INTRODUCTION TO FINTECH JOURNEYS
On completion of the Fintech Journeys module, candidates should understand:
- How entrepreneurs and banks go about building a fintech, including the minimal technical and regulatory requirements and the importance of potential partnerships;
- The sources of funding for Fintechs and the importance of a budget for the pilot;
- The most common types of fintech, including payment and international money transfer and currency exchange businesses, lending, including peer-to-peer businesses, asset management fintechs and insurance;
- How fintechs need to deliver their promised customer-centricity.
How the journey starts
As we noted in the Fintech Revolution modules, entrepreneurs saw aspects of traditional financial services either being delivered inefficiently (with too many unnecessary steps and bureaucratic requirements) or leaving too many potential customers out of the market.
Fintech entrepreneurs, by applying creativity, technology, partnerships and understanding of the regulations, started creating solutions that were cheaper, such as a free bank account or lower interest on loans. They provided better service (hassle-free account opening, in-app real time customer interface) or delivered better value (active investment management). As with all innovations, some will grow, some will remain as niche solutions and other will disappear or be incorporated.
Fortunately, these many ideas coincided with a liquid capital market with many investors willing to bet on new solutions and propositions, which has contributed to the rapid creation of many start-ups across the globe.
One side-effect of the Fintech revolution is that many incumbent banks are facing the heat of new competitors, but are also learning from them, creating a rich environment for innovation. As the number and quality of competing solutions grow, the new technologies are changing our relationship with financial institutions and money itself.