There are now at least 67 FIntech unicorns, globally, that are valued at a combined $244.6 billion, according to a recently published infographic by CBInsights which shows that North America, particularly the US, is home to some of the world’s largest Fintechs.
Fintech unicorns are companies valued at $1 billion or more. In the US, Silicon Valley Fintech Brex, Chime, digital asset exchange Coinbase, Dave, Robinhood, Insurtech Lemonade, Next, and Stripe have been identified as some of the most prominent Fintech Unicorns.
Other US-based Fintechs with a valuation of more than $1 billion includes Affirm, AvidExchange, and Ripple (which has not gone public).
As reported in late July 2020, an analysis provided by S&P claimed that Fintech funding in the US is on pace to beat last year thus performing well even during a COVID-19 challenged economy.
According to S&P, investor interest in private Fintech companies has “remained evergreen.” S&P Global Market Intelligence estimates that funding for private US fintech companies in 2020 will top the levels seen in 2019, both in terms of value and volume.
Meanwhile, in Europe, TransferWise, Checkout.com, Revolut, Starling Bank, Monzo, Rapyd, Klarna, and wefox are leading the charge as some of Europe’s largest Fintechs.
Although these companies have managed to achieve impressive valuations, it’s very expensive to build out a Fintech giant. For instance, Revolut recently reported that its revenue nearly tripled in 2019 to £162.7 Million, while losses jumped to £107.4 million.
The company’s management claims that the bank should become profitable at some point later this year, but the pandemic might prevent that from happening.
Some of the world’s largest Fintech firms are from Asia. According to a report from Fintech News Hong Kong (in November 2019), China is home to many large Fintechs including Ant Financial (now called Ant Group), JD Digits, Du Xiaoman Financial, Lufax, OneConnect, and ZhongAn Insurance.
Fintech adoption in China remains strong due to the increased use of AI, digital wallets, WealthTech, and Robo-advisory services by businesses, according to a new report.
WeLab, Bowtie, MioTech, OneDegree are some of the notable Fintechs in Hong Kong.
Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) recently announced its new Global Fast Track Program, which is a business-driven program within Hong Kong Fintech Week (HKFW). According to InvestHK, the Fast Track program plugs fintech enterprises directly into Hong Kong’s diverse ecosystem of world-class regulators and business leaders.
Major Indian Fintechs include Paytm, PolicyBazaar, Lendingkart, and Namaste Credit, among many others. Singapore is also home to some of the world’s most established Fintech firms including Grab, PolicyPal, Cashlez, among others. Indonesia is also emerging as a prominent Fintech hub.
In Australia, Airwallex and Judo Bank are among the leading Fintech solution providers along with digital banks 86 400, UBank, and Xinja Bank.
In South America, Nubank and Ebanx are among the leading Fintech unicorns.
As reported in June 2020, the global Fintech market is projected to reach a market capitalization of $300 billion by 2025, due to large investments in new technologies and infrastructure.