not waste time
boasting about how large, wise, international, or steeped Drive sales force effectiveness. Sales force diaries
in tradition the bank is. Best-practice banks carry out should be 80 percent prebooked, with appointments con-
marketing that means something—sending crystal-clear firmed by phone the previous day. A daily process and
messages about the benefits they can provide that will rhythm at each branch should motivate employees to fill
make a tangible difference in people’s lives. These ben- those diaries, to manage the “show rate,” and to develop


well-thought-out sales pitches that lead to high conver- small number of layers—seven, at most—and wide spans
sion rates and multiple product sales at each interaction of control of eight or more. Such banks have relatively
with potential customers. Highly automated pricing dis- low overhead. This type of structure can thrive if there
ciplines linked to specific products, with clearly targeted are energetic and motivational leaders who promote a
returns, should be adopted—as should preapproved, high degree of single-point accountability and clear deci-
easy-to-acquire offers to existing customers. sion rights. Local empowerment, more-direct lines of
communication, and faster decision making are all criti-
Enable seamless multichannel naviga- cal and help reduce complaints as well as
tion. This is a must, not a choice. And it is improve customer outcomes.
not exactly a new idea: many retailers Customer navigation
have been multichannel since the nine- across channels
teenth century. But the bar is rising, and Completing the Journey:
the gap between the best and the rest is
should, above all, be Achieving Truly Perfect
widening. Customer navigation across simple and easy. Customer Excellence
channels—principally, branches, the Inter-
net, and call centers—should, above all, be We have observed that most leading banks
simple and easy. There should be no more than one log- pursue some of the above goals and that a handful of the
in process for safe and reliable identification and verifica- very best institutions pursue them all. But in virtually ev-
tion, and one telephone number for customer assistance. ery case, execution is less sharp than it could be. Indeed,
Digital devices should involve a simple user interface that the CEO of one top retail bank once commented that he’d
lends itself to intuitive navigation. Extra bells and whis- rather have decent execution than a brilliant strategy
tles that can add complexity should be avoided. The key any day.
is for channels to support, not compete with, one another
and for customer pathways to be obvious. Also, not every So what must top-tier banks do to move from being near
function for every product in every channel must be perfect to truly perfect? Acknowledging that no bank can
available 24-7. do everything flawlessly and that some choices invariably
have to be made, we believe that even the best retail
Set clear expectations and deliver on them. Service banks can take steps toward significant improvement in
standards that drive true satisfaction, retention, and ad- customer excellence. Sharper execution, which we see as
vocacy are built on deep insight regarding the touch- the great differentiator, is the key.
points for each product and process that matter most to
the customer. Banks should strive for high levels of first- Combine sales and service excellence with low costs.
contact resolution (above 80 percent), while acknowledg- Many banks that forged their identities by emphasizing
ing that a single handoff can be more effective for certain just one dimension of the overall operational model have
products. Most customers, for example, expect quick re- come and gone. For example, there was a time not so
sponses about recent transactions or balances from their long ago when a lot of banks tried to be “sales machines”
first call-center contact. They also expect to be able to that embraced an aggressive sales culture. Others concen-
shift funds between accounts in order to pay a credit card trated on service and convenience. Still others flew the
bill. But they do not necessarily expect to be able to pay low-cost banner. Indeed, cost has always been something
down their mortgage or open an investment account of a sine qua non for retail banks. Those that were not
without being passed on to a specialist. A defining fea- highly efficient could not sustainably compete. The prob-
ture of top retail banks is that they set expectations with lem was that low-cost players often had high levels of
respect to service levels and turnaround times—and churn or attrition owing to poor customer service.
meet them 99.999 percent of the time (the Six Sigma
goal). Today, however, it is no longer an option to concentrate
on just one piece of the puzzle. Truly perfect retail banks
Streamline the organization. Banks need to be stream- know that they will have to fit all the pieces together if
lined not only on the operations side but across the over- they hope to achieve real competitive advantage. They
all organization. The best banks are characterized by a will need to excel at sales force effectiveness, have smooth


