Banks are probably aware of the potential cost-saving effect of implementing more cost-reflecting prices. Banks might, however, be locked into a situation where they would benefit from a joint shift to more cost-based pricing, but no bank wants to be the first to make such a move. Being the first mover can be costly in terms of lost customers and market shares. An alternative explanation can be that banks view payment services as complementary to other business areas that are more profitable, such as saving products, mortgage loans, etc. Finally, we have to bear in mind that for the time being, we have considered banks’ costs only, so we confine our results to potential cost savings within the banking sector. In order to be able to draw conclusions on potential efficiency gains for society as whole, we need to consider all costs associated with payment services; the costs for all the parties involved, ie the retail sector, banks and private consumers. This could be one important area for future research. Thank you for your attention. 3/3
For instance, the volume of cocoa exports more than doubled from 1,178 metric tons in 2002 to 2,752 metric tons in 2003, while diamond exports as valued by the Government Gold and Diamond Office (GGDO) increased by 155 thousand carats or by over 44 per cent in 2003. Not surprisingly, the problems associated with fiscal management in a post-conflict environment have exerted enormous pressures on government finances. In an effort to strengthen its revenue base, government has established the National Revenue Authority to unify the Income Tax and Customs and Excise departments into a single unit. As a result, there was a significant increase of 20.52 percent in domestic revenue collection in 2003. Nevertheless, the fiscal out-turn, excluding grants, resulted in an overall deficit of 16.7 percent of GDP. This represents a 3 percentage point reduction over the level recorded in the preceding year. As a result of the high credit expansion to both Government and the Private Sector, there was a large injection of liquidity into the economy as broad money growth accelerated to 21.9 percent against the planned target of 14 percent. Consequently, inflation reared its ugly face in 2003, crossing the doubledigit threshold for the first time in five years. The case for a legislature/executive partnership Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, I am informed that this is the third in the series of special Forums for Legislators and senior officials of the executive arm of government organized by WAIFEM.