The banking industry has come under fire the last 5 years because of the sub-prime mortgage crisis they caused. In reality, however, just about everyone still utilizes the banking industry every day in some way.
Economic Role of the Banking Industry
The banking industry is responsible for nearly 2 million full time jobs.
Why do we utilize banks so often when all they seem to do is take our money that we’re trying to save? Because banks help us finance projects, buy cars, and make access to our money easy through the use of debit and credit cards. Just as we take risks by utilizing a bank for our cash, these banking industry statistics prove that banks take on some risks as well.
Interesting Banking Industry Facts
1. The banking industry charged off over $65 billion in bad debt in 2013.
2. Only $16 billion of bad debt was recovered by the banking industry in 2013.
3. The biggest category of charge-offs for the banking industry was in credit card debt, as banks lost $25 billion in this unsecured debt.
Takeaway: Even though the banking industry is blamed for creating the real estate financing mess, the truth is that consumers are responsible for losing nearly half of the amount of bad debt that banks charged off in 2013. It goes to show that the banking industry relies on a certain level of trust that consumers will follow through with their responsibilities. It also becomes understandable as to why the banking industry has tightened up their qualification requirements for all lines of credit.
Interesting Banking Industry Statistics
1. The banking industry paid over $64 billion in taxes on interest revenues in 2013.
2. The overall tax rate paid on banking income in 2013 was over 25%.
3. Even with charge-offs, bad debts, and taxes paid, the banking industry in the United States made over $140 billion in operating profits.
4. Of this income, $32 billion of it originated from service charges placed on individual account holders on their deposit accounts.
5. $78 billion was made through cash dividends from stock investments made by the banking industry.
6. Banks loaned out a total of $7 trillion in 2013 to consumers, with nearly one third that amount being in the form of residential real estate loans.
7. In total, over $620 billion was made available for credit card use in 2013.
8. Only $70 billion of the total trillions in real estate loans were granted for properties outside the United States.
Takeaway: There is a lot of debt being made by Americans every day. A lot could be said about a $16 trillion Federal debt that has been generated over the course of a century, but the general American public will have that much debt extended to them in just 2.5 years! Without the banking industry, the current way of life that so many enjoy just wouldn’t be possible. On the other hand, the banking industry statistics prove that it’s also time to start paying debt off.
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