Abstract:

There can be little doubt that the influence of technology is fundamentally changing the nature of the relationship between our High Street banks and their customers. In the United Kingdom, this is most graphically illustrated by the growth in the availability of automatic telling machines and the number of withdrawals going through them. This paper describes developments in home banking over the last ten years and argues that for the foreseeable future, the telephone is likely to remain the predominant delivery medium for financial services into the home. It concludes with a warning to financial institutions that not only should they carefully research the full cost versus benefit picture before venturing into new areas of service provision and capitalising on new technologies, but that the longer term consequences of possible customer alienation and loss of brand loyalty need to be carefully evaluated before committing wholeheartedly to the brave new world of electronic service delivery.