V Comprehension

Exercise 10. Which of the three summaries below reflects the contents of the text most accurately? What is wrong with the other two summaries? Identify the mistakes in them.

a)

There are two types of banks: commercial and investment banks (merchant banks in Great Britain). Commercial banks deal mainly with individual customers: they receive and hold their deposits, lend money, manage their customers' accounts, etc. Their profits are made from fees"-charged to their customers for the bank's services. Investment banks deal with corporate clients and raise funds for their clients' projects. Their profits are also made from fees paid to them. Now all commercial and investment banks have merged into 'financial supermarkets". Every bank determines its own interest rate that is advertised to the public.

b)

There are two types of banks: commercial and investment banks (the latter called merchant banks in Great Britain). Commercial banks deal mainly with individual customers: they receive and hold their deposits, lend money, manage their customers' accounts, etc. Their profits are mostly determined by the difference in the interest they pay to people who deposited their money with the bank and the interests they charge to those who borrow money. Investment banks principally deal with rich corporate and individual clients and raise funds for their projects. Their profits are from fees paid to them for their services. Now the difference between commercial and investment banks is slowly disappearing because "financial supermarkets" have appeared, combining the services of commercial banks, investment banks, and insurance companies. Every bank fixes its own rate of interest on the basis of the minimum interest rate determined by the central bank of the country.

c)

There are two types of banks: commercial and investment banks (the latter called merchant banks in Great Britain). Commercial banks deal with both individual and corporate customers: they receive and hold their deposits, lend money, manage customers' accounts, and raise funds for them. Their profits are determined mostly by the interest charged to people who borrow money from them. Investment banks only deal with corporate clients and raise funds for their clients' projects. Their profits are from fees they charge for their services. The difference between commercial and investment banks is slowly disappearing because "financial supermarkets" have appeared. They combine the full range of services offered by the two types of banks as well as by insurance companies. The minimum rate of interest offered by banks is determined by the central bank of the country, but other banks may fix their own interest rates at levels that may be higher or lower than those determined by the central bank.

VI Oral Practice

Exercise 11. Fill in the table and be ready to speak on it.

Banks

Commercial banks

…..

deal with

individual customers, e.g. …

……

aim

1.receive and hold deposits 2. … 3. … 4. … 5. … 6. …

1. lend money 2. … 3. …

Financial supermarkets a combination of …