Strategic Commentaries
As a benefit to our clients and friends, S&A provides our Strategic Commentary, a monthly publication that addresses strategic and management issues facing financial services executives. S&A's knowledge of the financial services industry is based on the experience of our consultants and the firm's continuous monitoring of trends and developments in the financial services industry – our only focus.
Recent Commentaries
Payments Systems in LAC: Non-Bank Organizations Entering the ArenaApr 16, 2010
Banks, take notice. Innovative changes in the payments industry, brewing for years, have culminated…
Small Business Banking: Opportunity in Challenging TimesMar 22, 2010
The Small Business segment is a vital part of both the U.S. and Canadian
economies. In the U.S.…
Branch Transformation and Rebirth: Strategies to Serve Customers and Improve EarningsFeb 20, 2010
During this economic downturn, one thing has become clear: there is still a major role for the…
Evolution of Programs for the Unbanked in Latin America: Microlending at the ForefrontOct 17, 2009
Despite considerable progress to expand the reach of financial services to the unbanked segment, a…
Featured Commentary
The State of Retail Financial Services: A Speer & Associates, Inc. 30th Anniversary Special Report
Apr 30, 2010In our 30 years of consulting, no period has seen greater distress and challenges – let alone the need for fundamental self-examination – than the 2008-2009 crisis. The meltdown of investment banking, credit markets and commercial banking has seen unprecedented government involvement to keep U.S. and international financial markets afloat. These and other actions have inevitably filtered down to basic retail and commercial banking activities and businesses supporting banking services on a broad scale.
Over the years, Speer & Associates, Inc. (S&A) has employed its hands-on experience and widely-ranging business knowledge to assist clients in diverse market environments. In this Strategic Commentary entitled “The State of Retail Financial Services: A Speer & Associates, Inc. 30th Anniversary Special Report,” we present our views of the state of the industry today with several predictions and observations with both short- and long-term horizons impacting banks worldwide.