Toronto Dominion Bank Green Line Investor Services 1996 Case Solution

2. The market in North America, i.e. Canada for the discount brokerage is saturated. Green Line has almost 70% of the market share, which means that any further increase that it experiences in its market share will be a result of market growth and maturity, rather than an increase in the market share. In order to grow the market in northern America i.e. Canada, a green lien could focus on raising awareness and educating untapped groups as well as through enhancing its product offerings for the customers. This can be done using the internet to raise awareness through websites, as well as through easing the process of registering and trading through secure online websites (Arora & Fosfuri, 2004). The technological advancements and internet spread can facilitate not only the marketing but also operations of the Green Line company (Northcott, 2007). 

Globally, however, the discount brokerage continues to be an attractive and lucrative market for TD. This attractiveness lay in the fact that Green Line wished to expand to other markets to ensure its sustainability as well as expand its income streams. In this regard, the Asian continent, with markets of Japan and Taiwan reflected high opportunities because of deregulation of commissions in these countries. Similarly, the American market, which is sophisticated in itself with educated customers who have high levels of awareness also identifies high opportunities for Green Line to expand. However, expansion in the USA would require Green Line to observe customer behavior closely first in order to interact accordingly with them.

3. Yes, Green Line should try to expand its business globally at this time because of local market saturation. The expansion will allow Green Line to explore different markets, and generate alternate as well as multiple income streams. Moreover, it will allow it to broaden its vision, and grow strategically (Bhattacharya, Hemerling, & Waltermann, 2010). TD could also gain profitability through the expansion of the discount brokerage services –which had little room to grow in Canada. However, immediate expansion in initial phases in the USA could fire back at Green Line. Green Line has been involved in simplistic operations. The discount brokerage industry in the USA, however, was much evolved and sophisticated. In order to expand to the USA, Green Line would first require observing the USA discount brokerage market closely and making a note of consumer buying behavior. More importantly, Green Line would need to decide which tier it would place itself in when it entered. These decisions were pertinent as they would decide the brand image and positioning of Green Line. Initially, therefore, it is advised that Green Line try expanding to the Asian markets. This would allow green lien experience in global expansion, and would also familiarize it with the challenges of operating in a foreign market. Armed with this experience, it should then try to enter the American markets.

4. In order to assess the fit between Green Line and Waterhouse, it is important to first compare both on several grounds. Waterhouse had strong customer relationships, understood the American consumer behavior, and had been a leader in customer servicing. Green Line was similar in its attention to customers. Waterhouse also had strong marketing capabilities. Green Line could benefit from it and could expand its portfolio using the marketing capacities and expertise of Waterhouse. Another benefit posed by Waterhouse was that it was still growing and was gaining market share through penetration. This highlighted its ability to innovate and move forward, instead of staying stagnant.