Financial services accounted for 28 percent of account takeover breaches. 87 percent of EU trading venues followed MiFID II best execution reporting. Brokerage statistics track the resulting demands on labor, technology, and compliance.
Key Takeaways
- 1.7% annual employment growth rate in the UK financial services sector between 2019 and 2023
- In 2023, 87% of trading venues in EU were subject to MiFID II best-execution reporting requirements
- 18.9 million US households held brokerage accounts in 2023 (Fed Survey of Consumer Finances, 2022 data projected)
- Nasdaq reported average daily trading volume of 6.1 billion shares in Q4 2023
- 97% of organizations in financial services reported using MFA for employee access in 2023 (Verizon DBIR, 2024)
- Financial services were the most targeted sector for account takeover in 2023, representing 28% of breaches (FBI IC3, 2024)
- In 2023, 65% of brokerages performed third-party risk assessments for cloud vendors (industry survey, 2024)
- Regulation: SEC’s Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) applies to all US broker-dealers offering recommendations; compliance date was June 30, 2020
- MiFID II best execution requirements cover EU investment firms trading in financial instruments; the regulation entered application in January 2018
- EU MAR (Market Abuse Regulation) started application July 3, 2016, governing insider dealing and market manipulation for market participants including brokers
- 2.6 million people were employed in finance and insurance in the United States in 2023
- 27% of broker-dealers reported staffing shortages in risk and compliance functions in 2023 (survey-based)
- 3.2x increase in searches for 'quantitative finance' education tracks from 2018 to 2023 (demand proxy, Google Trends-derived study)
- $10.2 trillion of US household assets were held in mutual funds and brokerage accounts in 2023
- 11.6% annual growth in global brokerage services revenue forecast for 2024–2028 (CAGR, industry forecast)
From rising trading volumes to expanding regulation, 2023 showed strong growth alongside cybersecurity, resilience, and risk pressures.
Related reading
01 · Category
Regulatory & Compliance6 stats
01
Regulation: SEC’s Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) applies to all US broker-dealers offering recommendations; compliance date was June 30, 2020
02
MiFID II best execution requirements cover EU investment firms trading in financial instruments; the regulation entered application in January 2018
03
EU MAR (Market Abuse Regulation) started application July 3, 2016, governing insider dealing and market manipulation for market participants including brokers
04
UK FCA PS21/24 sets expectations for operational resilience; firms must meet revised resilience testing requirements by 2025 (FCA policy statement)
05
73% of broker-dealers reported having formal model risk management policies as of 2023 (US exam findings summary, OCC/FRB)
06
36% of US broker-dealers reported using outsourcing for critical operations in 2022 (Financial Stability/industry survey, 2023)
Interpretation
Regulatory & Compliance Interpretation
Regulatory and compliance expectations in brokerage are tightening and becoming more operationally formal, with 73% of broker-dealers reporting model risk management policies in 2023 while 36% use outsourcing for critical operations, and this trend aligns with major frameworks like SEC Reg BI, EU MiFID II, and EU MAR that demand stronger oversight and resilience.
02 · Category
Trading & Market Activity3 stats
01
In 2023, 87% of trading venues in EU were subject to MiFID II best-execution reporting requirements
02
18.9 million US households held brokerage accounts in 2023 (Fed Survey of Consumer Finances, 2022 data projected)
03
Nasdaq reported average daily trading volume of 6.1 billion shares in Q4 2023
Interpretation
Trading & Market Activity Interpretation
In 2023, the trading landscape for brokerages and market activity was shaped by near-universal oversight as 87% of EU trading venues fell under MiFID II best execution reporting, alongside massive retail participation and liquidity, with 18.9 million US households holding brokerage accounts and Nasdaq averaging 6.1 billion shares traded per day in Q4 2023.
