China Continues To Dominate Global FINTECH Industry

[onebyone]

China overtakes UK in global fintech race
December 14, 2015 6:06 pm By Peter Campbell and Emma Dunkle

©Bloomberg The Bund esplanade in Chinese financial centre Shanghai

Seven of the world’s most successful 50 fintech companies are now from China, threatening to overshadow the UK as a leading hub for digital start-ups.

ZhongAn, an online insurance group backed by Alibaba founder Jack Ma that raised $931m over the summer to fund its booming expansion, tops a list compiled

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KPMG’s survey a year ago contained only one Chinese company.

UK peer-to-peer lending platform Funding Circle was ranked fifth, the highest of six British firms.

George Osborne, the chancellor, has pledged to make London the fintech capital of the world.

But Warren Mead, who leads KPMG’s fintech practice, said: “The UK is clearly a leading centre for fintech but with the rise of Chinese firms that position is not guaranteed.”

The accountancy group compiled two lists — one of 50 established firms, and another of 50 firms to watch.

In total the 100 firms have raised in excess of $10bn.

Global funding for fintech companies is expected to hit $20bn this year — a 66 per cent jump compared with 2014, KPMG said.

Although the UK lagged behind China in established fintech providers, it boasted 12 companies in the “emerging” list — more than any other country.

Financial technology, known as “fintech”, ranges from mobile transactions to digital currencies such as bitcoin.

It presents a unique challenge for traditional banks, as nimble start-up companies eat away at their market share.

Mr Mead added: “The speed and energy with which fintech innovation is impacting financial services is gathering global momentum on many measures.”

Other British businesses on the list include retail banking app Atom Bank, online investment service Nutmeg and money transfer service TransferWise.

When compiling the list KPMG looked at factors including amount of funding raised, customer numbers, and social media brand awareness — allowing companies such as Atom Bank, which has not yet launched a single product but is widely talked about on social media, to make the cut.

Peer-to-peer (P2P) companies offering payments, currency transfers or transactions accounted for a quarter of the list.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley said the rapid growth in P2P lenders in China was not yet a threat to banks, as they target customers not served by the incumbents.

The fledgling platforms are also small relative to the large credit market in China. By the end of 2014, there were 1,575 platforms in operation in China — but 367 more that had failed.

The analysts said “banks are starting to take notice of the power of the internet” and are actively adapting new technologies.

Some banks see an opportunity to set up similar platforms, such as Ping An Group’s Lufax.

Cormac Leech, an analyst at Liberum, said: “We think P2P platforms are disruptive, but one risk is that pure marketplace lenders are incentivised to maximise their own volumes in the short-run, so there’s a conflict of interest, which needs to be managed carefully.”

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/ae0afaf4-a273-11e5-8d70-42b68cfae6e4.html#axzz3yyGuzniL

**********************************************************

China looks set to continue to dominate global fintech industry – Report
Monday, January 9, 2017 10:06 AM UTC

A collaborative report from DBS and EY has highlighted China’s unique, dynamic and rapidly evolving FinTech ecosystem, while examining the key drivers behind the explosive growth of FinTech sector in the country.

The report, titled “The Rise of FinTech in China”, was released in November 2016. The authors see huge potential in China and believe that in the coming years, it could dominate the global FinTech industry with a very strong domestic market.

“The speed at which China’s FinTech landscape has developed is truly remarkable. It’s gotten this far because China’s landscape has operated in a sandbox-like environment conducive for FinTech to thrive — a strong domestic market, coupled with a constant push for innovation and experimentation driven by leading giants, unhindered by international influence. Much of this can be attributed to the favorable government policies and regulations”, Neal Cross, DBS Chief Innovation Officer, said.
​

According to the report, Chinese FinTech activity spans seven key vertical markets, which includes payments and e-wallets, supply chain and consumer finance, peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms, online funds, online insurance, personal finance management, and online brokerage.

The authors further said that China’s financial services sector is ripe for disintermediation, buoyed by several factors such as exponential growth in digital connectivity; deep penetration of smartphones; unmet financial needs; the explosion of e-commerce and a core of restless internet giants.

The report also takes note of various blockchain initiatives in the country, which it says, have largely been associated with academia and research institutes. The Chinese market saw a flurry of developments by mid-2016, with the formation of consortiums including China Ledger Alliance, Financial Blockchain Shenzhen Consortium, and Qianhai International Blockchain Ecosphere Alliance.

