Wal Mart could revolutionize banking the same way they did retailing, as a low-price leader. This has banks scrambling to prevent Wal Mart from becoming a full fledged bank. However, Wal Mart has already opened hundreds of Money Centers with store locations where customers can cash checks and receive money orders. Wal Mart, not surprisingly, has undercut its competition with lower fees for these services.  The corporation recently announced plans to open another 400 Money Centers in the coming months.  Recently, Wal Mart also purchased a minority stake in Greendot, provider of Greendot MoneyPaks as a way to reload prepaid cards.

Wal Mart is currently prevented from offering checking accounts. But it recently made some technical moves that could potentially allow it to make loans and accept savings deposits.

According to an MSN Money article, the potential benefits of Wal Mart’s competition against banks and check cashing businesses include:

But imagine for a moment if the world’s biggest retailer put the pricing squeeze on one of the world’s more profitable businesses: financial services. Who would pay the price? Perhaps:

• Mortgage lenders who surprise their borrowers with last-minute junk fees.
• Banks that nickel and dime their small account holders to death.
• Auto lenders who add discriminatory surcharges on loans to black and Hispanic buyers.
• Credit card companies that use every excuse to jack up rates.

Check cashers and payday lenders that levy usurious charges on their customers.