While a staggering $23.7 trillion in assets sits in FDIC-insured banks and venture capital poured $170 billion into innovation last year, the true story of the US financial services industry is found in the dynamic tension between its immense scale and its rapid, often disruptive, evolution.
Key Takeaways
- As of Q4 2023, total assets held by all FDIC-insured institutions in the US stood at $23.7 trillion.
- In 2022, US commercial banks reported net income of $268.2 billion, up 24.2% from 2021.
- The delinquency rate on commercial real estate loans at FDIC-insured banks was 0.66% as of Q3 2023.
- In 2022, the US property-casualty insurance industry wrote $803 billion in premiums.
- Life insurance premiums in the US totaled $1.3 trillion in 2022.
- Health insurance accounted for 34% of total US insurance premiums in 2022.
- In 2022, US stock market capitalization reached $50.8 trillion.
- Total assets under management by US investment advisers were $130 trillion in 2022.
- NYSE listed 2,400 companies with market cap $27 trillion end-2022.
- The US fintech market size was valued at $1.1 trillion in revenue in 2022.
- Number of US fintech startups reached 12,000 in 2023.
- Digital payments volume in US hit $8.5 trillion in 2022.
- The financial services sector employed 6.6 million people in the US in 2022.
- Total revenue for US financial services reached $2.5 trillion in 2022.
- Banking subsector contributed $1.1 trillion to GDP in 2022.
The US financial sector is large, profitable, and vital to the national economy.
Banking
- As of Q4 2023, total assets held by all FDIC-insured institutions in the US stood at $23.7 trillion.
- In 2022, US commercial banks reported net income of $268.2 billion, up 24.2% from 2021.
- The delinquency rate on commercial real estate loans at FDIC-insured banks was 0.66% as of Q3 2023.
- US banks' return on average assets (ROAA) averaged 1.18% in 2022.
- Total deposits at US commercial banks grew to $17.9 trillion by end of 2022.
- Community banks (assets under $10B) numbered 4,562 as of 2023, holding 12% of industry assets.
- Nonperforming loans ratio at US banks was 0.85% in Q4 2022.
- US banks issued $1.2 trillion in new mortgages in 2022.
- Liquidity coverage ratio for large US banks averaged 140% in 2023.
- Total loans and leases at FDIC-insured banks reached $12.8 trillion in Q3 2023.
- Credit card loan delinquencies at banks hit 3.1% in Q3 2023.
- US banks' net interest margin was 3.25% in 2022.
- Number of FDIC-insured banks decreased to 4,577 in 2023 from 4,626 in 2022.
- Real estate loans comprised 62% of total bank loans in 2022.
- US banks' capital ratio (Tier 1) averaged 13.2% in Q3 2023.
- Commercial and industrial loans grew 5.2% year-over-year in Q3 2023.
- Bank failures in 2023 totaled 5, compared to 4 in 2022.
- Total equity capital at US banks was $2.1 trillion in Q4 2022.
- Consumer loan growth at banks was 4.8% in 2022.
- US banks' provision for loan losses was $112 billion in 2022.
- Multifamily residential loans at banks totaled $1.4 trillion in 2023.
- Banks' efficiency ratio averaged 58.4% in 2022.
- Total uninsured deposits at banks were 40% of total deposits in Q1 2023.
- Home equity loan balances grew 8% in 2022.
- US banks funded 75% of small business loans under $1 million in 2022.
- Net charge-offs at banks were 0.62% of loans in 2022.
- Agricultural loans at banks totaled $138 billion in Q3 2023.
- Banks' securities portfolio losses reached $500 billion unrealized in 2023.
- Total branches of US banks numbered 65,000 in 2023.
Banking Interpretation
While sitting on a gargantuan $23.7 trillion pile of assets, US banks in 2023 were a picture of robust, if slightly bloated, health, generating strong profits and capital ratios even as they grappled with the quiet creep of credit card delinquencies, a simmering $500 billion securities headache, and the slow, steady consolidation of their numbers.
Economic Impact
- The financial services sector employed 6.6 million people in the US in 2022.
- Total revenue for US financial services reached $2.5 trillion in 2022.
- Banking subsector contributed $1.1 trillion to GDP in 2022.
- Average salary in US financial services was $95,000 in 2023.
- Financial services accounted for 8.5% of US GDP in 2022.
- Insurance employment was 1.5 million jobs in 2022.
- Securities industry revenue totaled $500 billion in 2022.
- Fintech sector created 300,000 jobs since 2018.
- Tax revenue from financial services was $400 billion in 2022.
- Credit unions served 130 million members, employing 400,000 in 2023.
- Venture capital in financial services startups $25 billion in 2022.
- Financial services exports totaled $150 billion in services trade 2022.
- Small business employment in financial services 2 million in 2022.
- Diversity: Women held 52% of financial services jobs in 2022.
Economic Impact Interpretation
While managing over $2.5 trillion in revenue and providing for 6.6 million employees, America's financial engine proves it's not just about making money, but also about moving it, protecting it, and—as shown by women holding the majority of jobs—fundamentally reshaping who gets to run the show.
Fintech
- The US fintech market size was valued at $1.1 trillion in revenue in 2022.
- Number of US fintech startups reached 12,000 in 2023.
