Overview of the global Fintech landscape in 2023
Last year has been filled with significant developments and milestones in the world of financial technology. From massive acquisitions to the fall of some of the biggest names in finance, the industry has been at the forefront of news and trends.
Below, we round up some of the biggest news in the industry for 2023.
Some of the stats
Global Fintech is still booming. In 2023, an estimated 26,300 startups are driving innovation, projected to generate a staggering $4,743.97 billion this year. Despite a $23 billion investment slowdown in the first half, the industry's future remains bright. With AI in the market expected to reach $42.83 billion by year's end, expect even more transformative solutions to emerge in the coming months.
While publicly traded fintechs have seen their market cap steadily climb to $550 billion by July 2023, a two-fold increase since 2019, the real fireworks are happening in the private sector. With over 272 unicorns now valued at a combined $936 billion. This private sector boom suggests that the public markets may only be scratching the surface of the Fintech revolution.
Cryptocurrencies continue to gain ground. Over the year to date, Bitcoin has increased in value by over 150 percent, Ethereum Classic increased by over 32 percent, while Tether was far less than a single percentage.
Visa and Mastercard reign supreme as the world's most valuable corporations, with a combined $800.7 billion market cap, while China's Fintech giants trail behind with $338.92 billion.
In April, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted slower economic growth in 2023 due to past and ongoing events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It forecasted the growth to fall from 3.0 to 2.8 percent, however, an update in October increased the 2023 prediction to 3.0 percent. The current prediction for 2024 is 2.9 percent.
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The Fintech lows of the year
There was further doom and gloom in the financial sector as Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was shut down in March by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, which also led to the shutdown of Signature Bank in the same month. SBV collapsed due to plummeting investments and mass withdrawals.
In November, the CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, was found guilty of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. It was also announced in August that the company planned to restart its exchange services for international clients.
While global funding dipped in H1'23, the Americas defied the trend, surging from $28.9 billion to $36 billion. This highlights the region's resilience and continued momentum despite market turbulence in other parts of the world.
The movers and shakers in 2023
There were many large fintech and finance-related acquisitions and investments in 2023, including:
- Vista Equity Partners acquired Duck Creek, provider of P&C technology and a 2023 IDC FinTech Rankings Top 50 solution provider, for $2.6 billion.
- GTCR LLC purchased a 55% stake in merchant services and payment processing provider Wordplay for $18.5 billion
- Stock exchange giant Nasdaq acquired fintech firm Adenza from Thoma Bravo for $10.5 billion.
- In Papara's first-ever acquisition, it purchased neobank Rebellion for an undisclosed sum.
- Fintech-as-a-service startup Rapyd expands its platform with a $610 million acquisition of PayU assets from Prosus.
- Visa's $1 billion cash deal for Pismo expands its Latin American reach with a major Brazilian fintech acquisition.
- Canadian giant Nuvei Corporation bought U.S. payment solutions provider Paya Holdings Inc. in a $1.3 billion all-cash deal, paying $9.75 per share.
Our achievements
We successfully launched and concluded our first-ever all-in-one incubator, backed by leading Fintech partners and investors and innovative cohort members. Another one of our highlights was the successful launch of our Custom Bank Connection, a game-changer allowing clients to effortlessly integrate their banks into our Integrated Finance connections and pre-built integrations network. This not only enhances accessibility but also streamlines financial processes, delivering a seamlessly integrated experience.
Additionally, our Infrastructure played a starring role in empowering a financial business to unveil their Credit solution, marking a milestone in expanding the scope of its services. We're equally excited about enabling another client to launch their own BaaS infrastructure, showcasing our commitment to supporting our clients’ growth. A moment of pride came with the seamless migration of one of our clients from agency to full EMI, ensuring a disruption-free transition for end-users. Beyond this, we've been privileged to help entrepreneurs bring numerous business ideas to life, reaffirming our role as innovation enablers.
With IF's Building Blocks, building a financial product has never been more achievable, and we're delighted to be part of this journey. Lastly, the launch of our custom transaction flows, aka generic transactions capability, allows fintechs to tailor financial processes to their unique needs, fostering a more agile and responsive financial ecosystem. These achievements collectively contribute to a more personalised, and efficient ecosystem, driving productivity and adaptability.
Cheers to a year of growth and innovation!
