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Switching costs in the market for personal current accounts: some evidence for the United Kingdom

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Céline Gondat-Larralde
Erlend Nier
Abstract

This paper provides an analysis of the competitive process in the market for personal current accounts in the United Kingdom. Using survey data, we first describe some stylised developments in this market over our sample period (1996-2001). We find a gradual change in the distribution of market shares over time. This contrasts with a marked dispersion in price, which appears to persist through time. Analysing the evolution of market shares, we address two key questions: (i) are bank market shares responding to price differentials?; (ii) if not, which type of imperfect competition best fits the data? Our conclusions point to the existence of customer switching costs as a key determinant of the nature of competition in the market for personal current accounts. The results of this study are therefore broadly supportive of a number of recent initiatives to facilitate switching bank accounts in the United Kingdom.

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Paper provided by Bank of England in its series Bank of England working papers with number 292.

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  4. Klemperer, Paul, 1995. "Competition When Consumers Have Switching Costs: An Overview with Applications to Industrial Organization, Macroeconomics, and International Trade," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 62(4), pages 515-39, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Steven Salop & Joseph Stiglitz, 1977. "Bargains and ripoffs: a model of monopolistically competitive price dispersion," Special Studies Papers 94, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
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  6. Moshe Kim & Doron Kliger & Bent Vale, 2001. "Estimating Switching Costs and Oligopolistic Behavior," Center for Financial Institutions Working Papers 01-13, Wharton School Center for Financial Institutions, University of Pennsylvania. [Downloadable!]
  7. George J. Stigler, 1961. "The Economics of Information," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 69, pages 213. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Demsetz, Harold, 1973. "Industry Structure, Market Rivalry, and Public Policy," Journal of Law & Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 16(1), pages 1-9, April.
  9. Heffernan, Shelagh A., 2002. "How do UK financial institutions really price their banking products?," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 26(10), pages 1997-2016, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Calem, Paul S & Carlino, Gerald A, 1991. "The Concentration/Conduct Relationship in Bank Deposit Markets," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 73(2), pages 268-76, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. Amel, Dean F. & Hannan, Timothy H., 1999. "Establishing banking market definitions through estimation of residual deposit supply equations," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 23(11), pages 1667-1690, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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