Financial services are all about managing money and the tools people use to make it grow. This includes everything from personal finance (saving, investing, and borrowing) to the larger financial system that enables economic growth through investments and currency exchanges.
It’s a very broad industry, so it isn’t surprising that there are a number of different types of jobs within this sector. In addition to banking, credit unions and building societies, there are investment management firms, mortgage providers, private equity funds, credit card companies like Visa and MasterCard, and many more.
Insurance is also a huge part of this sector and is probably the best known. It provides a safety net for people and their families against the costs of large, often unforeseen expenses. This includes health, life, home, and auto insurance. There are even reinsurers, which are in the business of selling insurance to other insurers to protect them from catastrophic losses.
There are a lot of different sectors that fall under the umbrella term “financial services.” At one time, each of these segments stuck to its niche: Banks offered checking and savings accounts; loan associations provided mortgages and personal loans; brokerage firms offered investment opportunities in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other securities; and credit card companies issued their cards. Nowadays, though, many of these firms have started offering more and more products in order to keep up with consumer demand. As a result, the lines between these different financial service sectors have blurred.