service processes, run efficient operations in engineered Take another example. If a customer downloads a mort-
process factories, manage wide spans of control, and gage application to complete offline, the bank should
maintain low overhead, all at the same time—and they make sure to capture the contact details. Then, if the form
will have to do it all smartly. is not submitted within a certain period, the bank can
contact the customer to offer help—which can also serve
Take multichannel excellence to the next level. Tak- to deepen the relationship.
ing multichannel excellence to the next level goes beyond
making sure that channels are not compet- Prepare for the digital-banking deluge.
ing with each other and that access to cus- Over the next five to ten years, there will
tomer information is open and unified. It Over the next five to likely be an explosion in digital banking
also means monitoring channel usage and ten years, there will built on the growing popularity and func-
using the data gathered to push leads and tionality of the latest generation of hand-
close the loop on them. It means shifting
likely be an explosion sets such as the iPhone. In our view, the
from a passive approach—merely display- in digital banking. increasing use of these devices will not
ing products “on the shelf”—to proactive, dramatically reduce traffic in branches. In
sales-oriented, multichannel lead manage- fact, as in other retail industries, digital
ment. Among today’s leading banks, Lloyds Banking handsets can be leveraged to attract desirable customers
Group does this particularly well. who need advice—especially about complex products or
overall financial planning. At the very least, there could
In the future, banks will need to direct leads and informa- well be a big prize in terms of “prequalifying” custom-
tion flow regarding sales and service transactions to their ers—making sure that they are ready to have the conver-
customers’ preferred points of interaction. And that sations about their financial needs that banks think they
means every channel—branches, call centers, mobile should be having—and thereby increasing the effective-
banking, and the Internet. It is also important to send co- ness and reducing the unit cost of each interaction.
herent and consistent messages via direct mail, mobile
sales forces, and authorized agents, as well as through That said, the growth of digital banking could significant-
print and TV advertising. ly reduce volume and change the nature of interactions
at call centers, and perhaps over the Internet as well. But
Multichannel excellence is also about providing choice, digital banking is likely to increase the overall number of
convenience, and value for the customer—including eas- interactions between customers and their banks, so it
ier access, reduced purchase risk, and better price trans- may not lead to significant cost reduction in other chan-
parency. Banks can gain a higher share of wallet, in terms nels. Banks must develop a careful and far-reaching strat-
of both frequency of purchase and ticket value, improv- egy for capturing the long-term opportunity that digital
ing cost efficiency through higher capacity utilization banking represents. Among current institutions, Bank of
across channels. A sharper brand image and better cus- America appears to be ahead of the pack in this arena.
tomer acquisition are part of the overall picture.
As for social networking, those banks that have been
What is more, boundaries are blurring because consumers brave enough to embrace this trend are already reaping
don’t typically “belong” to any one channel. They tend ei- the benefits of rapid, candid feedback from customers.
ther to find what they are looking for online and then buy Some banks are discovering that their customers trust the
offline—or the reverse. They want to “learn, buy, and use” recommendations of their friends more than they trust
across several channels. Thus, a sophisticated bank will the bank—but to good effect. A few leading players are
present a personalized offer of a preapproved credit card starting to experiment with location-based services, ex-
in the right channel at the right time. If the customer ex- ploiting the capability to pinpoint the geographic position
presses interest, the bank will then offer a selection of ful- of mobile devices.
fillment channels on the basis of the customer’s historical
preferences and behavior. But this approach only works if Create a truly differentiated customer experience.
the navigation pathways are built in such a way that the The truth is that banks are generally quite similar in
customer can easily complete the process. terms of customer service—in most cases, not very good.


