Financial services are the economic services provided by Real Time Accounts and Financial Services , which encompasses a broad range of businesses that manage money, including credit unions, banks, insurance companies, accountancy companies, stock, brokerages, investment funds, individual managers and some government-sponsored enterprises. Financial services companies are present in all economically developed geographic locations and tend to cluster in local, national, regional and international financial centres’.
INVESTMENT BANKING SERVICES
• Capital-markets services – underwriting debt and equity, assist company deals (advisory services, underwriting, mergers and acquisitions and advisory fees), and restructure debt into structured finance products.
• Brokerage services – facilitating the buying and selling of financial securities between a buyer and a seller. Stock brokers generally require commissions or other charges for brokerage services.
• Private banking – Private banks provide banking services exclusively to high-net-worth individuals. Many financial services firms require a person or family to have a certain minimum net worth to qualify for private banking service. Private banks often provide more personal services, such as wealth management and tax planning, than normal retail banks.
INVESTMENT SERVICES
• Investment management – the term usually given to describe companies which run collective investment funds. Also refers to services provided by others, generally registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as Registered Investment Advisors. Investment banking financial services focus on creating capital through client investments.
• Hedge fund management – Hedge funds often employ the services of “prime brokerage” divisions at major investment banks to execute their trades.
• Custody services – the safe-keeping and processing of the world’s securities trades and servicing the associated portfolios. Assets under custody in the world are approximately US$100 trillion