Business and Personal Finance Dictionary

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• FINANCIAL INSTITUTION
  
  Any institution that collects money from the public and puts it into assets such as stocks, bonds, bank deposits, or loans, rather than into tangible property (such as real estate or an automobile), is considered to be a financial institution. There are two types of financial institutions: Depository institutions, such as banks and credit unions, which pay you interest on your deposit and use the deposit to make loans, and nondepository institutions, such as insurance companies, brokerage firms, and mutual fund companies, which sell financial products. Many financial institutions provide services in both categories.
  
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