ABSTRACT
This chapter examines, from a historical perspective, the gradual entrance into the market by mutual banks (specifically savings and cooperative banks) and their continually increasing competitiveness with traded banks, in France, Italy and Spain. In all three countries, mutual institutions played an important role in the retail banking sector. Special attention will be devoted to analysing the different adjustment models adopted by the banking systems in the south of Europe in the wake of the deregulating process undertaken in the last quarter of the twentieth century. In summary, then, this paper is an attempt to identify the historical factors responsible for the persistence, or disappearance, of certain idiosyncratic aspects of the banking system in each country, together with the various adjustments produced in each case.
