Three models of the bank's fiduciary duty

Legal systems impose varying degrees of fiduciary duty on the banks. This paper analyses three models, thereby pointing out the differences between them. First, the Anglo-American model, which does not inherently consider the bank-customer relationship as a fiduciary one, yet it states exceptions to the rule. Second, the continental European model, that defines specific cases in which a fiduciary relationship exists. Third, the Israeli model, which applies the fiduciary duty to the bank-customer relationship as a whole and therefore states the widest standard of conduct for the banks. This paper concludes that a certain harmonization of the principle would be beneficial to the financial markets.