Report: CT remains insurance leader but faces rising Midwest competition

Hartford Business Journal – Friday, October 31, 2025
By Greg Bordonaro

Connecticut’s financial services industry remains a cornerstone of the state’s economy, employing tens of thousands and paying some of the nation’s highest wages, but new competition is emerging from lower-cost Midwestern states, according to a recent study by The New England Council.

The report found that nearly 56,000 Connecticut residents work in insurance, more than in the state’s banking and asset-management sectors combined. When indirect and related jobs are included, the industry supports roughly 238,203 positions statewide, or about 13% of total employment.

Financial services also deliver a heavy economic punch. The sector generated $37.6 billion in wages and $127.6 billion in total economic output in 2024, the report said.

Insurance remains Connecticut’s anchor, but the state’s share of national insurance activity has slipped slightly as companies add operations in places like Iowa and Nebraska, where costs are lower and incentives are plentiful. By one key measure — insurance’s contribution to gross domestic product — Connecticut now ranks third behind those two states.

Even so, pay levels in Connecticut continue to outpace most of the country. Average compensation in the state’s asset-management industry was about $421,000 a year, five times the statewide average of $82,000.

Across New England, total financial-services employment reached about 350,000 workers in 2024, down from roughly 385,000 a decade earlier. Insurance now makes up 45% of the workforce, while banking accounts for 38%.

The study described the sector as one of New England’s most stable employers, noting that job losses during the pandemic were far smaller than in other industries and that wage growth has accelerated in recent years.

The New England Council said the state’s long-established strength in insurance and investment remains vital, but warned that the region must keep investing in innovation and workforce development to maintain its edge.

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