Business & Finance
Financial Examiners
Also called: Bank Examiner, Bank Secrecy Act Anti-Money Laundering Officer (BSA/AML Officer), Community Reinvestment Act Officer (CRA Officer), Compliance Analyst
US median pay
$94,160
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+9.3%
faster than average
Openings a year (US)
4,500
70,000 employed
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
Preparation 4/5 · Considerable preparation
What this job is
Enforce or ensure compliance with laws and regulations governing financial and securities institutions and financial and real estate transactions. May examine, verify, or authenticate records.
What they do day to day
- Direct and participate in formal and informal meetings with bank directors, trustees, senior management, counsels, outside accountants, and consultants to gather information and discuss findings.
- Recommend actions to ensure compliance with laws and regulations, or to protect solvency of institutions.
- Prepare reports, exhibits, and other supporting schedules that detail an institution's safety and soundness, compliance with laws and regulations, and recommended solutions to questionable financial conditions.
- Resolve problems concerning the overall financial integrity of banking institutions including loan investment portfolios, capital, earnings, and specific or large troubled accounts.
- Investigate activities of institutions to enforce laws and regulations and to ensure legality of transactions and operations or financial solvency.
- Review balance sheets, operating income and expense accounts, and loan documentation to confirm institution assets and liabilities.
- Plan, supervise, and review work of assigned subordinates.
- Review audit reports of internal and external auditors to monitor adequacy of scope of reports or to discover specific weaknesses in internal routines.
- Examine the minutes of meetings of directors, stockholders, and committees to investigate the specific authority extended at various levels of management.
- Train other examiners in the financial examination process.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Judgment and Decision Making3.9/5
- Complex Problem Solving3.9/5
- Systems Evaluation3.6/5
- Systems Analysis3.6/5
- Social Perceptiveness3.6/5
- Coordination3.6/5
- Time Management3.5/5
- Management of Personnel Resources3.5/5
Knowledge
- English Language4.3/5
- Economics and Accounting4.1/5
- Law and Government3.2/5
- Mathematics3.1/5
- Administration and Management3.0/5
- Computers and Electronics2.6/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 4 of 5 — Considerable preparation. Usually a bachelor's degree and several years of related experience.
Typical entry education (BLS): Bachelor's degree.
Highest education of people in this job:
- Bachelor's degree87%
Who this job suits
Mostly Conventional
Organising data, details and procedures
Enterprising
Leading, persuading and starting things
Investigative
Ideas, research and solving problems
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.