What is a business line?

A business line serves a particular business need or a particular customer transaction. In insurance, for example, it may be used to designate a statutory set of insurance policies and not a specific business unit. The specifics of the business line are different depending on the industry.

Consumer banking organizations often have a number of business lines to serve consumers' financial needs including:

• credit cards

• line of credit or loan program

• mortgages

• corporate, small business and personal bank accounts

Financial services brokerages cater to higher net worth individuals or businesses and aim to help them grow their wealth by investing in various assets that produce additional income and offer the following business lines:

• mergers and acquisitions or partnerships

• real estate investments

• wealth management

Insurance companies often have multiple business lines, depending on which types of insurance they are authorized to sell. Examples include the following:

• property and casualty insurance (i.e., homeowners, car, boat, renters, etc.)

• life insurance

• health insurance

• commercial business insurance