After the withdrawal of UK banks from the custody market during the mid-1990s, which left HSBC as the only British player, and the introduction in 1996 of Crest, the UK settlement system, the market had high hopes. The theory went that fewer providers would lead to higher quality as more revenue was available for reinvestment. It was also hoped that the market would rid itself of some of its more idiosyncratic practices.

However, disappointment followed. Although the UK banks decided not to try to compete with the Americans and Crest led to many firms self-clearing rather than using an intermediary, the number of suppliers did not decline significantly.