“These blockchain forays are still at the nascent stages in China, with some proof-of-concept efforts under way but wider adoption and implementation remaining a long-term play. As with blockchain developments elsewhere, pain points in current platforms are impeding adoption. Challenges include: difficulties in integrating with current ecosystems; lack of security protection for application data, logic and operating environment; and issues around trust and protection of individuals’ and business’ privacy”, it said.​

It further said that Chinese fintech firms are penetrating new product markets overseas to diversify revenue streams and reduce their home-ground reliance. As these firms expand out of China, it remains to be seen whether they will prove robust enough for international markets, it said.

“While the country hasn’t received the attention and acclaim of its counterparts in the FinTech arena, its champions are blowing away competition all over the world. It’s only recently that we are starting to see China’s leading FinTech companies take center stage at the global level. This will be an ongoing trend in the coming years and we can expect China’s FinTech ecosystem to have a wide-ranging impact on global FinTech development”, Cross added.​

http://www.econotimes.com/China-loo...minate-global-fintech-industry--Report-478413

 

[Shotgunner51]

https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/14/china-is-disrupting-global-fintech/

CRUNCH NETWORK
China is disrupting global fintech
Posted Aug 14, 2016 Joshua Bateman (@joshdbateman)

In China, the abacus was mentioned by the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.). During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the Chinese were the first to use paper money.

In late 2013, many Chinese raved about Yú’é Bǎo, 余额宝 (“leftover treasure”), a money market fund offering roughly double the interest rates banks did. Launched by Alipay, an Alibaba subsidiary, the fund attracted 150 million clients and $93 billion within 18 months, a phenomenal feat.

A confluence of factors puts China at the financial technology (“fintech”) forefront: economic advancement, investor behavior, mobile technology, big data, financial industry liberalization, and regulatory acquiescence.

Chinese consumers have readily adopted fintech services such as online banking, currencies, money transfers, payments, crowdfunding, lending, investing, and insurance.

At the 2016 Fund Forum Asia conference in Hong Kong, industry experts discussed the impact of fintech in China.

Jonathan Ha, CEO of Shanghai-based research firm Red Pulse, spoke about the next frontier in Chinese finance: “It’s no longer the banks. I think the future depends on the disruption of those banks and mobile banking is one option for disrupting them.”

Porter Erisman, former Alibaba Vice President and author of “Alibaba’s World,” lived in China in the 2000s when paying rent required waiting 45 minutes in a bank. He said, “By definition, any company that has 20 seats in a waiting room is not servicing its customers.” Today, he asked, “Why even go to the bank? Especially when you can use your cell phone to transfer money.”

A unique variable spurring demand for services such as remittance transfers is China’s rural migrant workers, numbering 277 million people according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

And China’s fledgling financial markets lack legacy preferences that are evident in many developed markets. In the West, for example, consumers and investors veer toward well-known, traditional brick-and-mortar institutions that have higher assumed levels of safety and expertise than online companies.

This mentality is not ingrained in China, where first-generation savers and investors have no qualms entrusting online retailers, search engines, travel agencies, social media networks, smartphone providers, and start-ups for financial services.

In developed markets, many financial products including mutual funds, mortgages, and insurance plans involve intermediate marketing steps and fees. The Chinese happily skirt these steps. Erisman said, “Especially in China, people will do anything to get around the middleman.”

Additionally, traditional financial services are geared toward the wealthy. Technology, however, enables scaling, making it economically feasible to address the masses, particularly China’s vast geographically-remote markets.

According to Barry Freeman, co-founder of Beijing-based fintech company PINTEC, mobile is now “the entry point for client acquisition strategies.” PINTEC’s wholly owned subsidiaries include Dumiao, Xuanji, Yidian Fund, and Jimubox.

China has almost 1.3 billion mobile phone users, many on 3 or 4G networks. According to reports, by 2020, the government plans to invest more than $320 billion in broadband internet infrastructure, benefiting rural areas that lack established banking networks.

Freeman recognizes the value in strong financial brands, but said, “We believe the market will be won by internet businesses or businesses with internet DNA.” Especially with the bālínghòu and jiǔlínghòu, ’80s and ’90s generations, “The market is quite difficult to attack from offline to online,” he remarked.

