FinTech is certainly a word that is no stranger to those who have been closely monitoring the financial industry in recent years. Current innovations and full fintech guide is often mentioned in conferences, meetings and even became a hot topic to discuss at the party table.
Since the wave of focus on the financial sector emerged after the 2008 crisis, “fintech” has become a representative of a digital revolution that can radically change the way businesses do business.
What is FinTech?
Fintech is fully written as “Financial technology”.
As its name implies, Fintech refers to the innovative application of advanced technology to enhance the provision of products and services in banking, investment, insurance as well as other financial-related fields.
Its technology can be applied by any company or organization using software, mobile devices, internet or cloud technology to create and provide financial services.
Currently, Fintech companies are becoming more and more competitive with the banking system in providing financial services. According to a reputable statistic, it attracts a large number of customers who know and trust in technology.
There are approximately 5,779 Fintech startups in the Americas, 3,583 companies in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. The Asia and Pacific region is no less competitive with 2,849 Fintech startups as of February 2019.
Along with the development of Industry 4.0, more and more consumers are using Fintech products and services.
Why is FinTech so influential globally?
Fintech influences the global finance industry. The technology was created for use in back-end systems of financial institutions. However, it later evolved into a huge financial industry, improving and automating the provision and use of financial sector services.
Investment management
In particular, Fintech supports companies, business owners and consumers, helping them better manage their financial operations by applying specialized software and algorithms for the first time used on computers, smartphones, laptops …
With the possibilities, this technology is expected to shape the banking and finance industry in the future.
Fintech has a strong influence and directly affects the most important elements and components of the banking and financial industry. Successfully applied Financial technology, now P2P lenders (companies that support a direct connection between lenders and borrowers through the internet) have been operating very effectively. And now the loan approval time is significantly shortened, from a few weeks to just a few hours.
According to a source of Trade24h collected, by 2020, the volume of online loans in the United States will reach a record of $120 billion, this figure is only $20 billion in 2015. That showed How powerful fintech is to the financial industry, particularly the online lending industry.
Business activities
Also in the field of investment management, Fintech is applied by big financial companies such as BlackRock and Vanguard in the service technology “Robo adviser”. With the “Robo adviser” service, the robot will base on the level of customer risk tolerance, thereby using algorithms to automatically adjust the corresponding portfolio accordingly.
In the capital market, the use of virtual currencies (such as Bitcoin, Ethereum) to replace traditional methods of transferring money and assets is being tested. This issue is particularly concerned by startups and big companies like Goldman Sachs or even the Bank of England.
What makes FinTech so special?
Globalization: Thanks to the power of the internet and the greatness of 21st-century technology, financial services have never been more accessible than they are today. No matter where your company is located, all you need is Wi-Fi to enter the enchanting FinTech world. EY Global has conducted interviews with more than 27,000 consumers in 27 markets across six continents (including 10 emerging markets). Interestingly, 56% of small and medium-sized enterprises interviewed reported using FinTech banking and payment services, 46% using financial FinTech services.
Security: Fintech is very reliable and in many cases, it’s more secure than traditional banking. Many people believe that traditional banks are quite slow when applying cybersecurity measures.
Promote economic growth: According to statistics from a reputable source “EY’s Global FinTech Adoption Index 2019”: The application of FinTech services has increased from 16% in 2015 to 33% in 2017, reaching 64% in 2019. Besides, CNBC reported in January that the value of FinTech companies had a record increase of $39.6 billion in 2018. More specifically, in China alone, the acceptance rate of FinTech was 95 % in money transfer and payment application. This confirms that FinTech not only helps the economy develop but also establishes a new key role in the banking and finance industry.
Promote business power: FinTech provides solutions in which all businesses can have great benefits. Small and medium-sized businesses need more economic growth than large companies, and they often have difficulty securing the financial resources needed to grow. Fintech offers a wide range of financing options, tailored to the needs of small businesses, including options for peer-to-peer lending, commercial finance, e-commerce, invoice finance, online supply chain finance, and online commerce finance.
Use data effectively: Enterprises can collect a lot of data (Big data) based on buyers, sales, website traffic, and many other data points. However, they need to know how to use this data in a way that is really useful and effective. FinTech helps companies of all sizes understand and manage the data they collect, by creating tools and processes that convert data into meaningful data.
Summary
FinTech has been around since the 1950s. However, what makes it stand out lately is that developing technology has become a part of our daily lives.
This digital age has brought FinTech to a whole new level of finance, and is changing the face of modern banking.
The combination of telecommunications, data analytics, cryptography, cryptocurrencies and other machine technologies is capable of transforming the entire banking industry in more advanced and breakthrough ways than ever.