This state of affairs is often made worse by setting expec- ness and earn his or her trust. Obviously, the primary
tations that cannot consistently be met. Obviously, as dis- checking or current account is the anchor of the relation-
cussed above, knowing which touchpoints matter most to ship. Because of the cross-selling opportunities these ac-
customers, keeping prices as low as practicable, and mak- counts present, customers who hold them are up to 10
ing identification and verification processes simple and times more profitable than those who do not—and up to
easy are critically important. So are maintaining one “go 25 percent less likely to have overdraft or default difficul-
to” phone number, resolving problems fast and with min- ties. By knowing when salaries and bonuses are typically
imal handoffs, and identifying and making paid in and when significant payments for
the most of those all-important “moments mortgages, car loans, and other expenses
of truth” that shape customer opinion. are usually paid out, and by factoring in
The truly perfect retail
the pattern of everyday expenditures,
But the truly perfect retail bank of the fu- bank of the future will banks can help customers manage their fi-
ture will be more proactive. It will warn be more proactive. nances more effectively.
customers of potential overdraft scenarios.
It will help them figure out whether they Truly perfect banks will develop highly re-
can afford to buy the car or house that fined access to behavioral information via
they covet and suggest an appropriate level of savings customers’ use of direct-debit standing orders and debit
based on their income. It will recommend moving to bet- cards. They will be able to observe turnover, average min-
ter tariffs or rates on its products—perhaps turning a imum and maximum balances, and patterns of channel
very minor pricing issue into greater customer loyalty. It use, all of which they can leverage to make useful and rel-
will encourage customers to plan all of their financial af- evant offers in a convenient and nonintrusive manner. In
fairs in a one-stop shop. the past, some banks used behavioral information to
their customers’ detriment, but the future will be all
In addition, the truly perfect retail bank will not repeat- about improving the customer relationship.
edly ask customers for (extra) identification, proof of
earnings or address, or the ages of their children, because Capture and truly leverage customer data. This initia-
it will have captured, calculated, and validated all the in- tive may be the most important of all. Without it, differ-
formation it needs to serve the customer—unobtrusively entiating the customer experience and deepening custom-
and respectfully—at the outset of the relationship. It will er relationships are much more difficult. Of course, it’s no
make decisions on the basis of the complete relation- revelation that banks possess copious amounts of data.
ship—not just one product. For example, modifying an What is less well known is that most banks struggle might-
existing account or opening a new one will be as simple ily to glean truly valuable intelligence or insight into their
as a click on a handset or a yes or no at a branch or on customers. Banks need to capture comprehensive custom-
the phone. No paperwork, no signature, no hassle. er information, update it continually, and understand it in
a holistic way that builds in underwriting risk and appro-
What is more, advice—traditionally provided face-to-face priate pricing. Over the past decade, a handful of banks—
or on the phone—presents another real opportunity for among them, BNP Paribas—have painfully (but fruitfully)
differentiation. In the future, we expect to see a lot more taken the necessary steps to set themselves apart in terms
self-help. Some leading banks have successfully intro- of capturing and leveraging customer data. They know
duced opportunities for their customers to learn and even which type of information they need, harvest it carefully,
to be entertained. Such offerings can range from simple store it safely, keep it current—and, above all, use it pro-
how-to guides to sophisticated comparisons with people actively to cross-sell, improve the customer experience,
in other demographics or professions—how they tend to and deepen relationships.
save, invest, or finance their purchases most effectively.
By developing such built-in intelligence, top-tier banks
Turn a better customer experience into a deeper re- will not only know which of the bank’s own products a
lationship. It is only by being fair, transparent, and truly customer holds, but also, by analyzing payment traffic,
committed to helping customers that retail banks can have a fair idea of what that customer holds in other in-
earn the right to handle all or most of a customer’s busi- stitutions. Such banks will understand the customer’s


