Bank vs. Banking — What's the Difference?
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Fiza Rafique — Updated on September 22, 2023
"Bank" refers to a financial institution that manages money, offers loans, and provides other financial services. "Banking" denotes the activity or business carried out by banks, including services like lending and investing.
Difference Between Bank and Banking
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
"Bank" and "Banking" are terms deeply interwoven within the financial sector. A bank is a physical or virtual institution that deals with money and offers financial products and services to consumers. This includes services such as savings and checking accounts, loans, and more. Banks are typically regulated by governmental entities and are crucial to the economy of a nation.
"Banking," on the other hand, represents the activities and processes undertaken by these institutions. It involves all the functions, operations, and services that banks provide. While a bank is the entity, banking is the wide range of actions it performs, from accepting deposits to granting loans.
When people refer to a bank, they often allude to the institution itself, its presence, and its infrastructure. This could be the local community bank or the global multinational bank with branches worldwide. On the contrary, when discussing banking, they're likely referring to processes or services, such as online banking, investment banking, or retail banking.
In essence, while "bank" emphasizes the institution, its structure, and its presence, "banking" focuses on the operations, services, and activities that this institution offers. Both terms are critical for understanding the intricate financial system that serves as the backbone of our economy.
Comparison Chart
Definition
An institution offering financial services
The activities performed by banks
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Nature
Noun (entity)
Gerund (activity)
Focus
The entity itself
The processes and services
Example
Chase, Wells Fargo
Online banking, investment banking
Associated Terms
Branch, headquarter, teller
Lending, depositing, investing
Compare with Definitions
Bank
A financial establishment that uses money deposited by customers for investment.
I opened a savings account at the local bank.
Banking
The occupation or profession of banking.
She's been in banking for over a decade.
Bank
A place where coins or bullion are kept; a treasury.
The bank stores gold and silver reserves.
Banking
The business conducted or services offered by a bank.
Digital banking is becoming increasingly popular.
Bank
An institution that offers loans and accepts deposits.
The bank approved my loan application.
Banking
Transactions and operations related to financial institutions.
Modern banking heavily relies on technology.
Bank
A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets.
Banking
The procedures, activity, or system of operating bank accounts and services.
Banking reforms are necessary for economic growth.
Bank
A piled-up mass, as of snow or clouds; a heap
A bank of thunderclouds.
Banking
The business of a bank.
Bank
A steep natural incline.
Banking
The occupation of a banker.
Bank
An artificial embankment.
Banking
The business of managing a bank.
Bank
The slope of land adjoining a body of water, especially adjoining a river, lake, or channel.
Banking
The occupation of managing or working in a bank.
Bank
A large elevated area of a sea floor.
Banking
(finance) Investment banking.
She became an analyst in banking after graduation, choosing that career path over sales and trading.
Bank
(Games) The cushion of a billiard or pool table.
Banking
(aviation) A horizontal turn.
Bank
The lateral inward tilting, as of a motor vehicle or an aircraft, in turning or negotiating a curve.
Banking
A mechanical component to prevent vibration in a timepiece, etc.
Bank
A business establishment in which money is kept for saving or commercial purposes or is invested, supplied for loans, or exchanged.
Banking
(rail) The practice of assisting a train up a steep incline (called a bank) with another locomotive at the rear.
Bank
The offices or building in which such an establishment is located.
Banking
Present participle of bank
Bank
The funds of a gambling establishment.
Banking
The business of a bank or of a banker.
Bank
The funds held by a dealer or banker in certain games, especially gambling games.
Banking
Engaging in the business of banking; maintaining savings and checking accounts and issuing loans and credit etc.
Bank
The reserve pieces, cards, chips, or play money in some games, such as poker, from which the players may draw.
Banking
Transacting business with a bank; depositing or withdrawing funds or requesting a loan etc.
Bank
A supply or stock for future or emergency use
A grain bank.
Banking
The act of entrusting money to a bank.
Banking online provides a lot of conveniences.
Bank
(Medicine) A supply of human fluids or tissues, such as blood, sperm, or skin, that is stored in a facility for future use.
Bank
A place of safekeeping or storage
A computer's memory bank.
Bank
A set of elevators.
Bank
A row of keys on a keyboard.
Bank
A bench for rowers in a galley.
Bank
A row of oars in a galley.
Bank
(Printing) The lines of type under a headline.
Bank
To border or protect with a ridge or embankment.
Bank
To pile up; amass
Banked earth along the wall.
Bank
To cover (a fire), as with ashes or fresh fuel, to ensure continued low burning.
Bank
To construct with a slope rising to the outside edge
The turns on the racetrack were steeply banked.
Bank
To tilt (an aircraft) laterally and inwardly in flight.
Bank
To tilt (a motor vehicle) laterally and inwardly when negotiating a curve.
Bank
(Games) To strike (a billiard ball) so that it rebounds from the cushion of the table.
