The FinTech industry has developed undeviatingly in the past decade, but the past year has arguably seen more innovation in the sector than ever before. For a start, global funding for FinTech surpassed that of the past year by more than 96%. We’ve seen more FinTech companies than ever before becoming ‘Decacorns’ (businesses valued at more than $10 million), and more than 65% of early-stage deal activity happening outside of India.
So, the question zeroes down to what can we expect in Fintech in 2022.
Many startups, already working on lifelike VR platforms, are extending this Metaverse concept to sectors like education, health, entertainment, and gaming. It is an exciting area to track and where large pools of capital will attempt to accelerate adoption.
Even though the possibility of using cryptocurrency in lieu of money is still remote in India, blockchain (BC) technologies have come to the fore as many crypto tokens are being circulated, supporting the issue and explosion of NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens). As an asset class, NFTs have become mainstream and investible.
Vertical e-Commerce (VEC) builds on their product depth and extreme specialisation to offer exciting services to their ever-growing loyal consumer bases.
The “Financialisation of the Internet” is the next big step expected. As internet products and services become more mainstream and a greater part of everyday life, financial services will become more embedded in every app you use.
Consolidation of Tech-Enabled Sectors should be considered. As IPOs become attainable goals for many prominent players, this is inevitable. In fintech, too, with capital infusion, there is room for the rapid growth of companies, continued disruption of the sector, and winners growing market share.
Expect 2022 to build on the explosion of technology-enabled growth. The possibility of interest rate hikes in the country may dampen sentiments, but the momentum of technology-driven innovation is robust.