If there was ever a time for banks to rise to a challenge, it is now, as COVID-19 ravages the physical and financial health of millions. The Great Recession, created largely by banking malpractice, prompted positive changes in banking but revealed serious shortfalls in customer service. This time around, can banks stand behind all of their customers, provide crucial aid wherever needed and offer much-needed hope for a better future?
The COVID-19 pandemic has effectively put the brakes on a number of promising economic trends, including that of the US construction industry, which had been thriving before the country switched into lockdown mode in March. Although construction was slower to feel the crisis’s punch than some sectors, as contractors now look ahead toward recovery, the projections are uncertain, with the return to “normal” possibly measured more in years than months.
Europe, like every other continent on the planet, is looking guardedly toward recovering from the deleterious effects of COVID-19 and the lockdown that has paralyzed economies, leading to severe recession. Governments and banks do have roles to play but cannot be expected to shoulder the entire burden of supporting especially affected businesses. How can capital markets contribute to navigating what is guaranteed to be a bumpy road back to “normal”
Financial institutions and their communities depend on each other, and the banks that recognize this symbiotic relationship succeed where others fail. Success is the case for Fidelity Bank Ghana, guided by its motto “Together We’re More”. Viewing itself in partnership with customers, this heavily awarded bank exemplifies how fruitful working in cooperation with stakeholders, through “normal” times and crises, will ultimately be. Innovation is this bank’s tool to achieve more.
The COVID-19 crisis has been most challenging for emerging-market economies, those that least needed a new challenge as they were vulnerable before the crisis began. Liquidity support from central banks is crucial, but their help is often not in the hard currency required. The guardian of global financial stability, the IMF, will need more support from its members to fulfill its role as the true lender of last resort.
Nedbank is ingeniously employing existing and new digital solutions to meet the needs of customers during the COVID-19 crisis.
Thanks in no small part to recent rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve System, Singaporean banks are now under increasing pressure. And the outlook for the Asian city-state’s banking sector suggests that things may get only worse this year, especially for the three biggest players: