Castigating banks is becoming an easy way to a populist headline. Banks have themselves to blame for that, reflecting their part in the global economic downturn. In the rush for scapegoats, however, there is a risk that truth gets obscured to no one’s advantage.

Healthy banks are an essential part of a healthy world economy. If banks are weakened, their customers suffer too – whether from savings at risk, loans not sustained or falling investment values and jobs at risk. In the same way, banks’ health is a direct reflection of their customers’ health. For every incautious loan there is an incautious borrower. Increased dependence on wholesale funding also reflected a lack of personal savings in our main economies.