In-Depth SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank – The Fifth-Largest Commercial Bank by Assets in the United States

Updated on: Nov 29, 2021
SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank - Featured Image

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Previously, we had done the absolute SWOT Analysis of Citi – The Third-Largest Financial Service and Investment Banking Corporation. Let us now do an in-depth SWOT analysis of U.S. Bank.

The U.S. Bank, one of the fortune 500 companies is the fifth-largest commercial bank by assets in the United States, Its parent company is U.S. Bancorp. It has received lots of awards namely as World’s Best Bank 2021 and it was also ranked in the 72nd position for World’s Best Employers 2021. 

U.S. Bank is one of many giant banks that have become more active regarding digital banking in recent years. Their mobile banking app was highly rated for the best customer experience. If you are also interested in learning some digital marketing skills and don’t know where to start, you can watch this quick Masterclass on Digital Marketing 101 by our founder Karan Shah.

Before we go into the SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank, let us know about U.S. Bank as a company.

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About U.S. Bank

SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank - U.S. Bank in Charlotte

     (U.S. Bank in Charlotte, Source: Charlotte Observer)

Incorporated in Delaware, U.S. Bancorp is an American banking company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the fifth-largest banking institution in the United States and It is the parent company of the U.S. Bank National Association.

It has over 3,106 branches spread across the world and 4,842 ATMs. The U.S. Bank was ranked 113th on the Fortune 500 list and is considered an important bank by the Financial Stability Board.

SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank - U.S. Bank closed its hundred of branches as customers are going digital
(U.S. Bank closed its hundred of branches as customers are going digital, Source: American Banker) 

It is a publicly held company traded as USB on the NYSE and is known for its best customer service through digital platforms as 80% of its transactions now happen online. They have made banking with them easy and convenient for their customers by investing in digital capabilities.

 

Quick Stats on U.S. Bank
Founder Jerry Grundhofer
Key People Andrew Cecere (Chairman, President, & CEO)
Year Founded 1863
Origin Portland, Oregano
No. of Employees 69,651 (2019)
Company Type Public
Market Cap $ 82,766 Million (2020)
Annual Revenue $ 25,241 Million (2020)
Net Income/ Profit $ 6.914 Billion (2019)

 

Products & Servies by U.S. Bank

SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank - Online Banking Assistance or Customer Service all at U.S. Bank
(Online Banking Assistance or Customer Service all at U.S. Bank, Source: U.S. Bank) 

With more than 2,000 branches in 26 states, U.S. Bank has a wide range of products and services to offer. Some of them are: 

  • Digital Banking
  • Consumer Banking
  • Corporate Banking
  • Insurance & Investment banking
  • Mortgage loans
  • Wealth management
  • Financial Analysis


Competitors of U.S. Bank

Due to its large market presence and being ranked in the fortune 500 list, U.S. Bank has some close competitors which are:

  • Bank of America
  • Citi Bank
  • Wells Fargo
  • JP Morgan Chase

Now that we know about the company, let us dive into the SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank.


SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank

SWOT analysis of U.S. Bank is the study of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of a company. This helps the company to know its position in the market and what needs to be improved and what areas it can excel in. It also helps the company to strategize its framework related to business and factors affecting its growth.

To better understand the SWOT analysis of U.S. Bank, refer to the infographic below:

SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank - SWOT Infographics of U.S. Bank

So let us first start by looking at the strengths of U.S. Bank from the SWOT analysis of U.S. Bank.

Strengths of U.S. Bank

Strengths are the activities that a company possesses. This helps in contributing to the company’s success. The strengths of U.S. Bank can be analyzed as follows:

  • Wide Network: Over 2,000 branches in 26 states and nearly 70,000 employees in 13 countries. U.S. Bank covers a wide range of areas by providing its products and services nationally and internationally. 
  • Strong Digital Presence: Their digital footprint is worldwide. In this increasingly digital era, U.S. Bank’s customers are located across the country and opt to the bank via the U.S. Bank Mobile App. Around 80% of customer transactions and 65% of loan sales are now carried out and completed digitally.

