The Economics of Money, Banking and Financial Markets 4th Edition by Frederic Mishkin

Exercise 3

Go to http://www2.fdic.gov/hsob/index.asp. Select "Commercial Bank Reports," and then select "Number of Institutions, Branches, and Total Offices." If you look at the trend in the number of bank branches, does the public currently appear to have more or less access to banking facilities? How many banks were there in 1934, and how many are there now? Does the graph indicate that the trend toward consolidation is continuing?