The events of 2020 forced every single industry to innovate, adapt, and fight to survive amidst a near-unprecedented level of disruption and uncertainty. And FinTech was certainly no exception.
While already known for its rapid innovation and creativity, the coronavirus pandemic accelerated many of the already emerging trends within this space. This blog will serve as a temperature-check on several of the most pressing trends in FinTech in 2021 and share some insight on what it all means for organizations (and their need for top talent) going forward.
Open Banking
“Open-banking” is a phrase that has been echoed with increasing frequency over the past few years inside the walls of banks and fintechs. But for customers looking for this service, there hasn’t been any real destination to point them towards. Until now.
As financial literacy (more on this later) becomes more and more desirable and accessible among consumers, a growing number of people are looking for ways to smartly invest their money rather than let it sit in a traditional bank. Third-party financial institutions are rising to meet this demand by offering flexible high-income-generating investments, financial options for saving, and other services via open banking.
MoneyLion, a neobank with a mission to “change the financial path for every hard-working American,” is hard at work building a marketplace that, if successful, will create the closest thing to open banking to date by allowing a secure exchange of data across different institutions.
Per an article from American Banker, MoneyLion will soon invite partners and competitors to offer products within this marketplace, beginning with a partnership with Nationwide Insurance.
Expect this trend to become more and more prevalent, as a report from Accenture showed that 90% of financial chairmen believe that open banking can increase organic growth by 10%
Autonomous Finance
In a world where, each year, more and more work is done by machines, it may come as little surprise that financial decisions could be next in line on the march towards automation.
Autonomous finance, backed by advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning, looks to relieve consumers of the more mundane, burdensome financial tasks and outsource them to algorithms. Recurring tasks like utility bill payments, insurance, and subscription services, instead of existing at the periphery of our awareness, could vanish from our to-do list altogether.
But the true value and implications of autonomous finance arrives when one considers specialist services like investing with a brokerage service or saving through a personal-finance app also being completely automated without any loss of decision-making capability or value.
As the technology backing autonomous finance inevitably improves, look for an increasing number of functions to fall within its capabilities—and an increasing number of consumers asking for it.
Voice Technologies
In 2021, there are few things that consumers value more (or make buying decisions because of) than convenience. And fintech organizations are paying close attention.
Striving to make their products more attractive and instantly accessible, fintech is doubling down on voice technology. AI-powered voice assistants deliver more convenience and simplicity while also enhancing the protection of payments and information with the use of biometric data as an added layer of security.
Currently, voice technologies can handle setting up recurring payments, improve the customer service experience, categorizing calls, and shepherding customers to the right places. As this technology improves and as Gen Z (with their increasing demand for chat-like platforms) occupies a larger and larger market share, expect voice technologies to increase in their functionalities and applications.
Financial Literacy
Since its inception, the direction of the financial industry has been dictated by the needs and demands of its customers. And if the customer’s awareness of what fintech can offer them increases, fintechs are more equipped to meet those demands. Enter financial literacy.
As it stands, research indicates that overall financial literacy, or the general awareness of fintech services, is glaringly low. But fintechs are hard at work to elevate those numbers. After all, customers who are financially literate are better with their money, and customers who are good with their money are more desirable for fintechs than customers who aren’t. By investing in their financial competency, fintechs “train” better customers and earn their loyalty long term.
Currently, embedded finance programs are growing at an unprecedented rate and little suggests this will slow down anytime soon.
If you’re looking to add the best fintech talent to your team and capitalize on 2021’s biggest trends, Martin Executive Recruiting has the expertise and network to connect you with your ideal hire. Get in touch today and learn what we can do for you.