BANKING
The name bank derives from the Italian word banco "desk/bench", used
during the Renaissance by Florentines bankers, who used to make their transactions
above a desk covered by a green tablecloth.However, there are traces of banking
activity even in ancient times.In
fact, the word traces its origins back to the Ancient Roman Empire, where moneylenders
would set up their stalls in the middle of enclosed courtyards called macella
on a long bench called a bancu, from which the words banco and bank are derived.
As a moneychanger, the merchant at the bancu did not so much invest money as
merely convert the foreign currency into the only legal tender in Rome- that
of the Imperial Mint.
Banker
A banker or bank is a financial institution that acts as a payment agent for
customers, and borrows and lends money. In some countries such as Germany and
Japan banks are the primary owners of industrial corporations while in other
countries such as the United States banks are prohibited from owning non-financial
companies.The first
modern bank was founded in Italy at Genoa in 1406, its name was "Banco
di San Giorgio" (St. George Bank).Banks
act as payment agents by conducting checking or current accounts for customers,
paying cheques drawn by customers on the bank, and collecting cheques deposited
to customers' current accounts. Banks also enable customer payments via other
payment methods such as telegraphic transfer, EFTPOS, and ATM.Banks borrow money
by accepting funds deposited on current account, accepting term deposits and
by issuing debt securities such as banknotes and bonds.
Banks lend money by making advances to customers on current account, by making
installment loans, and by investing in marketable debt securities and other
forms of lending.Banks provide almost all payment services, and a bank account
is considered indispensable by most businesses, individuals and governments.
Non-banks that provide payment services such as remittance companies are not
normally considered an adequate substitute for having a bank account.Banks
borrow most funds borrowed from households and non-financial businesses, and
lend most funds lent to households and non-financial businesses, but non-bank
lenders provide a significant and in many cases adequate substitute for bank
loans, and money market funds, cash management trusts and other non-bank financial
institutions in many cases provide an adequate substitute to banks for lending
savings to.
Size
of Global Banking Industry
Worldwide assets of the largest 1,000 banks grew 15.5% in 2005
to reach a record $60.5 trillion. This follows a 19.3% increase in the previous
year. EU banks held the largest share, 50% at the end of 2005, up from 38% a
decade earlier. The growth in Europe’s share was mostly at the expense of Japanese
banks whose share more than halved during this period from 33% to 13%. The share
of US banks also rose, from 10% to 14%. Most of the remainder was from other
Asian and European countries. The US had by far the most banks (7,540 at end-2005)
and branches (75,000) in the world. The large number of banks in the US is an
indicator of its geography and regulatory structure, resulting in a large number
of small to medium sized institutions in its banking system. Japan had 129 banks
and 12,000 branches. In 2004, Germany, France, and Italy had more than 30,000
branches each more than double the 15,000 branches in the UK.Source : Wikipedia