Global law firm Goodwin today released its inaugural survey of the financial technology industry. “Fintech 2020: A Global Survey on the State of Financial Technology” reviews key fintech trends based on responses from more than 700 senior decision-makers across the accounting, banking, financial services and investment, and insurance industries in the United States, United Kingdom, and continental Europe.
The report’s key findings include:
- More than half (54%) of respondents rank data and analytics as their top priority for fintech adoption, highlighting the importance of analytical information about financial performance, trends, and developments.
- At the same time, nearly half of the respondents (47%) rank cybersecurity as the largest threat to fintech adoption, indicating that although fintech offers a compelling alternative to conventional financial solutions, it presents a new set of challenges.
- Existence and understanding of clear regulatory and legal frameworks are key drivers (22%) for enabling fintech innovation.
- One third of respondents (28%) each rank private equity and venture capital, and banks and asset managers as the top drivers of capital investment into fintech over the next three years. Capital from institutional funds and big banks is critical to enabling innovation in fintech startups.
- While 39% of respondents indicate that adoption of fintech is a high priority for their companies, a third of the companies (29%) are reinvesting only 10% or less of their profits into fintech development, pointing to a gap between awareness and actual resources dedicated to fintech development.
“Our global survey confirms that while the fintech sector continues to grow steadily, much disruption is still to come,” said Scott Joachim, who co-chairs Goodwin’s Fintech practice with Amber Dolman. “As digital transformation of financial markets accelerates at breakneck speeds, fintech presents — in equal measure — significant opportunities and challenges for both investors and innovators around the world. Goodwin’s inaugural global fintech survey sheds light on some of the most pressing issues facing this vibrant sector at the intersection of capital and innovation.”
Explore the interactive highlights and download the full report.
The webinar will be taking place on Wednesday, September 16, from 12pm to 1pm EDT. During the webinar, Joachim and Dolman will unpack the survey results and emerging trends with Rich Lee, Managing Director and Head of Global Investments at Bank of America; Rob Frohwein, CEO of Kabbage, which recently entered into an acquisition agreement with American Express; and Cale Coons, Vice President of Enterprise Compliance and Risk at Freedom Financial Network.
Goodwin’s Fintech practice advises more than 40% of the Forbes Fintech 50 companies. With nearly 200 lawyers around the world, the practice works with financial institutions, strategic investors, and cutting-edge technology companies on transactional, regulatory, and litigation matters. Learn more about the practice on Goodwin’s Fintech minisite.
The data and findings in the report are based on a web survey that GlobalWebIndex, a market research SaaS company, conducted on behalf of Goodwin in the first quarter of 2020.