Commercial Banks NAICS 522110
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Industry Summary
The 4,260 commercial banks in the US earn money by lending money at higher interest rates than the interest they pay to depositors. They may also earn money from fees and interest on credit card services, returns on investments in securities, fees for investment services, fees for treasury management services, and other account fees.
Burden of Regulatory Compliance Costs
The banking industry is highly regulated and regulations increased significantly following the financial crisis of 2008.
Fintech Competition Forces Innovation
Banks are seeing new competition from fintech start-ups, which have received tens of billions of dollars in venture capital funding over the past five years.
Recent Developments
May 8, 2025 - Cybersecurity Protection Cited As Top Banking Priority
- While AI integration remains a top priority for the commercial banking industry, the more immediate need is investing in cybersecurity systems to combat fraud, according to the KPMG 2025 Banking Technology Survey. About 89% of surveyed bank executives cited fraud protection and security as their top investment strategies this year, while GenAI enablement fell in importance. Roughly 75% of surveyed bankers noted an increase in cyber attacks in the last year. However, when asked about priorities over a longer three year period, the numbers essentially reversed with 67% citing AI integration as most important. The main operational areas targeted for increased use of AI in the industry included online and mobile banking, and chatbots and virtual assistants to handle more customer service tasks. Key drivers cited by respondents for technological modernization in banking were regulatory compliance (83%) and operational efficiency (80%).
- Net income for the banking industry rose to $286.2 billion for the year 2024, a 5.6% increase from the prior period, but still well below pre-pandemic levels, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). One-time events during the year resulted in lower expenses, higher noninterest income, and smaller losses on securities. Community banks, though, saw a 2.4% net income dip for the year to $29.5 billion - largely due to higher noninterest expenses (up 6.1%) and higher provision expenses (up 20%). Those expenses, among other losses, took a bite out of community banking’s $2.2 billion in net interest income and $1.1 billion in noninterest income.
- The number of FDIC-insured commercial banks in the US decreased in 2024, resuming its downward trend after a one year reversal when the number of banks increased. Overall, total FDIC-insured commercial banks have decreased about 72% since 1984, with mergers and acquisitions being the primary cause. There were 4,487 FDIC-insured commercial banks at the end of 2024, down 30 institutions from 2023. The number of employees in the banking industry increased during the last two decades despite the decreasing number of banks during the time period.
- Commercial banking industry employment decreased slightly while wages for nonsupervisory employees increased slightly during the first nine months of 2024, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Commercial banks slightly increased their prices during the first nine months of 2024, according to the BLS. Commercial banking industry sales are forecast to grow at a 3.99% compounded annual rate from 2024 to 2028, comparable to the growth of the overall economy, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc.
Industry Revenue
Commercial Banks
Industry Structure
Industry size & Structure
The average commercial bank has 328 employees and generates $130 million in annual revenue.
- There are 4,260 FDIC-insured commercial banks in the US. FDIC-insured banks have around 1.4 million employees, over $566 billion in annual revenue.
- The FDIC-insured commercial banks in the US hold almost $24 trillion in assets.
- There are about 4,560 FDIC-insured community banks that serve local markets and typically have less than $1 billion in assets. These community banks have over 392,700 employees and $2.5 trillion in assets.
- There are 776 FDIC-insured commercial banks with $1 billion to $10 billion in assets.
- There are 138 FDIC-insured commercial banks with $10 billion to $250 billion in assets.
- There are 13 FDIC-insured commercial banks with over $250 billion in assets. These banks are defined as systemically important financial institutions (SIFI) under the revisions to the Dodd-Frank Act and are subject to more stringent regulation.
- The largest US commercial banks by assets are JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, US Bancorp, TD Group US Holdings, and PNC Financial Services Group.
Industry Forecast
Industry Forecast
Commercial Banks Industry Growth
Source: Vertical IQ and Inforum
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