Online users expect different cultural, branding, marketing, functionality, cost, customization, engagement, and service experiences. Freeman said, “It’s very difficult to customize traffic-based selling. It’s fraught with challenges”

Beyond automated transaction services, companies like PINTEC provide more advanced investment management services, dubbed roboadvisory, digital wealth, or digital advisory services. Although in the early stages, they aim to incorporate big data and artificial intelligence to provide appropriate, affordable solutions.

These accounts often blend investment recommendations from the roboadvisor with some client decision-making, which is especially well-suited for Chinese investors who value lower fees and being involved in the process. Jeroen Buwalda, Partner at EY, said, “Asian entrepreneurs have faith in themselves, not fund managers.”

Chinese clients also desire to invest over the next hour or minute, not next week after meeting with a financial advisor. In conjunction with China’s economic growth, demand for financial services is increasing.

When addressing the market, one advantage online companies have is access to voluminous client and prospect data, which traditional financial services companies lack. Alibaba, for example, has more than 420 million customers who have provided the company with behavioural data for years.

Erisman spoke about using data and said Alibaba’s leadership thought, “Alipay could become much bigger than just online payment. We always thought Alipay could actually grow to become a huge financial institution.” It has. Spun off from Alibaba, Alipay now falls under Ant Financial, a full service financial services enterprise, which analysts have valued at approximately $60 billion.

Following this success, other online companies, start-ups, and traditional financial services companies are contemplating how to enter this mushrooming sector.

At the conference, Simon Hopkins, CEO of Milltrust International said, “In terms of the evolution of fintech, we’ll see lots of new businesses run by technologists coming into this space before we see the investment management world really understanding the way the world is changing.”

Although tech companies are leading the initiative, traditional Chinese financial companies are developing fintech solutions in-house or are acquiring them, enabling them to reach new clients, improve service, and increase internal efficiency. This quarter, Reuters reported that Chinese regulators are easing restrictions that currently hamper commercial banks’ investment into technology enterprises.

For Hong Kong-based Harvest Global Investments, for example, fintech can improve client communication and eliminate fees associated with marketing products through traditional bank channels. Jeff Lim, Executive Director, said, “Roboadvisors, the online platforms and such, those are essentially new ways to reach out to your end investors or customers…That gives us a way to reach our clients directly.”

Sometimes, clients won’t realize new technology was implemented. Fintech eliminates non-client-facing, middle- and back-office jobs in risk management, compliance oversight, report generation, trading execution, transaction settlements, and other operational functions.

Buwalda was more bullish on the adopters, such as banks and asset managers, than the technology providers. “I think the money is going to be made not by the robotechnology solutions companies, but by the people who employ them,” he said.

According to Buwalda, one roboadvisory support staff can service more than 10K clients. And robots can cost one-tenth as much as some full-time employees while working break-free, 24/7. “In five years time,” he believes, “it will already look quite different than it is today.”

He also spoke about value from blockchain. Blockchain is an open, distributed database or ledger that reduces the need for third-party intermediaries, decreasing transaction costs and execution times.

Going forward, declining technology costs and China’s inexpensive labor market will ensure it remains a fintech axis.

Regulations are also supporting the industry. Appropriately regulating financial services is challenging. If policies are too lax, investor risk increases. Too stringent, innovation is stifled.

Unlike developed markets where regulations were instituted prior to technologies being invented, Chinese regulators are relatively young and are evolving with fintech. They do not need to re-write existing regulations, an arduous task.

In an EY report, Douglas Arner and Jànos Barberis wrote, “China is formalizing this harmonious relationship between banks and fintech players by creating a tiered regulatory regime…China is increasingly at the forefront of regulatory developments within fintech, signaling a dramatic change in the origin of where regulatory standards may emerge from.”

Although regulatory scrutiny is increasing, Chinese officials have thus far been more liberal than other markets.

Yú’é Bǎo, for example, was bottom-up driven with Alipay addressing a market need and subsequently managing regulatory concerns. Erisman said, “Our view was always, run ahead, do it, prove to the government that it will in the long run benefit the Chinese economy, and then ask for forgiveness later.”

