Gone are the days when only banks offered checking accounts. Gone are the days when consumers saw thrifts as providing the best available return on savings. Gone are the days of branching restrictions on banks and thrifts. Gone are the days when Glass-Steagall helped securities firms reap oligopoly profits. To a greater degree than at any time in living memory, the different types of financial services firms accept that they will, and should, compete against each other.
Firms also see new avenues for cooperation.
Fifteen years ago, many insurance companies looked at banks and saw only a competitor. Now many insurance companies look at banks and see the potential for a lower-cost distribution system. Even without legislation, the law governing financial services has undergone a profound liberalizationCa liberalization that, although imperfectCtakes some account of the changes occurring in the marketplace. The Glass-Steagall Act, once likened to a high stone wall, has become more akin to a screen door. And the restrictions on bank insurance activities have also suffered considerable erosion.