Bank
(Sports) To play (a ball or puck) in such a way as to make it glance off a surface, such as a backboard or wall.
Bank
To rise in or take the form of a bank.
Bank
To tilt an aircraft or a motor vehicle laterally when turning.
Bank
To deposit in a bank.
Bank
To store for future use.
Bank
To transact business with a bank or maintain a bank account.
Bank
To operate a bank.
Bank
To arrange or set up in a row
"Every street was banked with purple-blooming trees" (Doris Lessing).
Bank
(countable) An institution where one can place and borrow money and take care of financial affairs.
Bank
(countable) A branch office of such an institution.
Bank
(countable) An underwriter or controller of a card game.
Bank
(countable) A fund from deposits or contributions, to be used in transacting business; a joint stock or capital.
Bank
The sum of money etc. which the dealer or banker has as a fund from which to draw stakes and pay losses.
Bank
Money; profit.
Bank
(countable) In certain games, such as dominos, a fund of pieces from which the players are allowed to draw.
Bank
A safe and guaranteed place of storage for and retrieval of important items or goods.
Blood bank; sperm bank; data bank
Bank
(countable) A device used to store coins or currency.
If you want to buy a bicycle, you need to put the money in your piggy bank.
Bank
(hydrology) An edge of river, lake, or other watercourse.
Bank
An elevation, or rising ground, under the sea; a shallow area of shifting sand, gravel, mud, and so forth (for example, a sandbank or mudbank).
The banks of Newfoundland
Bank
(geography) A slope of earth, sand, etc.; an embankment.
Bank
(aviation) The incline of an aircraft, especially during a turn.
Bank
(rail) An incline, a hill.
Bank
A mass noun for a quantity of clouds.
The bank of clouds on the horizon announced the arrival of the predicted storm front.
Bank
(mining) The face of the coal at which miners are working.
Bank
(mining) A deposit of ore or coal, worked by excavations above water level.
Bank
(mining) The ground at the top of a shaft.
Ores are brought to bank.
Bank
A row or panel of items stored or grouped together.
A bank of switches
A bank of pay phones
Bank
A row of keys on a musical keyboard or the equivalent on a typewriter keyboard.
Bank
(computing) A contiguous block of memory that is of fixed, hardware-dependent size, but often larger than a page and partitioning the memory such that two distinct banks do not overlap.
Bank
(pinball) A set of multiple adjacent drop targets.
Bank
A bench, as for rowers in a galley; also, a tier of oars.
Bank
A bench or seat for judges in court.
Bank
The regular term of a court of law, or the full court sitting to hear arguments upon questions of law, as distinguished from a sitting at nisi prius, or a court held for jury trials. See banc
Bank
A kind of table used by printers.
Bank
(music) A bench, or row of keys belonging to a keyboard, as in an organ.
Bank
(uncountable) slang for money
Bank
(intransitive) To deal with a bank or financial institution, or for an institution to provide financial services to a client.
He banked with Barclays.
Bank
(transitive) To put into a bank.
I'm going to bank the money.
Bank
To conceal in the rectum for use in prison.
Johnny banked some coke for me.
Bank
To roll or incline laterally in order to turn.
Bank
(transitive) To cause (an aircraft) to bank.
Bank
(transitive) To form into a bank or heap, to bank up.
To bank sand
Bank
(transitive) To cover the embers of a fire with ashes in order to retain heat.
Bank
(transitive) To raise a mound or dike about; to enclose, defend, or fortify with a bank; to embank.
Bank
To pass by the banks of.
Bank
To provide additional power for a train ascending a bank (incline) by attaching another locomotive.
Bank
To arrange or order in a row.
Bank
A mound, pile, or ridge of earth, raised above the surrounding level; hence, anything shaped like a mound or ridge of earth; as, a bank of clouds; a bank of snow.
They cast up a bank against the city.
Bank
A steep acclivity, as the slope of a hill, or the side of a ravine.
Bank
The margin of a watercourse; the rising ground bordering a lake, river, or sea, or forming the edge of a cutting, or other hollow.
Tiber trembled underneath her banks.
Bank
An elevation, or rising ground, under the sea; a shoal, shelf, or shallow; as, the banks of Newfoundland.
Bank
The face of the coal at which miners are working.
Bank
The lateral inclination of an aëroplane as it rounds a curve; as, a bank of 45° is easy; a bank of 90° is dangerous.
Bank
A group or series of objects arranged near together; as, a bank of electric lamps, etc.
Bank
The tilt of a roadway or railroad, at a curve in the road, designed to counteract centrifugal forces acting on vehicles moving rapiudly around the curve, thus reducing the danger of overturning during a turn.
Bank
A bench, as for rowers in a galley; also, a tier of oars.
Placed on their banks, the lusty Trojan sweepNeptune's smooth face, and cleave the yielding deep.
Bank
The bench or seat upon which the judges sit.
