Careers in Financial Services

Financial services are the companies that help customers manage money and make better decisions about spending, saving, borrowing, and investing. This category encompasses a wide range of businesses, from banks and credit unions to credit card companies and retirement providers. It also includes financial market utilities, like exchanges that facilitate stock, derivative, and commodity trading; debt resolution services; and payment systems such as real-time gross settlement (RTGS) networks and interbank platforms.

The success of financial services depends on the confidence that customers place in the industry. For example, purchasers of life insurance expect that their policy will pay out if they die, and they count on financial institutions to act in a responsible manner and not to cheat them out of their investments or their inheritances. For this reason, most countries have regulators that oversee the provision of financial services.

As the economy grows, more people save and invest. They need to be able to access and understand their money, so they can make good decisions about how to spend it, save for the future, and insure themselves against risk. To achieve this, financial services companies must offer the right products at the right price and in a customer-centric way.

A career in financial services can be very rewarding. It requires a wide range of skills, from the ability to build relationships to the technical knowledge of accounting and law. It’s important to choose a career path that suits your strengths and interests. While a degree can give you the edge in some roles, it’s not always necessary. Many companies, such as investment firms or banks, will provide extensive training and mentoring to get you started.