preferences and patterns of channel use and be able to Use customer excellence as an antidote to regulation.
propose financial solutions that are reliable and trustwor- Many, if not all, retail banks are genuinely afraid of regu-
thy in the eyes of both frontline colleagues and custom- latory intervention. In our view, customer excellence in
ers. One caveat is that in some markets, the extent of per- retail banking could be the ultimate defense.
missible data collection may be restricted by regulation.
Due-diligence steps such as “know your customer” just
Break the tradeoff between procedures and people. scratch the surface. Banks that take the time to thorough-
In the past, some banks developed models based explic- ly document their customers’ profiles—such as their de-
itly on people and the roles and authority that they mographic characteristics, attitude toward risk, product
have—basically, a bottom-up approach. Other banks de- history and preferences, channel behavior, and financial
veloped models that were much more procedural and boundaries and limitations—and that continually update
top-down. But as customer-centricity comes increasingly such information may find themselves less troubled by
to the fore, the best banks are trying to combine the best regulation because they really do know their customers
of both models. and act in their interests, which is what regulators care
about most.
On the sales side, this implies highly disciplined proce-
dures that guide the actions of advisors. Such procedures Such banks aim to educate their customers first. They ad-
do not allow them much freedom to decide, for example, vertise honestly and don’t gouge. Their products do what
when or how to conduct a client meeting. Yet, at the same they say “on the label” and have a transparent and fair
time, banks are granting advisors wider latitude in con- pricing structure, without cross-subsidies—all leading to
ducting client conversations, depending on their own ex- a high level of “cross buying,” as opposed to cross-selling.
pertise, the client’s profile, and other factors. The same is They enable simple account opening and servicing that,
true in call centers, where some banks have stopped fo- ideally, is fully automated.
cusing on call duration and are placing more emphasis on
customer satisfaction. Broadly speaking, the number of Banks that embrace these initiatives will have fewer
years that banking staff spend in client-facing positions complaints and regulatory concerns, including hindsight
may be on the rise—which would greatly promote cus- risk. Their bywords are simplicity, clarity, and efficiency
tomer excellence. for all.


Appendix
From Global to Local—
Trends in Specific Retail-Banking Markets

Although this report is focused on broad-based global ket, pressure on deposit margins, and continued reliance
trends, we recognize that the dynamics of local and re- on wholesale funding.
gional retail-banking markets have varied significantly
during the crisis and continue to show a wide range of
specific characteristics. In this Appendix, we briefly ad- Canada
dress some of these dynamics on a market-by-market
basis. Canada’s leading retail banks demonstrated a high de-
gree of performance stability during the financial and
economic crisis. While growth rates in many product cat-
Australia egories have been dampened somewhat and loan loss
provisions have increased, the relative impact of these
Australian banks have come through the financial crisis changes has been small compared with that in many oth-
in better shape than most of their global peers, supported er countries. Moreover, thanks to continuing cost-manage-
by a strong domestic economy and housing market, a ment discipline and focused resource management, Ca-
sound regulatory framework, prudent risk management, nadian banks are poised to deliver robust results going
and government guarantees of customers’ deposits and forward.
banks’ wholesale funding.
The primary domestic focus of Canadian retail banks is
Mortgage specialists, which have relied heavily on securi- improving the customer experience and continuing to
tization, have largely exited the market, and many for- create deeper, multiproduct relationships. Better execu-
eign banks have scaled back their activities, particularly tion and successful, targeted strategies in high-growth seg-
in commercial property. As a result, the major Australian ments and local markets by some banks have resulted in
banks have consolidated their leading positions. The rela- market share shifts. Several niche, subprime players have
tive strength of the Big Four banks has enabled them to withdrawn from the market or reduced their presence,
pursue organic and inorganic growth opportunities in with some of the volume migrating to the balance sheets
support of increasingly differentiated strategies, specifi- of established banks.
cally, a focus on Asia (Australia and New Zealand Bank-
ing Group), wealth management (National Australia Broadly speaking, Canadian banks have gained signifi-
Bank), and consolidating domestic customer franchises cant confidence and enhanced their international reputa-
(Commonwealth Bank Group and Westpac Bank). tions. Relatively solid balance sheets coupled with a
strong currency is helping these banks position them-
However, some significant headwinds exist for the Aus- selves for more aggressive strategies in global markets,
tralian banking sector. These include potential household including the United States. Given their improved global
and business deleveraging, historically high property pric- status and focus on growth, several Canadian banks are
es—among the world’s highest in real terms—renewing adding to their capabilities by attracting experienced tal-
interest from some foreign banks in the Australian mar- ent from other markets.