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  • Increasing Career Opportunities: The bank was recently awarded by Linkedin to 50 best workplaces to grow your career. They were mentioned alongside companies like Amazon, Salesforce, and others. It is recognized as a company that attracts and invests in talent.
  • Community Donations: To give back to society and those who served the United States, U.S Bank launched an initiative where they donated mortgage-free homes to veterans in need. They donated dozens of homes with a combined value of more than $4 million and have expanded the program to include home repair and vehicle donations. 
  • Customer Service: The bank believes in customer satisfaction and has helped its customers during tough times like the Covid-19 pandemic. They helped obtain Paycheck Protection Program loans that were made of 165,000, worth more than $10 billion. This aid served the smallest of the small businesses 90% of which have fewer than 20 employees.


Weaknesses of U.S. Bank

Weaknesses stop an organization from performing to its utmost potential. One should analyze the weakness and work upon them to help the firm excel in all terms.

  • High Attrition Rate: U.S. Bank has a high attrition rate compared to other organizations. The bank has to spend more compared to its competitors on the training and development of its employees. 
  • Security of Digital Presence: As the bank operates with a strong network of digital tools to carry out banking services, it is exposed to a greater risk of digital security as lots of transactions and other services are carried out digitally.
  • Use of Digital in the Underdeveloped Area: The use of online banking for financial purposes is not widespread in most regions. As most of the work of U.S.Bank functions online, people who do not have access to the internet won’t be able to benefit.


Opportunities for U.S. Bank

Opportunities are external factors that are in favour of the company and the firm can use it for their advantage to grow.

  • New Customer Base Through Online Mode: As we saw the bank has a great online presence and its mobile banking app makes it convenient for the customers to access and deal with the bank through any part of the world. The bank can make use of this opportunity in knowing their customers better and their needs through data analysis.
  • New Trends in Consumer Behaviour: With new customers based through online modes, customers of varied backgrounds will show different behaviour which can open up new markets for the U.S. Bank. It creates a great opportunity for the bank to build new revenue streams and diversify into new product categories. 
  • Expansion of the Business: As U.S. Bank branch locations are only limited to 26 states, it has a great potential of expanding it to more States.


Threats to U.S. Bank

External factors that might affect the bank are known as threats. These issues should be taken into consideration as soon as possible to prevent causing damage to the firm. The threats to U.S. Bank are as follows:

  • Security Threats: If the bank faces any security difficulties at any moment, it can be a great threat to the bank. After such situations, regaining client confidence and ensuring them would be challenging to the bank.
  • Global Competitors: The presence of global banking firms poses a significant threat to the bank’s ability to remain competitive in the market.
  • Change in Laws and Regulations: Changing and implementing new government regulations and laws, can affect the bank’s business operations.


This ends our in-depth SWOT analysis of U.S. Bank. Let us conclude our learning below.

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To Conclude

U.S. Bank is growing exceptionally with a net income of $5,890 million and an average total earning assets growth of 3.5% year-over-year. As we studied the SWOT Analysis of U.S. Bank we came to know that it has a great potential to grow in the global market.

As we saw with digital presence being its strong suit it was also awarded and was ranked first among banking apps by industry benchmarking firm keynova. Digital marketing tools are very important for any business to grow and learning them can never go to waste as almost every firm needs a digital presence. 

If you wish to learn and upskill yourself you can enrol in IIDE’s 3 Month Advanced Online Digital Marketing Course which will help you upskill yourself in all the aspects of digital marketing.

We hope this blog on the SWOT analysis of U.S. Bank has given you a good insight into the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

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Aditya Shastri

Lead Trainer & Head of Learning & Development at IIDE

Leads the Learning & Development segment at IIDE. He is a Content Marketing Expert and has trained 6000+ students and working professionals on various topics of Digital Marketing. He has been a guest speaker at prominent colleges in India including IIMs......[Read full bio]

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