在欧洲危机中盛开的小银行

    希尔预测，到今年年底Metro的存款额将达到9亿美元。但这只是一个开始。他的目标是在大伦敦区开设200家分支机构，取得5%的市场占有率，这大约是2005年左右Commerce在纽约大都会地区的占有率。为此，现有存款需要膨胀约90倍至约800亿美元，是Commerce售予Toronto Dominion 时规模的两倍。对希尔而言，银行业大把的钱来自于低成本存款的累积。梅里迪斯•惠特尼表示，“弗农基于服务的模式重塑了美国银行业，在英国也有望如此。”

    希尔心爱的约克郡特里尔杜菲尔德（昵称杜菲）在Metro营销活动中占据主导地位。“杜菲会在银行开业时露脸，但它不喜欢奖给狗狗的小食，”希尔说，他承认杜菲吃的是羊排和烟熏大马哈鱼。因此，希尔在给爱狗的顾客分发三种狗食小样，请他们投票，他们的宠物最喜欢哪种，将来他将在分支机构提供最受欢迎的狗狗小食。“有意思的是在这里，狗狗真的能投票，”希尔表示。

    伦敦也在投票，人们正在走向这些装饰着红色大M的玻璃屋，希望获得前所未有的、欢乐轻松的银行服务。

    译者：早稻米

    Hill predicts that Metro will reach $900 million in deposits by year-end. But that's just the beginning. He's aiming to open 200 branches in Greater London, and capture 5% of the market, about the share Commerce held in metro New York in the mid-2000s. That would swell the current level of deposits by around 90 times, to an estimated $80 billion, double the size at Commerce when it sold to Toronto Dominion. And for Hill, the big money in banking is in accumulating low-cost deposits. Says Meredith Whitney, "Vernon's service-based model reinvented retail banking in America and is on the same path in Britain."

    Hill's beloved Yorkshire terrier, Sir Duffield, or Duffy for short, plays a central role in Metro's marketing. "Duffy shows up at openings, but he didn't like the dog treats," says Hill, who confesses that Duffy dines on rack of lamb and smoked salmon. So Hill is handing out three samples of treats to his dog-loving customers, and asking them to vote on which one their pets like best. He'll offer the most popular treat at the branches. "The beauty of it is that the dogs are really voting," declares Hill.

    Londoners are voting too, by heading for those big glass cubes decorated with the giant red M for a treat they never expected, the festive, fun side of banking.