One-stop relationship banking, with an emphasis on universal banking, instead of isolated services, has gained in importance during the past few years. Nevertheless, several banks, especially small local and foreign banks continue to service niche markets, where they hold some form of competitive advantage. 4.
Trends in South African banks over the past decade  Generally, the South African banking sector remained fairly stable during the past decade. The first part of the past decade was characterised by global financial turbulence and banking crises in many countries. In general, the South African banking sector showed itself to be remarkably resilient during the crises experienced.