Financial technology is changing the way we bank, pay, and borrow money. People all over the world are beginning to swap their traditional bank account for a payment app or ditch their financial advisor for a chatbot replacement. Credit cards are on the decline and digital currency on the upswing. The fintech industry is quickly changing. Financial Technology Today has pulled together the emerging stories surrounding fintech innovation.
For over a decade, the fintech industry has been slowly loosening the grip traditional banks have on customers. According to a new study by Accenture, fintech is pulling customers away from big banks at a surprising rate, taking over one-third of new revenue. In the UK, 63 percent of newcomers have taken over 14 percent of total banking and payment revenues and in the U.S., fintech startups have taken about $1.04 trillion.
“Ten years after the financial crisis, the banking industry is experiencing a level of competitive intensity and disruption that’s much greater than what’s been seen before,” said Julian Skan, Accenture Strategy managing director for banking and capital markets. “With challenger banks and platform players reducing traditional banks’ competitiveness and the threat of a power shift looming, incumbent players can no longer rest on their laurels.”
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Is Fintech Affecting Credit Cards?
Seventy-six percent of people under the age of 30 do not have a credit card, according to a Bankrate study. Credit card debt is still on the rise and Americans have over $1 trillion in debt, according to the Federal Reserve. In March 2018, the Financial Conduct Authority implemented rules, backed by fintech, that offer protection for credit card customers to break their debt cycle.
The FCA predicts that this new system will save consumers £310 million and £1.3 billion a year in interest charges. Credit card firms have also agreed to lower customers credit limit to a more controllable number.
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One of the reasons fintech firms are blossoming is because they take the time to understand their digitally driven customer. With Single View technology, financial institutions can learn what their consumers are doing, what they may do in the future, and how they can respond. Using customer accounts and other information, Single View creates a visual profile of a customer that traditional technology can’t.
Institutions can use this information for a competitive edge. Using profile information, customers can be targeted and engaged leading to an increase in revenues. Leveraging connected data, financial institutions can understand their customer and business with real-time insights.
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Digital currency like blockchain has changed the way people around the world pay. Paired with digital wallets, fintech agencies thought there would be a breakthrough, but only about 25 percent of Americans use digital wallets, according to eMarketer. In China, it is a whole different story. Seventy-eight percent of smartphone users pay by phone.
American based fintech firms are pushing for digital currency and digital wallets, but the market doesn’t seem to be ready yet. Reetika Grewal, head of payments strategy and solutions at Silicon Valley Bank, said, “The thing about financial services is, a lot of things slow-brew.”
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