The core message of this blog is blindingly obvious: don’t underestimate the local customs, habits, and history that shape the products and services in other markets. And yet I couldn’t resist sharing some observations about banking in another country, which I had the opportunity to experience first-hand this summer.

Our regular readers know that for most of my professional career I’ve been based in London, UK, although I am originally from Lithuania, a country which in the last 25+ years has undergone the most remarkable transformation. At my first job, I had to queue up to get my salary in cash in the early days after the collapse of the Soviet Union; the few banks we had at the time were mostly either for savings or to serve commercial customers. Now, Lithuania is a modern European country with a thriving economy and an efficient banking sector. Its year-on-year GDP growth is set to rise from 2.3% in 2016 to 2.9% in 2017 and 3.1% in 2018, with decreasing unemployment.