Fintech is a word taking the world of finance by storm. It is a breath of fresh air competing against traditional banking methods to provide finance services to people. The idea is to make the banking system more accessible to the world, to bring the bank to the customer and thus services like mobile banking, cryptocurrency and etc, are examples of the usage of Fintech Technology. Fintech Startups have started gaining positions among some of the most viable, leading companies in the world of finance and technology.
Here’s a list of some of the topmost Fintech Startups in the USA today-
Stripe- With the motto “Our mission is to increase the GDP of the Internet”, Stripe is one of the top Fintech Companies today. It was founded by John and Patrick Collison on 29th September 2011 and is based in San Francisco, California. Stripe provides for the technical, fraud prevention, and banking infrastructure required in operating online payment systems. In 2018, Stripe announced the creation of a new payment system ‘Terminal’ and partnered with the World Bank to produce the Digital Entrepreneurship Index.
SoFi- Social Finance, Inc. founded in 2011 by Mike Cagney, Dan Macklin, James Finnigan, and Ian Brady, was started to provide more affordable payment options to students taking loans and debt to fund their higher education. The online company provides parent loans, personal loans, mortgages, and student loan refinancing. As of 2017, their Revenue was US$ 547 Million and their Net Income was US$ 126 Million. The company has given US$ 30 Billion in funded loans and has more than 600,000 members as a part of it.
Plaid- A financial technology company based in San Francisco, California, Plaid enables consumers and businesses to make all financial transactions, check balances and etc, online through financial technology applications that the company provides by building a platform that connects people with their bank accounts. The company was founded by Zach Perret and William Hockey in 2013. On their website, Plaid has options to help users with personal finances, consumer payments, lending, banking and brokerage, and business finances.
Clover Health- Founded by Kris Gale and Vivek Garipalli, Clover Health is striving to use data analysis and preventative care to improve healthcare for seniors and give customers who use private versions of Medicare a more viable, cheaper option. The company raised $160 million in new funding in 2016 and is said to be closing in onto another round of funding in a few weeks, valued to be around $500 million.
Acorns- A finance company, Acorn allows individuals to round up their purchases and automatically invest the change or the difference. It was founded on February 29, 2012, by Jeff Cruttenden, Mark Dru and Walter Cruttenden. Using micro-investing, Acorns Support uses technology that makes it simple for people to invest their spare money. Acorns allows customers to easily invest in a low-cost, diversified portfolio of exchange-traded funds.
Ripple- Founded by Chris Larsen and Jed McCaleb in 2012, Ripple easily enables one to send money globally using the power of Blockchain technology. Once members of Ripple’s global network, financial institutions can process their customers’ payments instantly, reliably and cost-effectively. There are also different methods like the Digital XRP banks and payment providers can use to further reduce their costs and access new markets.
Affirm- Founded in 2012 by Jeffrey Kaditz, Max Levchin, and Nathan Gettings, Affirm is a financial technology services company that offers installment loans to consumers at the point of sale. By ‘reinventing’ credit to make it more honest and user-friendly, the company gives customers the flexibility to pay overtime on a schedule that fits their budget. According to their website, Affirm financing is quick, simple, and transparent, with no gimmicks like deferred interest, compounding interest, or late fees. Very recently, Affirm completed a $300 million Series F led by Josh Kushner's Thrive Capital.
Circle- Founded by Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville in October 2013, Circle is a peer-to-peer payment global crypto finance company. They strive to make money work like the internet — open, secure, free, everywhere. In 2018, Circle announced that they purchased Poloniex Cryptocurrency exchange for $400 million. According to its website, Circle offers four products. Circle Invest makes it easy for everyone to invest in crypto regardless of whether they’ve done it before. Through Circle Pay, one can send money anywhere in the world. Their OTC crypto desk Circle Trade is said to move over $2 Billion each month. Lastly, Poloniex has one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges.
Coinbase- Founded in June 2012 by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam, Coinbase is a digital currency exchange. They broker exchanges of Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, and Litecoin with fiat currencies (currency without intrinsic value that has been established as money, often by government regulation) in more than 30 countries, and bitcoin transactions in 190 countries worldwide. Currency worth $150 Billion has been exchanged through Coinbase. It is supported in 42 countries and has served more than 20 million customers. On 5th February 2019, Coinbase Made LinkedIn’s ‘Top Companies 2019’ List as Lone Crypto Firm.
Gusto- Launched in December 2012 as Zen PayRoll, Gusto provides a cloud-based (on-demand availability of computer system resources, especially data storage and computing power) payroll, benefits, and human resource management solution. The company serves more than 60,000 businesses in the USA. According to their website, each year they process tens of billions of dollars of payroll and provide employee benefits—like health insurance and 401(k) accounts—while helping companies create great places to work.
Fintech Companies have started a revolution of their own. The companies mentioned in the list are subject to continuous change, considering the constant growth in technology, funds and the economy as a whole. Regardless, it is safe to say that though positions may change, Fintech is here to stay.
- Vaishnavi Mohan
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