The core business of investment banks can be roughly divided into three categories: traditional, innovative and extended. The traditional business mainly includes securities underwriting, brokerage and self-management, which is the most primitive and basic business of investment banks and the most profitable business brought to the industry since the rise of investment banks. Innovative business is a fee-based consulting business and securitization business developed in the 1960s and 1970s. Extended business refers to asset management and new derivative transactions in recent 2 0 years, including swaps, contract rescission and other products.

With the continuous development and integration of the international financial market, the business of investment banks has gradually diversified and specialized, and the so-called "financial department stores" have emerged, enabling investors to meet almost any financial needs. Due to the different development history, business breadth and depth, investment banks adjust their core business structure according to different historical periods in order to occupy a place in the market. From the perspective of the whole industry, the traditional business structure with underwriting, brokerage and other businesses as the core is gradually changing, and the profits brought by new businesses account for an increasing proportion of the whole profit structure, while the rise of online securities trading and asset management business has profoundly changed the existing trading model and market structure.