But the Japanese banks can rely on huge deposits at home to create volume discounts.

The truth is that banks have been relying on homeowners to do the right thing.

Both the fair trade movement and ethical banks rely on people to pay extra for known ethical goods.

Big banks rely on forecasts to decide how to transfer checks through the clearing system.

She said minority rejection rates were higher because banks rely on answers to standardized loan applications.

By contrast, banks rely on deposits for the money they lend.

"The banks cannot rely on that traditional business anymore."

In short, banks normally rely on unsecured loans for their long-term funding but that source is drying up.

To help support their capital base, big banks in many cases rely on unrealized gains from stocks bought years ago.

In those countries, including the United States, banks rely heavily on the higher profits to accumulate a cushion against hard times.