N1 fund owner Nykyta Izmaylov identifies key fintech trends
Nykyta Izmaylov
New interesting trends have emerged in the international fintech market this year. In particular, the implementation of super apps and gamification.
This was stated by N1 fintech fund owner Nykyta Izmaylov in his blog on vocal.media.
“The financial technology sector is one of the few that has maintained its development momentum this year and continued to grow at significant rates. A record volume of investments of $210 billion was recorded last year. Fintech has become the foundation of all financial services: KYC (online user verification), electronic payments, peer-to-peer lending. There is also growing interest in cryptocurrencies and embedded finance. In the first quarter of 2022, fintech startups worldwide attracted more than $32 billion. Compared to last year, fintech funding grew by 27% in total venture capital in 2022, versus 4% in 2021,” the blog author cites statistics.
According to Nykyta Izmaylov, the number of companies offering integrated solutions has increased significantly this year. This applies to both banks and product-service companies.
“Embedded finance has become popular, that is, the integration of a financial product into a service not related to finance. The best example is the Glovo app, where you can select food and pay for it without following links to third-party sites. This technology can be found in online stores, accounting services, digital wallets, and telemedicine. Implementing embedded finance is now easier due to global trends in open banking development, API unification, and changes in the regulatory framework of most countries,” continues the N1 fintech fund owner.
There has also been a trend toward the development of super apps. Nykyta Izmaylov compares them to a Swiss Army knife that can be used to open a bottle because it has a screwdriver and a blade.
“Multifunctional applications perform several functions of choice: as a messenger, it allows you to communicate with friends, order breakfast, pay utility bills, and split bills. Gartner predicts that by 2027, a significant portion of the planet’s population will use them daily. Among the market leaders is China’s WeChat. It combines a social network with the ability to make online purchases and manage finances. First and foremost, the popularity of super apps is related to the convenience and security of their use,” notes the N1 fund owner.
Adding game elements is another way to attract customers.
“The most notable example of gamification in Ukraine was Monobank’s ‘cat mania.’ Almost a third of customers collected virtual cats. For three months of paying utility bills, you can get a ‘Master’ sticker. This is an example of one of the basic mechanics – collecting. People enjoy collecting things based on a common characteristic,” the blog author continues.
In conclusion, Nykyta Izmaylov gives advice to Ukrainian startup developers.
“According to the National Bank of Ukraine’s fintech development strategy until 2025, support for fintech projects is provided. One of the main elements of the strategy is the creation of a fintech sandbox, a format for interaction between the state regulator and companies. The sandbox allows testing new services and products on a small audience of consumers and introducing necessary legislative changes for the development of such projects. I advise entering the fintech sandbox, as investors are much more actively investing in projects that have passed sandbox verification,” summarizes Nykyta Izmaylov.