What is Fintech?
Maybe you’ve heard the buzzword making the rounds online or featuring in the news: fintech. But what is it?
Is it a company, a technological innovation, or a hashtag? Are you tired of nodding your head and acting like you understand? Let’s take a step back and explain what fintech actually is. You will learn about how you can participate in the fintech world and ways to keep up with the latest news. By the end of this article, you’ll be nodding your head with some real fintech knowledge.
The basics
Let’s start from scratch. In case you weren’t aware, fintech is short for financial technology. If that draws a blank, then just imagine fintech as the integration of financial services and technology. It’s hard to think of anything these days that doesn’t interact with technology somehow. If a financial service uses technology in any way or form, this is fintech. Many people think that this is a new phenomenon, but fintech has been around for many years. Travel back in time to the introduction of the ATM. Now, we don’t even think twice before withdrawing money from an ATM. But, when the first ATM was introduced, it was considered a revolutionary technological innovation for financial services. With technology constantly advancing, fintech companies are always growing and challenging outdated systems. At N26, we are part of the fintech revolution and are dedicated to disrupting traditional financial services with a best-in-class mobile banking app. You can find out more about what we do here.
How you can be a part of the fintech world
Fintech is all around us! Everyday you are a part of the fintech world. Any time you swipe your credit card, voilà, that’s financial technology. Your payment is processed and then shows up on your online or mobile account. If you’re a customer at a bank, you probably have an app for your account. With the touch of a finger, you can control your banking needs right from your phone. The possibilities with financial technologies are endless. Let’s say you need renters insurance — apps like Lemonade make it easy for you to get a policy, pay bills, submit claims and more. As another example, there are different peer-to-peer payment applications, like Venmo or Square Cash. These let you easily send money to other people from your bank account. When N26 comes to the US, you’ll be able to make peer-to-peer payments through the app using our MoneyBeam feature.
Where fintech companies work
Startups are especially active members of the fintech world. Fintech companies are growing so quickly that communal workspaces, accelerators, and industry groups have been established to support the fintech ecosystem. Accelerators create a community for startup companies to work in one space, where there are possibilities for funding, collaboration, education, and mentorship. In fact, the N26 US team works from a fintech co-working office called Rise New York. Rise is a hub for financial startups including the fintech class for Barclays Techstars and it’s just a block away from the beautiful historic Flatiron building (and the original Shake Shack — yum!). We love coming into work every day and feeding off of the exciting energy that flows through the space.
How to follow the latest fintech news
Now that you understand the world of fintech, I’m sure you’re wondering how to stay up to date with the latest trends. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. N26 US has its very own magazine. We are constantly publishing new articles and stories. We also love exploring different media outlets. Some of our favorite technology and fintech sources include:
Hopefully that cleared up some of the haziness.
If you’re excited about N26 coming to the US, so are we. Don’t forget to sign up for our waitlist!