In contrast, on a “60 Minutes” segment, Lesley Stahl spoke of issues fintech in the U.S. faces. She said, “While it’s still a small slice of the financial industry, the powerful and rich old guard is fighting back. Its lobby already pushing for more regulation to curb the newcomers.”

Erisman did acknowledge that China’s fintech regulations could tighten: “The only limit to it is how much the government will allow. Ultimately, [fintech] could destabilize the banks in China if it happened too quickly.”

Although more stringent regulations could temper growth, the trend is toward greater fintech adoption in China, driven by technology companies.

At many traditional institutions, inertia dominates, slowing adoption. In a room of approximately 350 investment management professionals, one conference speaker asked, “Who has traded via roboadvisory?”

Four people raised their hands.

Erisman stressed urgency for traditional companies to embrace fintech: “This is something that can’t really wait. Because very soon it will move online with these e-commerce companies.”

 

[Mangus Ortus Novem]

https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/14/china-is-disrupting-global-fintech/

Posted 1 hour ago by Joshua Bateman (@joshdbateman)

View attachment 326150


In China, the abacus was mentioned by the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.). During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the Chinese were the first to use paper money.

In late 2013, many Chinese raved about Yú’é Bǎo, 余额宝 (“leftover treasure”), a money market fund offering roughly double the interest rates banks did. Launched by Alipay, an Alibaba subsidiary, the fund attracted 150 million clients and $93 billion within 18 months, a phenomenal feat.

A confluence of factors puts China at the financial technology (“fintech”) forefront: economic advancement, investor behavior, mobile technology, big data, financial industry liberalization, and regulatory acquiescence.

Chinese consumers have readily adopted fintech services such as online banking, currencies, money transfers, payments, crowdfunding, lending, investing, and insurance.

At the 2016 Fund Forum Asia conference in Hong Kong, industry experts discussed the impact of fintech in China.

Jonathan Ha, CEO of Shanghai-based research firm Red Pulse, spoke about the next frontier in Chinese finance: “It’s no longer the banks. I think the future depends on the disruption of those banks and mobile banking is one option for disrupting them.”

View attachment 326151

Porter Erisman, former Alibaba Vice President and author of “Alibaba’s World,” lived in China in the 2000s when paying rent required waiting 45 minutes in a bank. He said, “By definition, any company that has 20 seats in a waiting room is not servicing its customers.” Today, he asked, “Why even go to the bank? Especially when you can use your cell phone to transfer money.”

A unique variable spurring demand for services such as remittance transfers is China’s rural migrant workers, numbering 277 million people according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

And China’s fledgling financial markets lack legacy preferences that are evident in many developed markets. In the West, for example, consumers and investors veer toward well-known, traditional brick-and-mortar institutions that have higher assumed levels of safety and expertise than online companies.

This mentality is not ingrained in China, where first-generation savers and investors have no qualms entrusting online retailers, search engines, travel agencies, social media networks, smartphone providers, and start-ups for financial services.

In developed markets, many financial products including mutual funds, mortgages, and insurance plans involve intermediate marketing steps and fees. The Chinese happily skirt these steps. Erisman said, “Especially in China, people will do anything to get around the middleman.”

Additionally, traditional financial services are geared toward the wealthy. Technology, however, enables scaling, making it economically feasible to address the masses, particularly China’s vast geographically-remote markets.

According to Barry Freeman, co-founder of Beijing-based fintech company PINTEC, mobile is now “the entry point for client acquisition strategies.” PINTEC’s wholly owned subsidiaries include Dumiao, Xuanji, Yidian Fund, and Jimubox.

View attachment 326152

China has almost 1.3 billion mobile phone users, many on 3 or 4G networks. According to reports, by 2020, the government plans to invest more than $320 billion in broadband internet infrastructure, benefiting rural areas that lack established banking networks.

Freeman recognizes the value in strong financial brands, but said, “We believe the market will be won by internet businesses or businesses with internet DNA.” Especially with the bālínghòu and jiǔlínghòu, ’80s and ’90s generations, “The market is quite difficult to attack from offline to online,” he remarked.

Online users expect different cultural, branding, marketing, functionality, cost, customization, engagement, and service experiences. Freeman said, “It’s very difficult to customize traffic-based selling. It’s fraught with challenges”

Beyond automated transaction services, companies like PINTEC provide more advanced investment management services, dubbed roboadvisory, digital wealth, or digital advisory services. Although in the early stages, they aim to incorporate big data and artificial intelligence to provide appropriate, affordable solutions.

