Bank return on assets (%, after tax) in United States
United States: Bank return on assets (%, after tax) was 1.3% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Bank return on assets in United States, 2000–2021
Source: Bankscope, Bureau van Dijk (BvD). Measured in %, after tax.
Analysis
The most recent figure for bank return on assets in United States is 1.3%, measured in 2021.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 76.0% on the previous year and up 46.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, bank return on assets in United States peaked at 1.4% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 2008.
That places United States 61st out of 168 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 22 years of available data.
Bank return on assets (%, after tax) in United States, year by year
| Year | %, after tax | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1.2% | — |
| 2001 | 1.1% | -2.8% |
| 2002 | 1.3% | +13.7% |
| 2003 | 1.4% | +7.6% |
| 2004 | 1.3% | -6.4% |
| 2005 | 1.3% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 1.3% | -1.7% |
| 2007 | 0.9% | -31.3% |
| 2008 | 0.1% | -88.3% |
| 2009 | 0.2% | +59.6% |
| 2010 | 0.7% | +304.0% |
| 2011 | 0.9% | +30.6% |
| 2012 | 1.0% | +14.5% |
| 2013 | 1.0% | +6.2% |
| 2014 | 1.0% | -2.6% |
| 2015 | 1.1% | +5.4% |
| 2016 | 1.1% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 1.0% | -9.1% |
| 2018 | 1.4% | +42.5% |
| 2019 | 1.3% | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 0.7% | -46.5% |
| 2021 | 1.3% | +76.0% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 1.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.8%, 1.6× the median. (63 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Bank return on assets (%, after tax) in United States changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | +304.0% | 0.2% | 0.7% |
| 2008 | -88.3% | 0.9% | 0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.0% | 0.1% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.0% | 0.7% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.0% | 0.7% | 1.3% | 2 |
Countries ranked near United States
More financial sector data for United States
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, annual growth rate 17.82 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per capita 89.64 units per person (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, annual growth rate 12.2 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0007 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per capita 65.46 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, annual growth rate 17.82 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per capita 89.64 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, SDR, annual growth rate 12.2 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is bank return on assets in United States?
- Bank return on assets in United States was 1.3% in 2021, according to Bankscope, Bureau van Dijk (BvD).
- What is the highest bank return on assets recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 1.4% in 2018.
- What is the lowest bank return on assets recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 2008.
- How does United States rank for bank return on assets?
- United States ranks 61st out of 168 countries with data for 2021.
- Is bank return on assets rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 46.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Bankscope, Bureau van Dijk (BvD), published as part of Bank return on assets (%, after tax). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Raw data are from Bankscope. Data2115[t] / ((data2025[t] + data2025[t-1])/2). Numerator and denominator are first aggregated on the country level before division. Note that banks used in the calculation might differ between indicators. Calculated from underlying bank-by-bank unconsolidated data from Bankscope.