China Within this context, top French retail banks have demon-
strated strong resistance to the financial crisis, managing
The financial health of Chinese banks remained relative- to increase both revenues and profits. Revenues, on aver-
ly stable throughout the global financial crisis. Retail age, grew by 3 percent per year between 2006 and 2009
banking revenues have showed moderate growth, but (although they decreased by 2 percent in 2008). In addi-
their relative share of overall revenues has decreased tion, cost containment initiatives contributed to an over-
owing to a massive surge in corporate and state-led busi- all increase in profitability for most banks during the
ness driven by the government’s economic stimulus crisis.
program.
Nonetheless, French retail banks will face regulatory chal-
In 2009, retail banking profit in China declined. This was lenges that could affect overall profitability. For example,
due both to constraints on top-line growth and to an in- despite good results from stress tests, new requirements
creased cost base. In addition, income growth and profit- from Basel III could affect returns and increase competi-
ability were affected by a series of regulatory measures tion for deposits. In addition, the evolution of local regu-
aimed at cooling off an overheating economy. These lation might influence margin levels and the current busi-
measures included increased deposit-reserve ratios and ness mix of French banks.
restrictions on loan growth. Impairments dropped back
to precrisis levels, and nonperforming loans remained rel-
atively low in 2009. Germany

As Chinese household wealth and the number of million- German retail banks enjoyed relatively stable revenues
aires continue to rise, leading local banks have been ac- throughout the financial crisis. Manageable private-
tively developing their wealth-management and private- household debt and limited risk in real estate financing
banking offerings. There has also been rapid growth in contributed to this stability.
credit cards and consumer finance, as well as the launch-
ing of a few bancassurance joint ventures. Still, average 2009 operating profit for German retail banks
was lower than 2002 levels. Moreover, revenues have now
Going forward, the Big Five Chinese banks, along with dropped to precrisis levels and are sinking slightly. But
China Merchants Bank, should continue to hold domi- costs are declining, too—a sign that German banks have
nant positions, while some smaller retail-banking players leveraged the crisis to improve their efficiency.
will try to differentiate themselves through innovation in
products and alternative channels. Large, established for- Specialized institutions and direct banks with sparse
eign banks will continue to actively expand their branch branch networks have not only profited from the crisis
footprints, and more foreign entrants will likely arrive and increased their revenues; they have also become star
and try to ride the wave of growth in the Chinese con- performers, achieving the highest average return on as-
sumer-banking market. sets with low average cost-to-income ratios (CIRs) for the
years 2001 through 2009. Some of these players have
used their efficient processes and lean cost structures to
France prevail in the market.

Retail business represents roughly two-thirds of global Many traditional branch-based banks have undergone re-
revenues for French banks, with strong variations among structuring initiatives, and several mergers aimed at in-
players (from around 50 percent up to 100 percent). With- creasing back- and head-office efficiencies are in progress.
in retail banking, French domestic customers account for At the same time, savings banks and mutuals—perceived
more than 60 percent of all activity, again with a wide as safe havens—enjoyed rising deposit volumes through-
range among banks (from about 30 percent for the most out the crisis.
international banks to 100 percent for the local post
bank). A small number of institutions dominate the The key challenge over the next few years will be to con-
market. tinue generating revenues with deposit products—as


Bcg Banking Report

Recomendados

Recomendados

Más contenido relacionado

La actualidad más candente

La actualidad más candente (20)

Destacado

Destacado (8)

Similar a Bcg Banking Report

Similar a Bcg Banking Report (20)

Más de JPStrategy

Más de JPStrategy (20)

Bcg Banking Report