These accounts often blend investment recommendations from the roboadvisor with some client decision-making, which is especially well-suited for Chinese investors who value lower fees and being involved in the process. Jeroen Buwalda, Partner at EY, said, “Asian entrepreneurs have faith in themselves, not fund managers.”

Chinese clients also desire to invest over the next hour or minute, not next week after meeting with a financial advisor. In conjunction with China’s economic growth, demand for financial services is increasing.

When addressing the market, one advantage online companies have is access to voluminous client and prospect data, which traditional financial services companies lack. Alibaba, for example, has more than 420 million customers who have provided the company with behavioural data for years.

View attachment 326153

Erisman spoke about using data and said Alibaba’s leadership thought, “Alipay could become much bigger than just online payment. We always thought Alipay could actually grow to become a huge financial institution.” It has. Spun off from Alibaba, Alipay now falls under Ant Financial, a full service financial services enterprise, which analysts have valued at approximately $60 billion.

Following this success, other online companies, start-ups, and traditional financial services companies are contemplating how to enter this mushrooming sector.

At the conference, Simon Hopkins, CEO of Milltrust International said, “In terms of the evolution of fintech, we’ll see lots of new businesses run by technologists coming into this space before we see the investment management world really understanding the way the world is changing.”

Although tech companies are leading the initiative, traditional Chinese financial companies are developing fintech solutions in-house or are acquiring them, enabling them to reach new clients, improve service, and increase internal efficiency. This quarter, Reuters reported that Chinese regulators are easing restrictions that currently hamper commercial banks’ investment into technology enterprises.

For Hong Kong-based Harvest Global Investments, for example, fintech can improve client communication and eliminate fees associated with marketing products through traditional bank channels. Jeff Lim, Executive Director, said, “Roboadvisors, the online platforms and such, those are essentially new ways to reach out to your end investors or customers…That gives us a way to reach our clients directly.”

Sometimes, clients won’t realize new technology was implemented. Fintech eliminates non-client-facing, middle- and back-office jobs in risk management, compliance oversight, report generation, trading execution, transaction settlements, and other operational functions.

Buwalda was more bullish on the adopters, such as banks and asset managers, than the technology providers. “I think the money is going to be made not by the robotechnology solutions companies, but by the people who employ them,” he said.

According to Buwalda, one roboadvisory support staff can service more than 10K clients. And robots can cost one-tenth as much as some full-time employees while working break-free, 24/7. “In five years time,” he believes, “it will already look quite different than it is today.”

He also spoke about value from blockchain. Blockchain is an open, distributed database or ledger that reduces the need for third-party intermediaries, decreasing transaction costs and execution times.

Going forward, declining technology costs and China’s inexpensive labor market will ensure it remains a fintech axis.

Regulations are also supporting the industry. Appropriately regulating financial services is challenging. If policies are too lax, investor risk increases. Too stringent, innovation is stifled.

Unlike developed markets where regulations were instituted prior to technologies being invented, Chinese regulators are relatively young and are evolving with fintech. They do not need to re-write existing regulations, an arduous task.

In an EY report, Douglas Arner and Jànos Barberis wrote, “China is formalizing this harmonious relationship between banks and fintech players by creating a tiered regulatory regime…China is increasingly at the forefront of regulatory developments within fintech, signaling a dramatic change in the origin of where regulatory standards may emerge from.”

Although regulatory scrutiny is increasing, Chinese officials have thus far been more liberal than other markets.

Yú’é Bǎo, for example, was bottom-up driven with Alipay addressing a market need and subsequently managing regulatory concerns. Erisman said, “Our view was always, run ahead, do it, prove to the government that it will in the long run benefit the Chinese economy, and then ask for forgiveness later.”

In contrast, on a “60 Minutes” segment, Lesley Stahl spoke of issues fintech in the U.S. faces. She said, “While it’s still a small slice of the financial industry, the powerful and rich old guard is fighting back. Its lobby already pushing for more regulation to curb the newcomers.”

Erisman did acknowledge that China’s fintech regulations could tighten: “The only limit to it is how much the government will allow. Ultimately, [fintech] could destabilize the banks in China if it happened too quickly.”

