U.S. banks saw their profits jump nearly 90% in 2021 as firms shrank how much money they were setting aside to protect against credit losses, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) reported Tuesday.
Banks reported $279.1 billion in profits in 2021, up from $132 billion in 2020. The FDIC said the jump was mainly due to economic growth and banks rapidly shrinking their credit loss provision expenses, which dropped $163.3 billion in 2021.