LONDON - The Managing Director of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), Martin Wheatley, has said - in a speech to the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland - that
banks in the UK should update their technology and speed up payments.
"Banks need to recognise their customers' increased expectations in
a world where people can now, via faster payments, make payments 24
hours a day, seven days a week”, Wheatley said. “Old systems, and the
reluctance of some banks to change ways of doing things, are becoming
increasingly unacceptable to consumers and to us.” Wheatley warned that
“if banks do not provide what consumers want, the new entrants might".
Wheatley also said that British banks should treat their customers better, referring to a letter the FSA sent to banks last January “to encourage a more proactive approach”. As an example, he pointed out the requirement to ensure payments reach the payee's account by the end of the following business day, which some banks fail to tackle to ensure compliance. "I cannot understand why something as straightforward and
helpful to the customer as this, is so hard to do", Wheatley said.
Michiel Willems © May 2012 CPP Ltd. London, UK.
