Describe the role of commercial banks in the global financial sector. Provide a brief description of the activities performed by three different types of commercial banks

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Banks are important players in the global financial sector. They raise funds by attracting deposits, borrowing money in the interbank market, or issuing financial instruments in the global money market or securities markets. Commercial banks circulate money and engage in a wide range of international financial transactions.
Investment banks underwrite (guarantee the sale of) stock and bond issues and advise on mergers such as the merger of Goldman Sachs in the United States and Nomura Securities in Japan. Merchant banks provide capital to firms in the form of shares rather than loans. They are essentially investment banks especially equipped to handle international operations. The Arab-Malaysian Merchant Bank is an example. Offshore banks are located in jurisdictions with low taxation and regulation, such as Switzerland or Bermuda. Banco General in Panama and Bank of Nova Scotia in the British Virgin Islands are examples.