Fintech doesn’t need an introduction because of its strong worldwide demand and rapid growth. Globally, the Fintech industry has seen its value and investment flow correct. The operating and revenue models for firms in the fintech industry were impacted by recent legislative reforms. Deal flow activity in this market should expand as a result of investment flows in wealth technology, insurtech, and M&A of Fintech NBFCs. The global fintech market had a banner year in 2021, which makes the first part of 2022 seem sluggish in comparison. Yet in actuality, a lot of the fintech market’s segments have proven resilient and strong. Due to general economic concerns and global unpredictability, the fintech market will likely face considerable challenges in 2022, although it is expected to continue to draw significant interest and funding.
Fintech financial backers will increase their focus on income, income development, and benefit as valuations come under pressure. This could make it more difficult for some fintech to raise capital. M&A activity may also increase as struggling fintech move to sell rather than hold a down round, corporate and PE financial backers move to take advantage of better evaluating, and well-capitalized fintech look to crush the competition. Geopolitical uncertainty, volatility in the stock market, rising expansion and financing expenses, and other issues all had an impact on the larger venture market in 2022. When compared to the major record highs reached in 2021, which seemed to last forever, the fintech industry may experience amazing activity slowing down.
Global Fintech Investment Statistics
- Despite significant VC funding, fintech investment globally drops to $107.8 billion.
- Compared to all other times outside of 2021, VC investment dropped from $66.5 billion in 2021 to $52.6 billion in 2022, but the amount was still very substantial.
- Americans received the most venture capital funding ($27.2 billion), but EMEA experienced a new six-month high ($16.6 billion).
- Fintech investment was extremely notable in 2021 as financial backers hurried to make bets in this sector. While speculative activity has returned to earlier levels, investors should expect the market to remain focused through 2022 and into 2023.
- Payments-related investments continued to be very robust in 2022, totaling $43.6 billion, down from the $60.3 billion recorded in all of 2021.
- The amount of money invested in the insurtech sector decreased significantly, with $3.8 billion invested globally in 2022 falling far short of the $14.8 billion invested in 2021.
Global investment in regtech had high resiliency in 2022 compared to a number of other fintech sectors. - Following a similar trajectory to the level of investment witnessed in 2021, regtech companies attracted $5.6 billion in investment across 157 acquisitions globally.
- Wealthtech investment weakened significantly in 2022 after a very strong 2021, following the overall global investment downturn.
- Global investment in cryptocurrencies and blockchain declined to $14.2 billion in 2022 after a record-breaking 2021.
- In 2022, the volatility in the world’s public markets significantly impacted the valuations of numerous publicly traded digital companies, including fintech. This, along with other difficult market variables, nearly put a stop to IPO activity, and it’s predicted that this trend would last through 2022.
- Investors will grow more drawn to B2B solutions because: Fintech investors will probably increase their focus on B2B companies that help businesses become more efficient or enable them to broaden their value propositions as the world teeters on the brink of a recession.
Highlights
The vertical direction of fintech ventures around the world was influenced by a number of factors during the first half of 2022, including global vulnerability, turbulent public business sectors, advancing inventory network disturbances and challenges, high levels of inflation, and rising financing costs. When compared to the enormous record highs reached in 2021, fintech investment in 2022 may be drastically reduced due to what seems like a never-ending degree of uncertainty. The illustrations below will provide a comprehensive overview of the subject.
$107.8 billion in total fintech investments were made in 2,980 agreements in 2022. In 2022, $43.6 billion was invested in enterprises specializing in payments by investors from all significant jurisdictions. Investment in the payments sector may start to slow down a little bit in 2022 as a result of the growing macroeconomic difficulties, especially for early-stage deals.
Read: Did You Know- 14 Bitcoin Facts
Due to rising payments company consolidation and the amount and magnitude of add-in transactions, M&A activity is anticipated to stay robust. Despite substantial difficulties in the first half of 2022 for the cryptocurrency industry, $14.2 billion was invested in enterprises with a focus on the sector. Future developments may include B2B solutions focused at infrastructure enhancement or operational activity optimization, such as AR/AP, as well as a continued emphasis on embedded solutions, such as payments, finance, and insurance.
