Co-operative Bank: Customer Champion
Co-operative Bank: Customer Champion
EACB | 2008 | ISBN: 9780385501330 | English | 47 pages | PDF | 1 MB
EACB | 2008 | ISBN: 9780385501330 | English | 47 pages | PDF | 1 MB
Co-operative banks have developed from humble origins to become significant players in the European financial services industry. Recognisable as national champions in their own markets, as a sector these organisations comprise a diverse set of financial services institutions, ranging from domestic retail focussed players to large multi national universal banks. Today almost one in five European citizens transact with a co-operative bank, through a network of 4,500 banks and 60,000 branches.
The co-operative model was originally focussed on combating financial exclusion in industrialising economies, and in particular for the rural poor where commercial banks lacked the information to allow them to lend safely. The co-operative model carries unique features that are inherent to its member ownership and that lead to benefits and challenges that are neither widely recognised nor understood.