Although more stringent regulations could temper growth, the trend is toward greater fintech adoption in China, driven by technology companies.

At many traditional institutions, inertia dominates, slowing adoption. In a room of approximately 350 investment management professionals, one conference speaker asked, “Who has traded via roboadvisory?”

Four people raised their hands.

Erisman stressed urgency for traditional companies to embrace fintech: “This is something that can’t really wait. Because very soon it will move online with these e-commerce companies.”

Great article. Thanks for sharing.

With so much capital/liquidity in the mainland market...money needs a regulated way out. After all it is the nature of the Capital to seek profit.

Personally, I would like to see a principle based framework which offers consumer protection at the same time creating healthy competition in the financial markets.

With low interests on saving accounts...new capital vehicles need to be developed. However, the fundamental question is how to keep tight regulatory control? We don't want shadowbanking 2.0??

Asia pacific markets are early adpoters...let us see how it pans out.

All the best.

 

[Mista]

WeChat is a quite common payment right?

A few months ago I went to Mt. Emei and I saw someone selling noodles at the top of the mountain. I was quite surprised to see the seller accepting payment in WeChat because I thought it only functions like WhatsApp.

 

[Brainsucker]

WeChat is a quite common payment right?

A few months ago I went to Mt. Emei and I saw someone selling noodles at the top of the mountain. I was quite surprised to see the seller accepting payment in WeChat because I thought it only functions like WhatsApp.

That's a news to me.

 

[AndrewJin]

WeChat is a quite common payment right?

A few months ago I went to Mt. Emei and I saw someone selling noodles at the top of the mountain. I was quite surprised to see the seller accepting payment in WeChat because I thought it only functions like WhatsApp.

When what's up and Facebook wanna update their apps and introduce new functions, just have a look at Wechat/QQ/Weibo/Alipay....

The functions of Wechat alone equals to 10+ popular APPs in the west, organically interpreted into one APP.

One function of Wechat, video/voice phones, video/voice messages......Skype has no market here....

One function of Alipay, like fixed term deposit in a bank, but with 4-5% interest rates.

One function of QQ, transfer document between friends, 100Gb?? No problem.

I'm just taking about the basic functions here.....

 

[Jlaw]

When what's up and Facebook wanna update their apps and introduce new functions, just have a look at Wechat/QQ/Weibo/Alipay....

The functions of Wechat alone equals to 10+ popular APPs in the west, organically interpreted into one APP.

One function of Wechat, video/voice phones, video/voice messages......Skype has no market here....

One function of Alipay, like fixed term deposit in a bank, but with 4-5% interest rates.

One function of QQ, transfer document between friends, 100Gb?? No problem.

I'm just taking about the basic functions here.....

Yes, I guess we Chinese think a like. I hate to have to download 10 different software for one function when one software can do 10 things.

 

[AndrewJin]

Yes, I guess we Chinese think a like. I hate to have to download 10 different software for one function when one software can do 10 things.

Baidu map=map+navigation+Uber+Baidu payment (same as Alipay)+hotel booking+scenic spot ticket booking+..........U can imagine, every shop and hotel you click on the map, you can do something with your app!!!

 

[jkroo]

You guys are talking the leading mobile technologies.

Finally, it free customers and make the 4c sales/market principles real. Yes, in China.

No cash and no wallet with you but you can live in China with no problems. This also could be a problem for tourists go abroad.

 

[Götterdämmerung]

Watch out that Goldman Sucks and the Cabal won't infiltrate the system by placing moles into the Chinese banking and financial system. Draghi is the prefect example of a Goldman Sucks mole.

 

[AndrewJin]

Watch out that Goldman Sucks and the Cabal won't infiltrate the system by placing moles into the Chinese banking and financial system. Draghi is the prefect example of a Goldman Sucks mole.

The whole universe is actually in a small playball owned by a boy in the outer space...
He bought it from their local ball shop.....And he very enjoys what's happening in his playball.
The whole universe is a joke!

 

[jkroo]

It's about open minded about the bank system and payment policies to support e-commerce and mobile business.

So Alipay(Alibaba) , Tenpay(Tencent) and BaiduWallet(Baidu) appeared with very convenient functions to mostly improve customer's experiences which other countries/apps don't have. (remind me if I'm incorrect)

See? China is more open than the west counterparts in this field. But the west will keep talking about the human rights for what the super apps provide ppl this kind of convenieces. Hilarious!

