Who Are Europe’s Leading FinTech Startups?

Published on:

Innovation in the financial sector is hitting Europe hard, improving & changing everyday life. But who are the FinTech startups behind this revolution?

FinTech is an exciting field to currently be involved in as startups attempting to revolutionize the financial system flourish. While still behind Silicon Valley, Europe is catching up and posing serious competition to other FinTech ecosystems.

Innovative startups developing new technologies to improve financial services are in full swing. While many think only of mobile payments when they hear of financial technology, it actually encompasses much more than that. FinTech startups can work on improving services in areas that range from retail banking to insurance, blockchain transactions, lending and much more. There are many areas of financial services that are in need for an upgrade, especially due to the fact that before the rise of FinTech there were barely any improvements in this sector for its customers.

Let’s take a look at Europe’s shiniest, established startups that are shaping FinTech right now:

Kreditech

“Banking. Redefined. Digital” is the motto that one is greeted with when accessing Kreditech’s website. The company was started in 2012 in Hamburg, Germany and specialized in retail banking. Their main lines of activity are: offering personalized financial products in order to target individual needs, and giving underbanked customers access to credit by using technology. They achieve this by the use of “big data, proprietary algorithms and automated workflows to acquire, identify and underwrite customers within seconds. With great customer service and a large pool of people to serve, it is no wonder that Kreditech was named one of the best, established FinTech startups in the world by a joint study conducted by KPMG and H2 Ventures.

Atom

Another one of Europe’s FinTech stars is Atom, based in Durham, UK and founded in 2014. It’s also specialized in retail banking and claims to be the first bank in the UK that was designed to be available only for mobile. Users can download their app to experience a more personalized banking system, a friendly UI, and the convenience of opening a bank account in minutes from their smartphones. Atom also offers the possibility to log in by using face or voice recognition for even more convenience. An additional neat feature is that it provides a prediction on how much interest its users will earn in the months to come.

iZettle

Located in London, iZettle operates since 2010 and focuses on changing the way we make payments. It basically enables users to accept credit cards by using their smartphones or tablets. Their free app offers business analytics which can be quite handy for someone running a small business, and their iZettle reader makes it possible to turn your smartphone into a cash register. It’s simple, it’s useful and it works.

Knip

Founded in 2013, Switzerland’s Knip is yet another free app that covers the insurance part of finance. The app is a must have for anyone who needs to buy insurance as it informs users about available insurance policies and tariffs, helping them make the smartest decision when choosing where to get insured. If that is not enough for you, there is always the option to request help from their team of consultants that will guide users through all aspects of personal insurance.

Nutmeg

Yet another London based FinTech leader is Nutmeg. Specializing in wealth management, they make an online investment management service that intelligently adjusts to each client’s specific investment goals available while taking into account their preference for risk. Based on risk and goal choice, they will create a portfolio users can check at any time. Moreover, withdrawal can occur whenever you want with no additional fees.

Spotcap

Launched in Spain but currently headquartered in Berlin, Germany, Spotcap brings innovation to online lending for SMEs. Loans given can range anywhere from $1000 to $250.000 and it uses technological processes to assess business performance in real time to decide who is eligible for a loan. Applying for a loan is easy: one has to register with standard personal and business information, upload relevant financial documents and connect the business bank account.

Of course, these are but a few of Europe’s exciting FinTech startups to watch. Other mentions include Klarna, TransferWise, Adyen and many more so it is far from possible to cover them in one article. But we are yet to witness the Uber of FinTech, and who knows, maybe it will be made in Europe!

_____________

Sharing is caring!

Photo credit: #96 via VisualHunt.com / CC BY