As an intro
Many fintech and other stories matters. As a result, it is always difficult to resume a year in couple of lines. I personally find looking at the state of affairs a great exercise. This is when we understand what are the real deals that matter. Look at the one, I have done last year. What we have learnt, where we managed to win and where we managed to learn more than what we thought.
Fintech Stories
In January, Stripe was valued at 22.5 BLN USD. They managed to raise 100 mln usd in additional funding. Outstanding and clearly demonstrating where the wind is blowing in terms of digitazation of payments and the rapidly expanding sector of ecommerce. In February, there were numerous scandals affecting the reputation of Revolut. People questioned the fintech eco system viability. Revolut’s CFO departed. In March SWIFT, the transaction provider, saw further signs of decline. SPFS, the Russian alternative saw 8 large foreign banks joining as well as 34 other institutions. More change to come for sure. In April, we saw Halifax digitization efforts failure. May, was the month where we saw a man dissolving a credit card to make a credit ring. Clearly, cash is under attack. In June, FCA proved again to be among the most sensible regulators in the EU. A phased delay on the SCA was allowed. September, was when AMEX tapped open banking for account to account payments. October, was the month where Uber, the share ride giant decided to become a fintech. As a result, they created Uber Money. November, was when we saw the again the power of twitter. DB’s social media team commented on tweet by ZeroHedge. To end the year in December, Deloitte predicted Japanification of banking and finance. Here is the link of their report.
The innovation going live in 2019
Bill Gates, did an introduction for MIT Article in February. The article pinpointed 10 technologies that are going live in 2019. For example, how carbon storage technologies are evolving and how they can help us tackle climate change. The article also explain why this technologies matter and when they will be available. Consequently, I think you should have a look at them at the link here.
10 near term technologies
There are plenty interesting stories about innovation not only in fintech. Likewise, IoT, Serverless computing and much more also exist. Have a look, at that publication by tech republic to learn more.
Geopolitics
Not a fan of the subject. However, nowadays it dominates much of our time and many of our realities depend on it. Brexit upended British and EU politics. The US-China trade war drove prices of assets and financial flows from one end of the globe to another. The world largest publicly traded company was IPOed in KSA. Large wood fires in the Amazon and Australia negatively affected our environment. Donald Trump, the 45th US president was impeached. China extended its lead in supercomputers and 5G. The Russian Federation has deployed hypersonic ICBM missiles and has increased its role in Middle Eastern politics. The least goes on and on. Similarly, this is what makes 2020 more interesting and unpredictable.
The Charts
Yep, data vizualisation. Sometimes, visual data tells us the best fintech stories. Have a look at this impressive 10 charts that will help you to better understand what will matter even more in the days to come.
The Books
New books often equal new idea. Not only in fintech. Everywhere. For instance, here you can find a great list to read and learn new stuff.
About the Author
Boris Grozev is a seasoned fintech executive. Moreover, he is an entrepreneur by heart. Boris has helped number of businesses. To clarify, he has created and implemented business development and product enhancement strategies. In addition, his advisory work in emerging and frontier markets has resulted in culture and technology change. Above all, it has fostered innovation and lead to tangible results. He also invests in variety of asset classes and shares his experiences from the journey to financial independence. Boris is a fast learner. His leadership abilities, ambition naturally spread to others. In other words, his stamina, attitude and passion to succeed help to achieve common goals.
