The markets are in disarray, mortgage holders are defaulting and banks are in crisis – that would be your understanding if you only relied on the newspapers and television as your information sources. In fact, in balance sheet terms, the crisis is affecting just a handful of the largest banks and, although many more are feeling the liquidity effect, for the majority of banks it is business as usual.
And in the emerging markets, opportunities for starting a bank, growing a bank and eventually listing a bank have never been better. Islamic finance in the Middle East, lending to the middle class in Africa and to lower income groups in Brazil, microfinance and servicing the average Japanese – all of these are hot markets with huge growth potential.
