World Retail Banking Report 2005
Based on this year’s local pricing index, the average price of basic banking services was €78, with prices between countries ranging from €25 to €137, a 1-to-5.5 range.
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Like last year, global profile prices varied significantly between countries,
ranging from €34 to €252, a 1-to-7.4 range, with an average price of €108.
Changes in global profile prices within countries ranged from -6% to +16%.
The average price in North America declined, with a 6% decrease in the United
States and a 1% decrease in Canada.
Within the five major Euro zone markets, the average price increased by 3% and moved slightly closer to convergence. Initiatives such as the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) should move Euro zone banks’ prices ever closer to one another in the medium term.
Banks charged fees for more products and services this year, due primarily to added countries; banks in developing and in transitioning economies (e.g., Eastern Europe and China) charge for more products and services than do banks in mature markets.
The local profile revealed that frequency-of-use patterns for particular products vary significantly by country, most notably in means of payment (checks vs. cards vs. transfers).
To maximize efficiency, many banks are using pricing to convince consumers to use certain products and services and not use others.
In some countries, day-to-day banking is a promotional product aimed at client acquisition, with other products (such as lending, savings, or insurance) expected to generate profits.
Banking services cost more in less-mature banking markets, representing 2.1%
of GDP in Poland and 3.3% in China, against only 0.2% to 0.6% in more mature markets.
Banking services apparently follow the standard industrial development pattern
in which relative prices go down with maturity.