Are you tired of driving to the bank or dealing with mountains of paperwork each time you need to renew your insurance? We’re happy to report you don’t need to bother with traditional financial services anymore because fintech is here to help! We prepared this Fintech50 hot ten 2019 list to help you stay on top of your digital game. Shall we dive in?
But first, let’s do a quick overview of these novel business and financial services and what the fintech industry includes.
Intro to Fintech
The financial services industry is not what it used to be a few years ago. Gone are the long, complicated insurance agreements. So is the need to go to your local bank to order payments or apply for loans. Now you can do all this — and more — directly from your computer or smartphone.
Who’s making this financial services innovation happen? Fintech, of course! A combination of ‘finance’ and ‘technology,’ the fintech sector is where all financial innovation occurs nowadays.
Financial technology companies take many shapes and forms. Some businesses focus on providing alternative banking solutions or combining your existing bank accounts to simplify online payments. Their services rival some of the biggest European banks and other traditional financial institutions.
One notable example is Revolut, a mobile-only bank that doesn’t have a single physical office. Yet, Revolut has enabled thousands of people around Europe to pay for goods and services, send money to one another, and even invest in stocks and cryptocurrencies.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg for innovative European fintechs! Many other Fintech50 startups aim to increase financial inclusivity by making services like insurance affordable and understandable for everyone.
Yet another strain of fintech has to do with the crypto market itself. Did you know that for-profit companies like Binance, which operates their own blockchains and native cryptocurrencies, count as fintech? Blockchains, crypto exchanges, DEXs, dApps — lots of crypto and DeFi companies are also part of this sector. No wonder we’re seeing such rapid growth in fintech!
The Fintech50 Hot Ten 2019 Edition
Now that you have the basics of fintech down, are you ready to have a look at the top ten companies in the financial services industry right now?
An international panel of experts from the world of finance gathered to recognise innovative European fintechs in its annual list. Together, they looked at over 1,000 candidates to select the most promising fintech businesses. These industry experts ranked them based on applicability, financial inclusivity, innovation, scalability, and success.
The financial companies that made it to this list are diverse in both function and background. Some specialise strictly in digital currencies, while others offer open banking solutions. They come from the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom. Their market cap varies, with the smallest one being worth $500 million, while the most influential pick has a market cap of a whopping $95 billion.
Curious about which companies will decide the future of finance? We won’t make you wait any longer! Here are the hottest fintech companies for 2019 in order of valuation:
- Stripe (US) — $95 billion
- Coinbase (US) — $85.7 billion
- Chime (US) — $25 billion
- Bolt (US) — $11 billion
- Gemini (US) — $7.1 billion
- TransferWise (UK) — $5 billion
- Acorns (US) — $1.9 billion
- Bitfury (NL) — $1 billion
- Enigma (US) — $750 million
- Nova Credit (US) — $500 million
The majority of companies in this top 10 fall into two main categories. First, there are three companies from the cryptocurrency and blockchain sector (Coinbase, Bitfury, Gemini).
There are also three payments firms — Stripe, Bolt, and TransferWise. Acorns and Chime offer personal finance services.
Enigma, which represents Wall St., and Nova Credit, which offers loans, are in categories of their own.
Not enough? For the complete Top 50 companies, read the Fintech50 list for 2019.
If you wish to know how competitive our Fintech Hot Ten 2019 companies are in other years, feel free to check similar posts:
- The Fintech50 2016 List
- The Fintech50 2016 Part 2
- The Fintech50 2017 List
- The Fintech50 2018 List
- The Fintech Top 10 2020 List
- The Fintech50 List
Disclaimer
Do not take the information in this article as investment advice. We recommend you do your independent research before making any investment decisions. All forms of financial trading pose a risk to your capital.
