US giants -- Citibank, Merrill Lynch, Smith Barney and Chase -- might be revered as big daddies of the banking and financial service space here in India, but consumers in their own homeland consider them 'below average'.
In a survey conducted by global research firm Forrester, the US consumers have given a below-average rank to Citibank, Chase, Merrill Lynch, Nationwide Mutual Insurance, Smith Barney and SunTrust on most of the value and service fronts.
Citibank and Merrill Lynch have a strong presence in India across various verticals of the financial services market, while a number of other US-based banking majors have expressed their intention to expand their footprint into the country.
However, insurance giant MetLife and investment firm Fidelity, which are also present in India, scored better with an 'average' ranking on most of the value and service fronts.
The results of the Forrester Research survey come in sharp contrast to the respect held by the global banks and financial institutions among the Indian consumers for the value offered and services provided.
Forrester said credit unions, Edward Jones and USAA were at the top of the list on both value and service fronts when it asked the consumers to rate their primary bank, investment firms and insurers.
Ameriprise Financial, American Family Insurance and State Farm were the other firms with above-average scores on most of the criteria, among the 30 different financial institutions analysed by the research firm.
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