Banks' True Currency: Trust
03 June 2016 - 2:53AM
Dow Jones News
By Richard K. Davis
This essay is written for The Wall Street Journal by Richard K.
Davis, chairman and chief executive officer of U.S. Bancorp.
A bank is the heartbeat of every community in which it operates
-- whether that community is local, regional, national, or global.
It is a bank's single greatest purpose -- to keep entire
communities growing and going.
A strong bank fortifies the overall health of our communities.
The stronger the bank, the stronger the community. The stronger the
community, the stronger the bank. It's a symbiotic relationship
that has always been built on trust.
The financial crisis eroded trust and challenged a core belief:
that a sound American economy and strong financial system would
always create upward momentum. Banks are working hard to regain
that trust, to rebuild communities and to support the restoration
of the economy.
I believe we are at a defining moment that makes it essential to
recognize that a bank -- and only a bank -- can be the financial
bedrock for the vibrancy of our communities: It is time to trust
again.
Rebuilding that trust is crucial, because banks' engagement with
customers is infinitely different today than when I started my
career as a bank teller more than 40 years ago. Back then, banks
would primarily tell customers what we could do for them. Today,
customers are telling banks what they need from us.
We are listening and adjusting. Changing customer values and
lightning-like adoption of varying technologies are altering the
expectations for speed, tolerance for risk, fears about data
security, and visions for their personal financial freedom. It
demands transparency and trust.
Plus, our customers' definitions of community are evolving and
we must evolve with them. Community now transcends geography and
includes deeply personal issues, such as financial literacy,
corporate social responsibility and reaching the unbanked.
As we rebuild trust between the banks and our communities, the
strength of a bank is a far more important consideration than the
size of a bank. We need large banks, midsize banks, and
neighborhood banks working together to build our communities. Size
is arbitrary. Strength is measurable. Trust -- banks' true currency
-- is built on strength.
To reach our goal, we must ensure that no external forces or
internal distractions interfere with what banks do best -- keeping
entire communities growing and going. Every day, banks withstand
shortsighted attempts to redefine or criticize the industry. This
rhetoric is harmful to the American economy and detrimental to the
psyche of customers -- and largely unwarranted given the progress
we are making.
Banks have learned many lessons in recent years. While
considerable protections have been added to improve the safety and
soundness of the industry, we know we must get better every day --
and we are.
We are stronger today on the Main Streets across the nation than
we have ever been.
I am proud to be a banker. I am proud to lead a bank that is an
engine for economic growth. I am proud that our first core value is
"do the right thing."
Most importantly, I am forward-looking and focused squarely on
being the most trusted choice for our communities.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 02, 2016 12:38 ET (16:38 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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