• Banks provide an array of financial services to their customerspiggy bank image by pershing from Fotolia.com
  
  Banks perform financial services for their customers, such as holding interest-bearing accounts and offering loans. You can pay bills and transfer funds through most banks. Banks help their customers' funds grow by educating them on investment opportunities. Banks often charge fees for their services.
  
  

Deposit Accounts

• Banks hold money for their customers in deposit accounts. The most common deposit accounts are checking and savings. A minimum deposit usually is required to open an account and a minimum balance often is required to keep the account open. Most banks deduct a monthly service fee unless a certain balance is maintained. Savings accounts and some checking accounts earn interest. The amount of interest depends on the bank and the type of account.
  
  

Bank Wires

• Bank customers can send money from their bank account into the account of another by initiating a bank wire transfer. Banks typically assess a fee to their account holders for this service. By using the bank routing and account numbers of your recipient, you can send money that will be received in two or three business days without the recipient having to wait for mail or cash a check.
  
  

Loans

• Banks offer different types of loans. Banks typically offer favorable interest rates compared to outside lending sources if you borrow money for education purposes or to buy a house. An added convenience of bank-issued loans is the ability to use your deposit accounts as collateral. You often can make your loan payments directly from your deposit accounts, and sometimes the payments can be withdrawn automatically from your account.