A $50,000 electric bill? The cost of cooling L.A.’s biggest houses in a heat wave that broke a world record? A family’s vacation in Paris and a vacation in Mexico? A hundred-million-dollar car loan and a bank loan for a car?
All of these were part of the financial services industry’s latest quarterly report on its top clients:
The U.S. banking and finance industry generated $1.6 trillion in revenue last year, and the fourth-highest total for any industry in the world. But the industry also generated massive profits that more than offset its costs. Some of the largest banks and other financial services firms combined to make at least $160 billion in profit over the past year, with those profits making up a large part of their bank income.
Some of the largest banks and other financial services firms combined to make at least $160 billion in profit over the past year, with those profits making up a large part of their bank income. The U.S. financial crisis that began in late 2008 resulted in the loss of many of these firms, but not all. Despite the fallout from the crisis, some of the largest financial services firms continued to gain market share, and their profits went up.
Despite the fallout from the crisis, some of the largest financial services firms continued to gain market share, and their profits went up. The massive U.S. housing bubble that burst in mid-2006 resulted in another major financial services industry recession, bringing record profits in some industries in a single quarter (and in others several times over).
The massive U.S. housing bubble that burst in mid-2006 resulted in another major financial services industry recession, bringing record profits in some industries in a single quarter (and in others several times over). The global financial crisis and its aftermath resulted in a global economic meltdown that cost U.S. firms tens of trillions of dollars—with many firms taking the hits far more than they would have if they hadn’t made their huge bets on risky derivatives.
But the top U.S. financial services firms didn’t only make