Financial Technology Interface for the US
Fintech investment in the Americas fell to $39.4 billion in 2022 from $59.7 billion in 2021. Despite a decline in quarterly investment to $22.7 billion, the Americas had a record number of 806 deals in Q1 2022, demonstrating the strength of the region’s fintech business at the start of 2022. Financial investors retreated fairly when global vulnerability and macroeconomic challenges spread to fintech. In the second quarter of 222, total investment fell to $16.8 billion over 624 agreements, bringing the total venture to $39.4 billion across 1,430 deals for the first half of the year. The largest deals in the Americas in 2022 were all in the US, including Ramp’s $748 million venture capital fundraising, SimpleNexus’ $1.2 billion acquisition by nCino, Bottomline Advances’ $2.6 billion buyout by PE firm Thomas Bravo, and SoFi’s $1.1 billion acquisition of Technisys.
The majority of fintech investment in the Americas is by far concentrated in the US: In the Americas, the US invested $34.9 billion in fintech in 2022, down from $49.7 billion in 2022. With the rapid rise in global macroeconomic and international vulnerability, fintech speculative activity outside of the US decreased even more dramatically, with Brazil and Canada experiencing venture declines of more than 50% between 2021 and 2022. Fintech investment fell from $3.7 billion to $1.4 billion in Brazil and from $1.9 billion to $810 million in Canada. Fintech investors across the Americas increased their attention on profitability, top-line revenue growth, and cash flow when evaluating objectives and firms within their portfolios as a result of rising interest rates, rising levels of inflation, and growing concerns about an economic recession. Financial investors are also starting to take into account an organization’s potential to deliver returns in light of shifting market conditions. Falling valuations across several fintech subsectors: Considering the macroeconomic environment, many public companies, including many IT companies, have experienced steep declines in their valuations.
Although the private markets have not changed to the same extent as at this time, there may be several down rounds in 2022 as fintech companies want to seek cash given the downward pressure on valuations. Challenger bank market interest is still very high. Challenger banks have gained more attention in the Americas, especially in Latin America, where they are focused on middle-class consumers and small companies, two formerly underserved populations. In Canada, where a small number of large banks have long controlled the financial industry, interest in challenger banks is also on the rise. As the Americas experienced a record-breaking year for cryptocurrency and blockchain investment in 2021, investment in the sector slowed down in 2022. While the speculative sector continued to be strong for exceptionally to pre-2021 results, supported by January raising from US-based Fireblocks ($550 million) and Bahamas-based FTX, 2022 might bring greater challenges for businesses in the sector.
Fintech Investment Ideas
- As capital costs rise, valuations are still being adjusted: Capital will become more expensive as interest rates keep rising. As a result, values will be affected, and investors will be compelled to increase their attention to cash flow, top-line revenue growth, and profitability.
- M&A will rise as businesses and PE firms search for deals: As a result of the downward pressure on values, M&A activity is likely to rise as investors take advantage of the chance to buy at lower prices than in prior years. Startups may decide to sell in lieu of conducting a down round.
- Interest in cybersecurity automation is expected to increase as a result of the fact that firms’ awareness of cybersecurity issues is only going to expand. Cybersecurity automation can help manage personnel shortages, boost operational efficiency, and improve cybersecurity management.
- Investors will grow more drawn to B2B solutions because: Fintech investors will probably increase their focus on B2B companies that help businesses become more efficient or enable them to broaden their value propositions as the world teeters on the brink of a recession.
- Fintech Will keep emphasizing data-driven solutions: Fintech firms will keep putting their attention into figuring out novel methods to gather, analyze, and use data in order to stand out from the competition in the eyes of both businesses and customers.
While it is anticipated that investments in cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology will continue to slow down, a continuous focus on the use of blockchain in the modernization of financial markets is likely.
Conclusion
Depending on its area of expertise, fintech generates revenue in many ways. Fintech in banking, for instance, can make money through charging fees, charging interest on loans, and selling financial products. Investing applications may take a cut of the assets they are managing, impose brokerage fees, or use payment for order flow (PfOF) (AUM). Payments applications may charge for extras like early withdrawals or credit card use, as well as the ability to earn interest on cash sums. Despite this, it is anticipated that fintech investment will continue to be somewhat resilient, especially in sectors like B2B payments, cybersecurity automation, and data-driven analytics.
Read: 5 Unconventional Ways To Make Money On Crypto In 2023
[To share your insights with us, please write to sghosh@martechseries.com]
