Financial services are a broad category of businesses and organizations that offer products and services to help people make sound financial decisions. These include banks, investment firms, insurance companies, and more.
A good example of a financial service is PayPal, which offers money transfers and customer support. Many other companies provide these types of services, too.
The financial services industry is important to our economy because it makes sure that people have a safe place to save their money and borrow it when they need it. Without them, people wouldn’t be able to buy things they need or want.
It is also vital to our economy because it encourages economic growth. It also creates more demand for goods and services, boosting the economy’s productivity and creating a more vibrant society.
There are thousands of different financial services companies. Some are obvious (banks, mortgage lenders), but others may be more unexpected (PayPal’s customer service or dispute resolution departments).
Banks, for example, are depository institutions that accept deposits and provide loans and credit facilities. They sell a variety of investment products, including mutual funds and bonds.
Another area is securities research and broker services, which help investors by buying and selling securities on their behalf. These companies sometimes also offer investment consulting and financial advisory services.
Financial services is a lifecycle-based industry, so banks need to understand what products will be of most benefit to their customers at what stage of their lives. By using data to detect trends, they can predict these life moments and prepare a product or service that will be most useful at that time.