Auditing firm KPMG has released its 2019 Fintech100 list of the world’s top fintech firms. This year’s list saw a drop in the number of Bitcoin-related ventures but more involved in the innovative payments industry.
AntFinancial – owned by Alibaba magnate Jack Ma – topped the list again this year. AntFinancial controls Alipay, one of China’s leading payment systems, and is valued at $83 billion, Cointelegraph reported.
The report, produced by Fintech Innovators, a collaboration between fintech investment firm H2 Ventures and KPMG Fintech, features the leading 50 “Established” fintech companies across the globe, as well as the most captivating 50 “Emerging Stars,” said KMPG.
Now in its sixth edition, the report highlights innovative fintechs that create products and services at the juncture of technology and financial services, seeking to disrupt the products and processes dominant in the marketplace.
Among the firms working to come up with innovative solutions through blockchain and cryptocurrency, JD Finance came in third place, beating out Singapore’s Grab, an Uber-like rideshare app that also serves as a payment system in the prosperous city-state.
Robinhood fell from 8th place in 2018 to 14th in 2019. However, crypto innovation remains strong according to KPMG’s rankings, which featured blockchain-focused OneConnect (18th), Revolut (26th), Coinbase (34th), Liquid (38th) and Banketa (42th).
Commenting on the strength of Chinese companies on the list, Chris Wang, partner and head of fintech at KPMG China, said:
“As fintech development continues to go strong in China, we are seeing some changes in China’s fintech landscape. Aligned with trends we observe globally, we see an increasing number of wealth, insurance and multi-sector companies in China on the list, which indicates that technologies and innovations have spread into more financial services sectors.”
The report also named Binance, MemaPay, Moin, Silot and Tokeny as emerging companies in the top 100.
KPMG said Fintech100 companies raised over $18 billion over the past year and more than $70 billion since they were founded. The report said these innovative companies are changing the world, serving more than 2.5 billion customers globally.
Although fintech firms have emerged as a financial services option, KPMG points out that many companies on the Fintech100 list have benefited from open banking, allowing them to access customer banking to create more personalized experience and services, said the Cointelegraph report. Early fintech innovators with single product propositions are now diversifying to fulfill customer needs, often through banking licenses and supported by favorable regulatory developments.