Does the U.S. have too many banks?

The Indicator from Planet Money

NPR

Business

4.7 • 9.2K Ratings

🗓️ 16 May 2023

⏱️ 9 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The United States is unusual in that it has thousands of relatively small and specialized banks. Even after adjusting for population size, countries like Canada, the U.K., India and Brazil have far fewer banks. Today, we examine America's love affair with small banks and why having so many could be a double-edged sword.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	NPR.
0:12.3	When you walk into Studio Bank in Nashville, it doesn't feel like other banks.
0:17.8	Local artists have their art hanging on our walls.
0:21.3	Amelia Watts is a relationship manager at the bank.
0:24.5	We've got popular music playing, obviously we're in music city, so how could we not?
0:29.6	So it feels very warm and welcoming and less intimidating than walking into the traditional
0:36.4	bank that we've all come to know.
0:39.2	It is a particularly American phenomenon that allows small specialized banks like Studio
0:43.9	Bank to thrive.
0:45.4	There are over 4,000 banks in the US.
0:48.8	Canada?
0:49.8	About 80.
0:50.8	Brazil?
0:51.8	Roughly 150.
0:53.9	Even after adjusting for population size, the United States just has a lot of banks.
0:59.3	And so after the failures of regional banks recently, we wanted to find out are the
1:04.5	many banks scattered over the country, these little engines revving up American economic
1:09.7	power?
1:10.7	Or are there too many banks?
1:14.8	This is the indicator from planet money.
1:16.5	I'm Darian Woods.
1:17.8	And I'm Whalen Wong.
	...

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