Ethnicity and Choice Criteria in Retail Banking: A Malaysian Perspective

This exploratory research empirically investigates variation in bank choice criteria between three distinct culturalgroups in Malaysia, namely Malays, Chinese and Indians. The author predicted that, due to differences in valuesand lifestyles of the three ethnic groups, cultural differences would be observed in the level of importancemembers of each group attached to specific bank choice criteria. A quantitative methodology, using responsesgiven by 482 Malaysia’s undergraduates, is employed in the analysis. The results of this comparative analysisindicate that there is a difference in bank choice criteria based on ethnic backgrounds, and bank marketers cancapitalize on these differences, by identifying them and designing appropriate operations and marketingstrategies, leading to increased customer satisfaction and competitive advantage.