- Digital payments volume in US hit $8.5 trillion in 2022.
- Neobanks in US had 25 million users by 2023.
- Blockchain transaction volume in US financial services was $1.2 trillion in 2022.
- Robo-advisors managed $1.2 trillion AUM in US 2023.
- US BNPL transaction volume reached $24 billion in 2022.
- Cryptocurrency trading volume on US exchanges was $2.5 trillion in 2022.
- Open banking APIs in US numbered over 5,000 by 2023.
- Insurtech funding in US totaled $12 billion in 2022.
- Mobile wallet users in US reached 120 million in 2023.
- Regtech spending in US financial services was $3.8 billion in 2022.
- Peer-to-peer lending volume $15 billion in US 2022.
- Digital lending platforms approved 40% of US small business loans in 2023.
- US embedded finance market projected to $140 billion by 2026, valued $20B in 2022.
- Contactless payment share reached 55% of transactions in 2023.
- DeFi total value locked in US protocols $50 billion peak 2022.
- Fintech unicorns in US numbered 450 in 2023.
- Personal finance app downloads hit 500 million in US 2022.
Fintech Interpretation
While traditional finance still wears the suit, these numbers show its agile, digital twin—armed with 12,000 startups, 25 million neobank users, and a legion of apps—is not just knocking on the door but already inside, quietly moving trillions and redefining how America spends, saves, and invests.
Insurance
- In 2022, the US property-casualty insurance industry wrote $803 billion in premiums.
- Life insurance premiums in the US totaled $1.3 trillion in 2022.
- Health insurance accounted for 34% of total US insurance premiums in 2022.
- US insurers' combined ratio for property-casualty was 100.2% in 2022.
- Total US insurance industry assets reached $8.1 trillion in 2022.
- Auto insurance premiums grew 14% to $325 billion in 2022.
- Number of insurance companies in the US was 5,978 in 2022.
- Life insurers' investment yield averaged 4.2% in 2022.
- Catastrophe losses for P&C insurers hit $165 billion in 2022.
- Medicare Advantage enrollment reached 29 million in 2023.
- US health insurance premiums totaled $1.2 trillion in 2022.
- P&C insurers' policyholder surplus was $1.1 trillion end-2022.
- Group life insurance sales increased 5% to $18 billion in 2022.
- Homeowners insurance average premium rose 20% to $1,544 in 2022.
- US insurers paid $1.05 trillion in benefits in 2022.
- Cyber insurance premiums grew 25% to $7.4 billion in 2022.
- Annuity sales hit record $310 billion in 2022.
- Medical loss ratio for health insurers was 84.5% in 2022.
- Workers' compensation premiums were $62 billion in 2022.
- Disability income insurance claims averaged $5,200 per claim in 2022.
- US P&C loss adjustment expenses totaled $80 billion in 2022.
- Term life insurance policies in force numbered 49 million in 2022.
- Flood insurance policies covered 4.7 million properties in 2023.
- Reinsurance recoverables for US insurers were $500 billion in 2022.
- Long-term care insurance premiums totaled $12 billion in 2022.
- US insurers' net underwriting loss was $2.5 billion in 2022 for P&C.
- Individual health insurance enrollment was 15 million in 2023.
- Commercial mortgage insurance market size was $70 billion in 2022.
Insurance Interpretation
In the grand, expensive theater of American life, we paid trillions in premiums to insurers—who, armed with trillions in assets, barely broke even after battling a deluge of catastrophes and our relentless human need for care, homes, and cyber-secure cars.
Investments
- In 2022, US stock market capitalization reached $50.8 trillion.
- Total assets under management by US investment advisers were $130 trillion in 2022.
- NYSE listed 2,400 companies with market cap $27 trillion end-2022.
- Mutual fund assets totaled $19.1 trillion in US as of 2023.
- ETF assets under management hit $7.7 trillion in 2022.
- US venture capital investment was $170 billion in 2022.
- Private equity dry powder reached $2.1 trillion globally, US share 55% in 2023.
- Hedge fund industry AUM was $4.3 trillion in US 2022.
- IPO proceeds in US totaled $23 billion in 2022.
- Bond market size in US was $46 trillion outstanding in 2022.
- Retirement assets in US reached $38.4 trillion in Q4 2022.
- Defined contribution plan assets grew 5% to $9.6 trillion in 2022.
- US corporate bond issuance was $1.8 trillion in 2022.
- Municipal bond outstanding debt totaled $4 trillion in 2023.
- SPAC IPOs raised $13 billion in 2022, down from 2021 peak.
- US M&A deal value was $1.3 trillion in 2022.
- 401(k) average balance was $112,400 per participant in 2022.
- Treasury securities outstanding $24 trillion in 2023.
- Mortgage-backed securities issuance $2.1 trillion in 2022.
- US stock trading volume averaged 12 billion shares daily in 2022.
- Broker-dealer net capital was $650 billion in 2022.
Investments Interpretation
The sheer weight of these numbers—from the dizzying $130 trillion stewarded by advisers to the modest $112,400 average 401(k)—paints a picture of a financial ecosystem that is both colossal in its scale and intimate in its impact, proving that the market is a beast of astronomic proportions that we all, somehow, must try to feed.
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