SelectUSA Financial Services Industry
Industry Overview
Financial markets in the United States are the largest and most liquid in the world. In 2023, finance and insurance represented 7.3 percent of U.S. gross domestic product. Leadership in this large, high-growth sector translates into substantial economic activity and direct and indirect job creation in the United States.
Financial services and products help facilitate and finance the export of U.S. manufactured goods and agricultural products. In 2023, the United States exported $175.5 billion in financial services and $25.0 billion in insurance services. In 2023, total foreign direct investment in the U.S. industry reached $573.8 billion. As of mid-2024, the financial services and insurance sectors employ more than 6.7 million people. In 2022, FDI supported around 423,000 jobs in this industry.
Investment in the U.S. financial services industry offers significant advantages for financial firms. Many companies in Fortune’s Global 500 listing have chosen to locate their headquarters in the United States to take advantage of its creative, competitive, and comprehensive financial services sector. The industry offers the greatest array of financial instruments and products to allow consumers to manage risk, create wealth, and meet financial needs.
By the end of 2023, the U.S. banking system had $23.7 trillion in assets and a quarterly net income of $38.4 billion. The sector supports the world’s largest economy with the greatest diversity in banking institutions and concentration of private credit anywhere in the world. In 2022, there were 109,816 establishments in this industry.
As of mid-2024, the industry employed over 1.7 million workers. In 2022, FDI directly supported 84,100 jobs in the industry.
The U.S. asset management subsector is unrivaled in its depth and diversity. At the close of 2023, global assets earmarked for retirement amounted to $53.1 trillion, an increase of more than 8% compared to 2022 year-end pension asset amounts. U.S. retirement assets comprised 72.3% of the OECD total, or $38 trillion, at year-end 2023. In 2022, US retirement assets amounted to $37.8 trillion. The largest components of retirement assets were Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and employer-sponsored Defined Contribution (DC) plans (which include 401(k) plans). Together IRAs and DCs represented 63% of all retirement market assets at year-end 2022. There were 83,954 establishments in this industry as of 2022. Employment figures from mid-2024 estimate that approximately 642,000 workers are employed in this industry.
In 2023, the combined total direct premiums in the United States was $1.9 trillion. According to NAIC data, premiums recorded by life and health insurers accounted for 56%, and premiums by property and casualty insurers accounted for 42%. International insurance companies are actively seeking business partnerships and collaborations with U.S. insurance companies. Foreign direct investment in this industry totaled $195.6 billion in 2023. In 2022, FDI supported 178,900 jobs in the industry. There were 180,971 establishments in this industry in 2022. As of mid-2024, there were over 3 million workers employed in this industry in the United States.
The United States is the birthplace of the global venture capital (VC) industry, and it continues to support many of our most innovative companies. In 2023, the U.S. VC ecosystem had 3,417 VC firms that raised nearly $67 billion across 474 funds. One study found that VC-backed companies account for 92% of national research and development. These companies have historically generated revenue equal to 21% of U.S. GDP. Employment figures from mid-2024 estimate 36,100 workers are employed in this industry. There were 11,596 establishments in this industry in 2022.
U.S. private equity firms directly generated 6.5% of total U.S. gross domestic product in 2022. The private equity industry in the United States comprises nearly 5,000 investment firms and 18,000 private equity-backed U.S. companies. Overall, in 2022, U.S. private equity firms employ 12 million people in the United States. The latest employment figures from mid-2024 estimate the industry directly employs over 513,000 workers in portfolio management.
Explore the impact of foreign direct investment on U.S. jobs, exports, and innovation in the financial services industry.
The Investor Guide is a high-level view of everything from taxes to immigration and workforce to business structures.
SelectUSA has created several dashboards to help analyze key FDI data from a variety of sources.
