Can You Really Trust Your Bank?

It’s was the best of times to be a banker. It was the worst of times.

On one hand, the period of easy money has cruised along for seven years now. Asset bubbles are inflated all around us, and banks are happy so long as they are not the greater fool. Over the last few years, many banks have raked in record profits that would not be possible in another interest rate environment.

The bad news is that people and even regulators are catching onto some of their sneakiest of tricks: manipulation of markets, collusion, dark pools, and algo trading. This is because the modern era is more transparent than ever: technology, instant communication, access to information, and other factors have made it impossible to keep a good secret down.

It’s no surprise that in light of banks getting hit with record fines for forex manipulation and other no-nos, that consumer trust in banks has eroded considerably. Now only 32% of people trust their retail bank, and despite this only 11% have changed their account provider in the last year.

Even more concerning, technology companies are now trusted more than banks when it comes to handling financial products and people’s money.

Original graphic by: Eazy Cash