Perhaps Americans are finally becoming conscious of the need to accumulate additional assets to ensure not only that they can handle temporary interruptions in employment but also that they will have the wherewithal to enjoy a lengthy retirement down the road.
Assessing the soundness of banking institutions is difficult, simply because of the nature of the banking business. Extending credit inherently involves subjective judgments, and standards of adequate risk measurement and disclosure must continually evolve along with the nature and complexity of banking products and the ability of institutions to assimilate information.