Tesco Bank - no contest?

Just picking on points in a Guardian article yesterday (a compelling template!), shows why traditional banks are going to experience a major wake-up call, and will be forced to 'get it' by a customer-focused shopkeeper, doing everything they don't…

• 'We do not need (Northern Rock's customers or brand)'
• plans to build a new full-service bank offering current accounts, mortgages and, in time, small business banking facilities
• it is likely to charge a small monthly current account fee and offer Clubcard loyalty points for those using its debit cards
• "We have a great brand and a great relationship with our customers"
• "we have stores where there are lots of people"
• (Tesco) could cash in on the upheaval coming to the bank sector as customers reassess what they want
• "Our competitors will be busy looking inwards when we are looking outwards."
• "There is a real gap in the market to look after customers in a simple straightforward way and reward their loyalty,"
• "In financial services, being simple and straightforward is not common"
• What bank customers want is "to be treated like grown-ups"
• "We have got to make money, but let's do it in a transparent way."
• (Tesco) do not want to punish account holders who "make the odd mistake" and go overdrawn by accident
• Neither do they want to copy the traditional banks' "sneaky ways of imposing charges"
• The retailer intends to mine the information it holds on its Clubcard database to pull in new customers for the bank
• "When we have the UK established, we will try and do financial services in all our markets"

In other words, if Tesco even get this half right, combined with their 'boxes' efficiencies, then traditional banking had better be afraid, very afraid….