Two major trends Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are going to define the future of fintechs, said Soumya Rajan, Founder & CEO, Waterfield Advisors, at the FE Modern BFSI Summit. As for the emerging trends in the financial sector, Rajan noted two big themes, connectivity and computing, which are going to shape up the future. As far as connectivity is concerned, India has 750 million smartphone users, which is likely to become 1 billion by 2026.
Rajan said that on the demographics front, the Gen Ys, and the Gen Zs are digital natives, which rely more on the technology for their financial services. In 2021, around 770 billion digital transactions happened globally, of which around 40 billion were with regard to mobile money.
Talking about the business model of fintechs, Ranjit Shah, Managing Partner, Gaja Capital, said that from the fintech perspective, the business model that has grabbed most of the traction is lending fintechs. That is because within the Indian consumer, there is a reluctance to pay margins for other services. The key area that seems to be evolving with substance is lending fintech. Shah added that in future, banks will themselves get savvy enough to move ahead and display some of the functions of fintechs.
Currently, fintechs are offering good user interface, analytics, and the ability to cross sell. All these functionalities even banks can develop.
Talking about the financial inclusion, Vineet Rai, Founder & Chairman, Aavishkaar Group, at the BSFI Summit said that ‘We are going through one of the most dynamic times’ ‘. Rai said that direct benefit transfer is also a part of financial inclusion.