When you think about financial services, you probably picture banks, stockbrokers, and mortgage lenders. But there’s more to the industry than meets the eye—and it impacts everyone, including small businesses, large companies and even nonprofit organizations. Financial services include everything that has to do with money, from a personal loan to a venture capitalist providing funding for a new company.
A key part of financial services is insurance, which offers protection against both the risks of financial goods (like death or injury) and property loss or damage. These products include life, health, and car insurance, as well as specialized insurance like mortgage or renters’ insurance. In addition, the industry includes insurance brokerage firms that search for rates and underwriters who create policies.
Another key component of the industry is lending, which includes all types of loans, from personal to commercial. These loans are used for both investment and consumption purposes, with the latter including hire purchase and housing finance companies. These institutions encourage investment and savings through reinvestment of profits as well as promoting a credit culture.
The tertiary sector, or service sector, plays a significant role in the economic development of a country. It provides employment to a significant number of people and contributes significantly to GDP. In fact, it accounts for more than half of the economy in many developed countries. Besides this, it is also a source of foreign exchange earnings. This is mainly due to the high demand for the products of this sector in the international market.