What They Do
Financial examiners ensure compliance with laws that govern institutions handling monetary transactions. They review balance sheets, evaluate the risk level of loans, and assess bank management.
Duties
Financial examiners typically do the following:
- Monitor the condition of banks and other financial institutions
- Review balance sheets, operating income and expense accounts, and loan documentation to confirm an institution's assets and liabilities
- Prepare reports that detail an institution’s safety and soundness
- Examine the minutes of meetings of managers and directors
- Train other examiners in the financial examination process
- Review and analyze new regulations and policies to determine their impact on an institution
- Establish guidelines for procedures and policies that comply with new and revised regulations
Financial examiners typically work in one of two main areas: risk assessment or consumer compliance.
Those working in risk assessment evaluate the health of financial institutions. Their role is to ensure that banks and other financial institutions offer safe loans and that they have enough cash on hand to manage unexpected losses. These procedures help ensure that the financial system as a whole remains stable. These examiners also evaluate the performance of bank managers.
Financial examiners working in consumer compliance monitor lending activity to ensure that borrowers are treated fairly. They ensure that banks extend loans that borrowers are likely to be able to pay back. They help borrowers avoid “predatory loans”—loans that may generate profit for banks through high interest payments but may be costly to borrowers and damage their credit scores. Examiners also ensure that banks do not discriminate against borrowers based on race, ethnicity, or other characteristics.
Work Environment
Financial examiners held about 65,100 jobs in 2024. The largest employers of financial examiners were as follows:
| Credit intermediation and related activities | 42% |
| Securities, commodity contracts, and other financial investments and related activities | 14 |
| Federal government | 11 |
| State government, excluding education and hospitals | 9 |
| Management of companies and enterprises | 8 |
Financial examiners typically work in offices. They frequently have to travel to inspect a bank onsite.
Work Schedules
Most financial examiners work full time.
How to Become One
Financial examiners typically need a bachelor’s degree that includes some coursework in accounting. Entry-level examiners are trained on the job by senior examiners.
Pay
The median annual wage for financial examiners was $90,400 in May 2024.
Job Outlook
Employment of financial examiners is projected to grow 19 percent from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations.
About 5,700 openings for financial examiners are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.