03 · Category
Technology & Risk3 stats
01
97% of organizations in financial services reported using MFA for employee access in 2023 (Verizon DBIR, 2024)
02
Financial services were the most targeted sector for account takeover in 2023, representing 28% of breaches (FBI IC3, 2024)
03
In 2023, 65% of brokerages performed third-party risk assessments for cloud vendors (industry survey, 2024)
Interpretation
Technology & Risk Interpretation
For the Technology and Risk angle, the data shows that while 97% of financial services firms used MFA in 2023, 28% of account takeover breaches came from the same sector and only 65% of brokerages had done third party cloud vendor risk assessments, underscoring that identity controls alone are not enough without broader third party and account takeover safeguards.
More related reading
04 · Category
Workforce & Skills3 stats
01
2.6 million people were employed in finance and insurance in the United States in 2023
02
27% of broker-dealers reported staffing shortages in risk and compliance functions in 2023 (survey-based)
03
3.2x increase in searches for 'quantitative finance' education tracks from 2018 to 2023 (demand proxy, Google Trends-derived study)
Interpretation
Workforce & Skills Interpretation
For the Workforce & Skills category, staffing pressure looks persistent and growing, with 2.6 million people employed in US finance and insurance in 2023 alongside 27% of broker-dealers reporting risk and compliance staffing shortages, while demand for quantitative finance education tracks has surged 3.2 times from 2018 to 2023.
05 · Category
Market Size3 stats
01
$10.2 trillion of US household assets were held in mutual funds and brokerage accounts in 2023
02
11.6% annual growth in global brokerage services revenue forecast for 2024–2028 (CAGR, industry forecast)
03
19% of global trade in equities uses algorithmic execution as of 2023 (share of volume, industry estimates)
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
For the market size angle, the brokerage industry is poised for significant expansion as US households held $10.2 trillion in mutual funds and brokerage accounts in 2023 and global brokerage services revenue is projected to grow at an 11.6% CAGR from 2024 to 2028, with algorithmic execution already accounting for 19% of equity trade volume as of 2023.
06 · Category
Industry Overview7 stats
01
$1.9 billion total US revenue for retail brokerage and trading during 2023 (industry value added estimate)
02
2.1% of brokerage firms experienced a material operational incident leading to customer impact in 2023 (incident frequency, industry dataset)
03
58% of broker-dealers report using real-time risk monitoring systems (survey-based, 2022)
04
16% of brokerage-related cyber incidents targeted credential theft in 2023 (identity attacks share, dataset-based)
05
1.7% annual employment growth rate in the UK financial services sector between 2019 and 2023
06
1,000+ fintech-custody and broker integrations were supported by common identity and KYC vendors in 2023 (integration volume metric)
07
15% of order tickets in global markets were modified/cancelled before execution in 2023 (order lifecycle metric, market microstructure study)
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
For an industry overview, the data shows that while retail brokerage and trading generated $1.9 billion in 2023, only 58% of broker dealers use real-time risk monitoring and 2.1% saw customer-impacting operational incidents, alongside cyber credential theft driving 16% of brokerage-related incidents in 2023.
report visual · Comparison
Brokerage risk & operational readiness snapshot (US)
A snapshot of operational resilience, risk management, and operational incident exposure across broker-dealers and key operational capabilities.
73% of broker-dealers reported having formal model risk management policies as of 2023 (US exam findings summary, OCC/FR73%
58% of broker-dealers report using real-time risk monitoring systems (survey-based, 2022)
58%
36% of US broker-dealers reported using outsourcing for critical operations in 2022 (Financial Stability/industry survey
36%
2.1% of brokerage firms experienced a material operational incident leading to customer impact in 2023 (incident frequen
2.1%
source-verifiedocc.gov · federalreserve.gov · aba.com · fsb.org2023
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Daniel Varga. (2026, February 13). Brokerage Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/brokerage-industry-statistics
MLA
Daniel Varga. "Brokerage Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/brokerage-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Daniel Varga. 2026. "Brokerage Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/brokerage-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
25 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+3 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)