Each time a borrower ventures abroad, new opportunities are created. As managers of such financial relationships, banking institutions can be part of this process by fostering the banking relationship into a long-term strategic partnership, and by providing the right range of financial products. These opportunities may also be realised by setting up presence in new markets. It can also be in the form of partnerships or strategic acquisition of an existing banking institution in a foreign market. Mergers or alliances in services and products can be pursued through co-branding or complementary products, delivery channels and marketing or product development. Alliances can also be formed to capitalise on intangible assets such as human capital. Such alliances can also translate into increased innovation in processes, structures, business models and ultimately innovation in products and services. Indeed, strategic alliances have been growing, cutting across many industries and business segments. As banking institutions are able to fulfil the differentiated demands and expectations, this would enhance their capacity to compete in both the domestic and external markets and thus be able to capture the opportunities accorded from liberalisation and globalisation. Customer-centric banking system Ladies and Gentlemen: As the financial landscape evolves and competition intensifies, banking institutions need to respond to the changing market needs, and continually reassess strategies and alternatives in this rapidly changing and dynamic market and shift from just the traditional offerings. Consumers are becoming increasingly discerning and demanding.
For sterling borrowers, that bridge is built on the foundations of SONIA – the Sterling Overnight Index Average, produced every day by us at the Bank of England and based – unlike LIBOR – at around 60 billion pounds of real, daily transactions1;  -  And, second, while that work has been underway, we’ve shored up the old LIBOR bridge, through the FCA’s agreement with LIBOR panel banks to continue providing submissions to the benchmark. But those repairs were only ever temporary. The FCA can’t replace those markets that used to underpin LIBOR submissions: they are gone forever. And the FCA’s agreement with the panel banks runs out at the end of 2021. From 2022, therefore, the availability of LIBOR cannot be guaranteed. Something that is unsafe today will become lethal at the end of next year. 1  The Sterling Overnight Index Average (SONIA) is administered by the Bank and reflects the average of the interest rates that banks pay to borrow sterling overnight from other financial institutions See www.bankofengland.co.uk/markets/sonia-benchmark. 2  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/speeches and @BoE_PressOffice  2  Avoiding that outcome is what we’re here today to discuss. But before we dive into the detail I want to leave you with three key messages: -  First, LIBOR transition affects every company that borrows in sterling. You cannot ignore it, or hope that it goes away: you need to act well before the end of 2021. -  But, second, there is time if you start now.