Work Environment
Financial examiners held about 70,800 jobs in 2020. 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 - 15%
- Federal government - 10%
- Management of companies and enterprises - 9%
- State government, excluding education and hospitals - 7%
Financial examiners typically work in offices. They frequently have to travel to inspect a bank onsite.
Work Schedules
Most financial examiners work full time.
Job Outlook
Employment of financial examiners is projected to grow 18 percent from 2020 to 2030, much faster than the average for all occupations.
About 6,900 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.
Employment
Demand for these workers has risen, particularly in the financial industry, because of the need for banking institutions to comply with federal regulation. More of these institutions are hiring financial examiners to help navigate the regulatory environment and reduce the cost of compliance.
At the federal level, budget constraints may limit employment growth in agencies such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
Earnings
The median annual wage for financial examiners was $81,410 in May 2021. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $48,830, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $160,850.
In May 2021, the median annual wages for financial examiners in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:
- Federal government - $125,840
- Securities, commodity contracts, and other financial investments and related activities - $101,770
- Management of companies and enterprises - $90,010
- State government, excluding education and hospitals - $81,220
- Credit intermediation and related activities - $77,030
Most financial examiners work full time.