Without such kind of open minded policies there are no chance to produce a competitor with these kind of functions even you want to copy from China. I'm serious.

The fintech is getting mature in China now. People could go to China and try living without cash all day/month.

 

[Shotgunner51]

The Fintech 100 – China dominates, Singapores enters the list
By Digital News Asia | Oct 24, 2016

• China fintech continues to dominate, with four of the top five companies
• Singapore is in the Established 50 list for the first time

FINTECH Innovators, a collaboration between fintech investment firm, H2 Ventures and KPMG Fintech, on Oct 24 announced its list of the world’s leading fintech innovators, the 2016 Fintech 100.

The annual list includes the leading 50 Established fintech companies across the globe, as well as the most intriguing 50 ‘Emerging Stars’ – exciting new fintechs with bold, disruptive and potentially game-changing ideas.

Key highlights include:

• China fintech continues to dominate, with four of the top five companies on the list
• Global competition is expanding, with 17 countries represented in the top 50 Established companies, up from 13 last year, and 22 countries in the full Fintech 100.
• The Established 50 list comprises of fintech companies from 17 different countries compared to 13 countries last year, with companies from France, Mexico, South Africa and Singapore included for the first time
• New fintech subsectors have emerged, including regtech (regulatory technology), with nine companies on the list
• Insurtech continues its ascent, with 12 companies, almost double last year’s total.

From a geographic standpoint, the continued rise of Chinese fintech is indisputable, with Hangzhou-based Ant Financial taking the top spot in the 50 Established Innovators list, and Qudian, Lufax and Zhong An also in the top five.

Oscar, at number three, is both the highest ranked insurtech and the highest ranked US-based company.

In total, the Fintech 100 includes 35 companies from the Americas, 28 companies from EMEA, plus 13 from the UK, and 24 companies from the Asia-Pacific region, including 10 from Australia and New Zealand.

KPMG Singapore head of Financial Services Advisory Chia Tek Yew said that, “It’s interesting to see how fintechs are transitioning from being a single ‘product’ disruptor to a fully-fledged financial player.”​

“One example is Ant Financial, which started as Alipay to help with payments within the Alibaba marketplace, and is now a player that provides multiple products such as deposits, loans, and assets under management.”

“These disruptors will start small and then expand its product range or geographic reach. They will typically seek out similar markets with the same unmet needs to scale their business. In the near future, I anticipate a growing number of such companies entering markets such as Indonesia.”​

The level of funding has continued to rise for the Fintech 100, with the 50 Established companies attracting an additional US$14.6 billion (RM60.87 billion) of capital since last year’s report just 12 months ago, an increase of more than 40% from 2015.

According to Toby Heap of H2 Ventures, “the 2016 Fintech 100 demonstrates the acceleration of the disruption taking place in the global financial services industry, with more capital than ever being invested around the world in startups and established ventures that are creating new financial products and solutions.”

“The continued dominance of China, which rapidly rose last year to take the top spot, tells only part of the story. We are seeing the emergence of exciting fintech players in countries across the world, from India to Israel, from Portugal to the Philippines.”

Ian Pollari, Global co-lead of KPMG’s Fintech practice added: “One of the striking features of the year’s list is the growing success of fintech disruptors, with more than 90% of the top 50 ventures challenging incumbents or traditional business models.”

“The Fintech 100 companies are increasingly attracting a greater share of capital as well, raising more than 65% of total global fintech investment over the past year.”

“The report also highlights a growing and increasingly diverse fintech sector, with the creation of value in new sub-sectors such as regtech and data & analytics, and the continued growth in insurtech and blockchain,” he said.​

The Top 10 companies in the Fintech100 2016:

1. Ant Financial – China
2. Qudian – China
3. Oscar – USA
4. Lufax – China
5. ZhongAn – China
6. Atom Bank – UK
   
7. Kreditech – Germany
   
8. Avant – USA
   
9. Sofi – USA
10. JD Finance – China

Emerging stars list

The Top 50 Emerging Stars list for 2016 includes companies from 19 countries, with fintechs from countries such as Chile and the Philippines for the first time.

Bluzelle, one of KPMG Digital Village’s portfolio startups based in Singapore, was recognised as one of the top 50 emerging stars in fintech globally.

