51.   If a large customer is late in making payment, a firm may be unable to pay its suppliers unless it has spare liquidity.

52.   Banks may vary their prudential ratio, depending on how much cash they anticipate customers are likely to need in the near future.

53.   And at the same time to quote Bomber Harris, the customer is seldom wrong.

54.   Contracts for services are commonly personal as in such circumstances the customer is likely to have relied upon the individual skill and identity of the vendor.

55.   This in turn led to criticism of the length and complexity of documents that customers were being asked to sign.

56.   Consequently a customer is, in general terms, quite simply a client, subject to the express provisions of the COB Rules and the question of mere counterparties.

57.   However, if the customer is in the UK, certain specified marketing and related record-keeping rules will apply.

58.   Potential customers are to be treated as actual customers.

59.   In the application of COB Rules under the foreign business carve-out as such, the relevant test is whether the customer is physically in the UK.

60.   For example, where a customer is experienced and familiar with transactions on the relevant market a lower level of disclosure may suffice.