Bank
A sort of table used by printers.
Bank
A bench, or row of keys belonging to a keyboard, as in an organ.
Bank
An establishment for the custody, loan, exchange, or issue, of money, and for facilitating the transmission of funds by drafts or bills of exchange; an institution incorporated for performing one or more of such functions, or the stockholders (or their representatives, the directors), acting in their corporate capacity.
Bank
The building or office used for banking purposes.
Bank
A fund to be used in transacting business, especially a joint stock or capital.
Let it be no bank or common stock, but every man be master of his own money.
Bank
The sum of money or the checks which the dealer or banker has as a fund, from which to draw his stakes and pay his losses.
Bank
In certain games, as dominos, a fund of pieces from which the players are allowed to draw; in Monopoly, the fund of money used to pay bonuses due to the players, or to which they pay fines.
Bank
A place where something is stored and held available for future use;
Bank
To raise a mound or dike about; to inclose, defend, or fortify with a bank; to embank.
Bank
To heap or pile up; as, to bank sand.
Bank
To pass by the banks of.
Bank
To build (a roadway or railroad) with an inclination at a curve in the road, so as to counteract centrifugal forces acting on vehicles moving rapiudly around the curve, thus reducing the danger of vehicles overturning at a curve; as, the raceway was steeply banked at the curves.
Bank
To deposit in a bank.
Bank
To keep a bank; to carry on the business of a banker.
Bank
To deposit money in a bank; to have an account with a banker.
Bank
To tilt sidewise in rounding a curve; - said of a flying machine, an aërocurve, or the like.
Bank
A financial institution that accepts deposits and channels the money into lending activities;
He cashed a check at the bank
That bank holds the mortgage on my home
Bank
Sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water);
They pulled the canoe up on the bank
He sat on the bank of the river and watched the currents
Bank
A supply or stock held in reserve for future use (especially in emergencies)
Bank
A building in which commercial banking is transacted;
The bank is on the corner of Nassau and Witherspoon
Bank
An arrangement of similar objects in a row or in tiers;
He operated a bank of switches
Bank
A container (usually with a slot in the top) for keeping money at home;
The coin bank was empty
Bank
A long ridge or pile;
A huge bank of earth
Bank
The funds held by a gambling house or the dealer in some gambling games;
He tried to break the bank at Monte Carlo
Bank
A slope in the turn of a road or track; the outside is higher than the inside in order to reduce the effects of centrifugal force
Bank
A flight maneuver; aircraft tips laterally about its longitudinal axis (especially in turning);
The plane went into a steep bank
Bank
Tip laterally;
The pilot had to bank the aircraft
Bank
Enclose with a bank;
Bank roads
Bank
Do business with a bank or keep an account at a bank;
Where do you bank in this town?
Bank
Act as the banker in a game or in gambling
Bank
Be in the banking business
Bank
Put into a bank account;
She deposites her paycheck every month
Bank
Cover with ashes so to control the rate of burning;
Bank a fire
Bank
Have confidence or faith in;
We can trust in God
Rely on your friends
Bank on your good education
I swear by my grandmother's recipes
Bank
A set of similar devices connected to act together, as in a battery.
The bank of lights illuminated the stage.
Bank
The building or premises housing a financial institution.
The bank on the corner has historic architecture.
Common Curiosities
What is Banking?
Banking refers to the activities and services offered by banks, including depositing, lending, and investing.
Is online banking safe?
With proper precautions, online banking is generally safe, but it's crucial to use strong passwords and ensure a secure connection.
How does a bank make money?
Banks earn money through interest on loans, service fees, and investments.
How are banks regulated?
Banks are typically regulated by national or regional governmental bodies.
What's the difference between a bank and a credit union?
While both offer similar services, credit unions are member-owned cooperatives, whereas banks are for-profit institutions.
What is a Bank?
A bank is a financial institution that offers various financial services, such as accepting deposits and providing loans.
What's investment banking?
Investment banking involves helping organizations raise capital, advising on mergers, and other financial strategies.
Are all banking activities done in a bank building?
No, many banking activities, especially in modern times, are conducted online or via mobile apps.
Is banking a good career?
Banking offers diverse roles and opportunities for growth, making it a promising career for many.
How old do you need to be to open a bank account?
While it varies, many banks allow minors to open accounts with a guardian or parent's permission.
Why do people use banks?
People use banks for safekeeping of money, financial transactions, loans, and financial guidance.
Can I have accounts in multiple banks?
Yes, there's no limit to how many banks one can have accounts with.
Is banking only about money?
While primarily focused on money, banking also involves trust, customer service, and financial planning.
What is a bank's primary function?
A bank's main function is to serve as an intermediary in the financial system, safeguarding deposits, and lending money.
What's commercial banking?
Commercial banking deals with everyday financial transactions for both individuals and businesses, such as checking accounts, loans, and more.
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Written by
Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
