What they may lack is an appropriate vehicle for channelling those funds in the direction of innovators. The Stock Exchange does not provide such a platform, because innovating firms will not have a track record of success in the intended activity, as the basis for attracting investment in their equity.
However, in case of Pakistan, there appears to exist a somewhat paradoxical situation, where banks are able to widen their spreads mainly because they enjoy comparative advantage in offering unique banking services, primarily because of the almost non-existent competition from nonbank finance companies and a dormant institutional finance industry as pension and insurance sector reforms have yet to catch up with other financial sector reforms.