The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), part of the Department of Commerce, announced a mandatory survey called the Quarterly Survey of Financial Services Transactions (BE-185) to measure trade in financial services between U.S. providers and foreign persons. This survey is essential for understanding the impact of U.S. trade both domestically and internationally and is authorized by relevant trade acts. U.S. companies involved in these transactions exceeding specific thresholds are required to report, with details on how and when to submit the reports provided. The survey process is overseen by the Office of Management and Budget and has an estimated completion time of 10 hours per response.
Simple Explanation
The government wants to know how many "financial services"—like banking and money management—are traded between people in the U.S. and other countries. They made a rule that some U.S. companies have to fill out a survey about this every few months to help them understand the economy.