Each day billions of dollars in financial transactions occur across the United States and the globe. People purchase goods and services, and companies accept funds from buyers. Manufacturers purchase supplies and provide their workers with paychecks. The world runs on a monetary-based system, and banks and financial service companies provide needed monetary services.
The industry can be divided into two large segments: banking services companies and investment services companies, although there is some overlap between the two segments. In general, though, banks focus primarily on providing their customers with traditional banking services such as checking and savings accounts, credit cards, and similar services, while financial services companies focus more on investment products and asset protection.
