When we founded Finnovista in early 2013, there were only 50 Fintech startups in Spain and Fintech was mostly unknown and undiscovered to many people. In this first edition of Finnovista’s 2016 Fintech Radar Spain , we have identified a total of 208 Spanish Fintech startups, which means that the sector has multiplied by four in the past three years, in line with the global trend of Fintech growth in the last years.

These 208 Fintech startups make Spain the largest market of Fintech innovation in Ibero-America, well above of the 130 in Brazil, the 128 in Mexico, the 77 in Colombia or the 56 Fintech startups in Chile. The Spanish Fintech scene has the highest number of startups in 12 of the 13 Fintech categories that Finnovista is monitoring through its Fintech Radar initiative for markets pubslihed so far.

These Fintech startups are competing for, over the next 5 years, 20% of the Spanish banking market, and they are doing it consistently with a significant presence in all financial service categories: Payments, Loans, Enterprise and Personal Finance Management, Insurance, Investment Management, Trading and Savings.

The Fintech Radar Spain shows us how retail banking is the financial sector most under threat from the Spanish Fintech, with more of the 80% of the Fintech startups focused on B2C solutions, directly competing with commercial banks. Specifically the Fintech segments that concentrate most activity, innovation and dynamism in Spain are: Payments & Remittances (24%), Lending (19%), Enterprise Financial Management (11%), Crowdfunding (10%), Personal Finance Management (10%) and Insurance (8%).
By comparing each of the Fintech segments in Spain we can notice the following trends:
  • The Spanish Fintech leads in all the segments except in Financial Education & Saving, where Latin America is the leader.
  • The Insurance segment (also known as InsurTech) represents 8% (20 startups) of the innovation in the sector, while in the rest of Ibero-America it does not exceed 5%, indicating the huge opportunity for InsurTech in the region.
  • The opportunity for Spanish Fintech in Latin America is clear, as we can see in the position of leadership in innovation and extensive industry margins across the Atlantic. The first Spanish Fintech startups that have begun to explore opportunities in Latin America are Fintonic (PFM) and Aplazame (Lending).
The 2016 Fintech Radar Spain shows us clearly that the Spanish Fintech startups are already transforming from the outside the financial services industry, threatening the position of banks and insurers that have traditionally dominated this space, since they have not been able to take advantage of the clear opportunities provided by technology, mobile and digital solutions, behavioral changes of the customer and the creation of new business models.

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The Spanish Fintech is well positioned, given its leadership and growth in the last 3 years. The growth of Fintech in Spain is an opportunity for the whole country, not only offering innovative financial services that are more efficient and focused on the Spanish customer, but also as a source of growth for the industry in Spain, driven by the opportunity to export digital financial services.

At Finnovista, we are convinced that the time has come for the Spanish banks and insurers to recognize the great opportunity that the country and the financial services industry as a whole has through the development and promotion of Fintech, and to begin deploying collaborative innovation strategies with startups that connect and integrate them with the local and global Fintech ecosystem.

At Finnovista, we’d like to thank our network of mentors who have collaborated in this Fintech Radar Spain. They include: Pablo Ruiz, Iker de los Ríos, Antonio Martínez, Pablo Soler y Fernando Cabello-Astolfi. Thanks to everyone for your support.

Do you know any Spanish Fintech startup that is not included in our Fintech Radar?

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