In the midst of the crisis, the appeal of transaction banking was obvious. It provided steady, if far from spectacular, returns, and even the most ardent of bank-bashers would struggle to blame it for the financial turmoil engulfing the globe.
As a result, many banks began to throw money and resources behind their often neglected transaction services segments; expanding operations and poaching senior staff in an attempt to wrest business from the more established houses. Non-bank players began to make their presence felt in certain niche segments too, providing credit card services for small business or international remittances and the like.