“This recognition is an honour and a testament to the hard work our team has put in over the past two years. Over the next 12 months, we’re releasing new innovations in payments and smart contracts that will bring enormous value to the end consumer,” said Bluzelle CEO Pavel Bains​

Selecting the Fintech 100

The Fintech 100 were selected following extensive global research and analysis based on data relating to five factors:

1. Total capital raised
2. Rate of capital raising
3. Geographic and sector diversity
4. Consumer and marketplace traction
5. X-factor: degree of product, service and business model innovation (a subjective measure that is applied only with respect to companies appearing on the 50 Emerging Stars list)

The full Fintech100 2016 can be viewed at http://www.fintechinnovators.com/.


https://www.digitalnewsasia.com/business/fintech-100-–-world’s-leading-fintech-innovators-2016

 

[ahojunk]

China dominates list of world's top 10 Fintech companies in 2016
2016-10-25 08:47 | chinadaily.com.cn | Editor: Xu Shanshan

China cemented its status as a world leader in financial technology services this year, claiming five of the top 10 spots in the annual list of the globe's leading fintech companies, compiled by UK-based advisory firm KPMG and Australian investment company H2 Ventures.

China's Ant Financial, which owns and operates the country's largest online payment platform Alipay, topped the 100 Leading Fintech Innovators 2016 released Monday and was joined by four other Chinese companies. Student microloan site Qudian came in second this year, internet based lending and wealth management platform Lufax took fourth, online insurance business ZhongAn took fifth, and risk management company JD Finance came tenth.

Last year two Chinese companies made the top ten - ZhongAn claimed top spot, while Qufenqi, an electronics retailer that lets buyers pay in monthly instalments, took fourth. This year, eight Chinese companies made the top 100, compared to seven last year.

The emergence of China, increased competitiveness from emerging markets and the impact of Brexit to funding in the sector is now threatening the UK's status as the world's leading fintech center, according to analysts. The UK went from 18 companies in the top 100 last year to 13 this year, with just one - banking app Atom - in the top ten compared to two in 2015.

"The continued dominance of China, which rapidly rose last year to take the top spot, tells only part of the story," Toby Heap, founding partner of H2 Ventures, said. "We are seeing the emergence of exciting fintech players in countries across the world – from India to Israel, from Portugal to the Philippines."

Established Fintech companies are ranked based on four groups of factors: total capital raised, rate of capital raising, location and degree of sub industry disruption.

In the first quarter of this year, fintech companies in China attracted $2.4 billion from venture capital firms in nine deals, or 49 percent of the $4.98 billion in investment in the sector recorded globally. In April, Ant Financial raised a record-breaking $4.5 billion in funding.

 

[TaiShang]

China tops global fintech rankings: report
Xinhua, November 7, 2016

Alibaba's third-party payment platform Ant Financial tops the global ranking for the 100 best performing fintech companies. [File photo/Xinhua]

China's financial technology (fintech) firms continue to lead globally, securing four positions in the top five in a recent industrial ranking.

Alibaba's third-party payment platform Ant Financial tops the global ranking for the 100 best performing fintech companies, with micro-loan firm Qudian, wealth management company Lufax and insurance enterprise Zhong An entering the top five, according to a report by international accounting firm KPMG and investment firm H2 Ventures.

The firms are rated according to their capital raising volume and ratio, geographic and sector diversity, and consumer and marketplace traction.

"It is no surprise to see four Chinese companies in the top five. Fintech in China has seen rapid development, fuelled by the demand to address domestic needs," said James McKeogh, Partner with KPMG China. "It is likely that we will see more of these players move to the international markets in the future."

A total of eight Chinese fintech companies are on the list, a remarkable rise from just one company in the top 100 in the 2014 ranking.

"We have seen significant investment in China's fintech sector in recent years, and an increasing appetite for innovative products, supported by the rapid pace of technology development," according to Raymond Cheong, another KPMG China Partner.

China pledged in October to improve supervision in online finance, including peer-to-peer platforms, to contain risks, improve competitiveness and increase risk awareness.

Companies related to lending and insurance are gaining larger share in the full Fintech 100 list, while the creation of value in new sub-sectors such as regulatory technology as well as data and analytics make the fintech sector more diverse, according to the report.

@Shotgunner51