Changing Face of European Banks and Securities Market

The West European banking industry has been facing many problems since 1990.

The symptoms to be found everywhere are intensifying competition, narrow margins, falling profits and frantic efforts to meet the new capital adequacy requirements.

The problems have been most acute in those countries, particularly in Scandinavia, where recent and rapid deregulation has taken place, but the need to cut costs, to reduce the scope of operations by selling subsidiaries and to shrink the balance sheet by securitising loans has been felt in all countries.