Wall Street profits are on track to exceed $60 billion in 2025 if current trends continue, according to a report released by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. The securities industry reported $30.4 billion in earnings for the first half of the year, outpacing last year’s total profits of $49.9 billion, which was the fourth-highest on record.
“The securities industry’s gains provide an important boost for tax revenues that support critical investments in housing, transportation, and public services that New Yorkers depend on,” said DiNapoli. “While uncertainty remains around interest rates, inflation and the broader economy, Wall Street looks to have another strong year.”
The report examines pretax profits from broker/dealer operations of New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) member firms. There are currently 130 NYSE member firms, a decrease from over 200 before the 2007 global financial crisis.
Profits increased by 30.7% year-over-year in the first half of 2025, driven mainly by a surge in trading activity. Trading revenues rose by more than 70% compared to last year’s period. Additional growth came from commission income, AI-related dealmaking, and supervisory fees. This revenue growth happened despite significant market volatility caused by shifting tariff policies and broader global economic uncertainty.
Employment figures show that New York City’s securities industry reached a record high of 201,500 jobs in 2024—higher than at any point since 2000. Preliminary data for 2025 suggest a possible decline of about 3,000 jobs; however, this pattern has been observed before with later revisions often reversing initial declines. Although New York City leads the nation in securities employment, its share has declined as other regions grow faster.
The industry has also seen higher rates of office attendance compared to other sectors: a March 2025 survey found that 62% of employees were working onsite daily versus just over half across all industries citywide.
From 2019 through 2024, employment in New York State’s securities sector grew by over nine percent—the largest increase among states—adding nearly 18,400 jobs. California ranked second with just under half as many securities jobs as New York’s statewide total of approximately 217,800 positions in 2024.
Compensation has risen significantly as well. The average annual salary—including bonuses—increased by over seven percent to $505,630 in New York City’s securities sector during 2024. The bonus pool expanded by one-third to reach a record $47.5 billion—an average bonus of almost $245,000 per employee. Industry salaries remain much higher than other sectors; for comparison, private sector workers earned an average salary just above $100,000 citywide.
NYSE member firms increased their spending on employee compensation—including salaries and equity awards—by nearly ten percent during the first half of this year compared to last year’s period. This trend points toward likely further increases in bonuses for certain subsectors even though city budget projections anticipate a decline; DiNapoli’s office expects growth based on early indicators.
DiNapoli plans to release updated estimates for average bonuses using tax withholding data in March next year.
Tax contributions from the securities industry remain significant for both state and city budgets. In fiscal year (FY) 2025 alone it generated about $6.7 billion for New York City—a rise of more than one-third from FY24—and accounted for over eight percent of total city tax collections primarily through personal income taxes (PIT). Securities receipts made up nearly one-quarter of all PIT collected by the city.
At the state level reliance is even greater: estimated receipts reached $22 billion during FY24-25—a twelve percent increase from the prior period—and represented almost one-fifth of total state tax collections with PIT accounting for most receipts related to this sector.
The comptroller’s office calculates that nearly one-eighth (17.7%) of New York City’s gross product came from the securities industry as recently as last year; this share is expected to rise when new data becomes available reflecting recent profitability gains. Approximately eight percent—or one-in-thirteen—of all jobs within NYC were tied directly or indirectly to this sector according to latest figures.
