Tag: trends

How to Forge a Career in Fintech

On December 24, 2020

Fintech companies offer innovative solutions to financial problems. They help banks to improve their customer service and be more flexible. Due to the growing popularity of the fintech industry, their jobs can be very rewarding. But what does it take to forge a career in fintech?

Start Small, Learn and Grow

Fintech is a booming industry, meaning that there’s more to be discovered. As a result, there’s a lot of opportunities in this industry. It helps to get into the industry with some experience in the financial sector.

However, it’s not necessary. A person with a law degree can learn on the job and become an expert in no time. Therefore, one shouldn’t procrastinate. If they think this is the industry for them, they should go for it. They can start at the bottom and work their way up.

What’s Fintech All About?

Fintech is an interesting industry because an individual works in two vast industries: technology and finance.

An example of an emerging fintech trend is open banking. Here, the bank allows tech startups to facilitate customer service and transactions through an app. The customer has to consent before using the app. Once the customer agrees, the bank discloses that person’s banking details to the startup.

Any person that works for the bank or startup is already involved in the fintech industry. That’s how easily one can find themselves working in the fintech industry.

Skills Required

There are three sets of skills that are important in the fintech industry: software and hardware engineering, finance, and communication.

A person with coding skills can work in the product development department. Their work will be to code programs or applications that can be used to improve the financial sector. The person with finance skills helps the coders comprehend what the app is supposed to do. The person with communication skills will help to monetize the fintech solution.

Finally, the fintech industry can be very demanding. If one wants to succeed, one has to consider work and personal life. They have to be in perfect balance. Too much work can leave a person feeling exhausted and unmotivated. Therefore, it’s always good to think about one’s health and happiness.

2020 Trends In Cryptocurrency You Should Know About

By Jacob Parker-Bowles

On May 12, 2020

In Uncategorized

Has the current COVID-19 pandemic reduced enthusiasm and confidence in the once touted ‘currency of the future’, cryptocurrency?

If recent prices are a reflection of confidence, then the answer would be a resounding, “No!”

Despite the 50 percent crash that cryptocurrency markets faced during panic-selling caused by the coronavirus pandemic and its future effects on the world-economy, Bitcoin immediately bounced back within 24 hours and saw a 20-percent increase in its share prices.

When traditional markets are currently nothing but doom and gloom because of the upcoming economic fallout that many are expecting, why is cryptocurrency still seen as a potentially good place to allocate capital?

The answer to that question is increasing blockchain technologies and the widening of regulatory measures in many countries towards its usage and trading.

Blockchain Technologies

First off, what is blockchain technology?

A blockchain is a decentralized ledger that tracks and processes transactions without the need for central clearing authority.

In other words, blockchain technology allows transactions to happen between two parties safely, quickly, cheaply, and easily because there is no third-party involvement.

Due to blockchain technology, the usage of cryptocurrency has been made possible in everyday life.

In fact, it has made everyday transactions safer and easier.

These benefits do not just apply to consumers either, for many businesses have seen their revenues go up due to blockchain technology and its ability to process cryptocurrency transactions safely and easily across the globe.

Specifically, blockchain technology allows businesses the ability to offer more payment options at lower transaction fees with fewer chargebacks.

Further explanation in regards to these benefits and others are given below:

Purchase Versatility

Businesses who offer more payment options make it easier and more comfortable for their customers to purchase their goods and services.

Simply stated, offering multiple payment options, specifically multiple cryptocurrency options, encourages more transactions.

The number of daily transactions for Ethereum in the 4th quarter of last year (2019) was around 648.25. During the same period, Bitcoin averaged 309.87 transactions per day.

Cryptocurrency transactions are especially beneficial for businesses that run eCommerce stores and attract an international audience who prefer to pay in digital currencies.

Minimal Chargebacks

Blockchain technology makes it very difficult, near impossible, for anyone to create a fraudulent chargeback while using cryptocurrency to pay for an item.

By using blockchain technology for cryptocurrency transactions, businesses can avoid chargeback fraud and thus save money, time, and resources.

Low Transaction Fees

Blockchain technology streamlines cryptocurrency transactions by making the ‘middleman’ – financial institution or bank – irrelevant.

Peer-to-peer exchange of digital currency for goods or services reduces transaction costs as there is no need to pay any additional fee for institutions to oversee and guarantee the transaction goes through.

Quick and Safe Transactions

When businesses use banks and other financial institutions to track, monitor, and process their transactions, they usually have to wait a couple of hours or days to get their money.

However, cryptocurrency transactions occur instantly, so the business receives their payments immediately.

The quicker a business gets paid, the quicker they can deploy capital to purchase more inventory and make more money.

What is more, blockchain technology has made cryptocurrency transactions safer than traditional fiat currency transactions because each coin and coin wallet is tracked, monitored, and processed all at one go.

Worldwide Regulation

One of the main attractions of cryptocurrency has always centered around the fact that governments can not lay claim to it. However, the decentralized nature of digital currency has also made it an extremely volatile investment.

At least, that is how it has been in the past.

Trading cryptocurrency has, for the most part, been a rather safe endeavor because each transaction utilizes blockchain technology, which, like digital currency transactions, supplies various safety measures to reduce the risk of fraudulent activity.

However, as it is the newest ‘market on the block’, many issues have been raised as to its safety because, after all, there are no governments and regulatory agencies to monitor it and take necessary and appropriate action should something go wrong.

In this respect, many governments around the globe have already considered taking action, albeit not always the same action, towards closer cryptocurrency and crypto-market regulation.

One of the hopes of such regulatory efforts is to entice bigger players and large institutions to use a good portion of their capital in crypto-asset allocation.

The main safety precaution that cryptocurrency regulation can bring to the market is the detection and eradication of outside manipulation.

In 2020, the efforts to regulate cryptocurrency markets have not dwindled. Some of the main areas being focused on by Western countries (i.e., those residing in the EU, along with the U.S.) are as follows:

Crypto-Asset Classification

The EU is looking to define more clearly what exactly constitutes a crypto-asset.

Unlegislated Crypto-Assets

The EU is considering legislating certain services and actions pertaining to the buying and selling of crypto-assets.

The EU feels that regulating any service or action pertaining to cryptocurrency transactions and trading will unify other crypto-asset regulations and regulatory agencies that may be formed in the future to monitor and enforce them.

The following service providers and crypto-actions are being considered for legislation:

Trading Platforms
Exchanges
Crypto-Asset Issues
Custodial Wallet Providers/Services

Currently, these providers and actions remain unlegislated and outside the control of the EU.

US Crypto-Currency Act 2020-2022

The goal of the new cryptocurrency legislation in the U.S. is to create a clear framework of operations for the cryptocurrency market and limit crypto-investing fraud and other negative drawbacks associated with crypto-trading.

The act has also split digital assets into three main categories for better classification: cryptocurrencies, crypto-securities, and crypto-commodities.

Cryptocurrencies: derivatives backed by smart contracts or collateralized digital assets.

Crypto-securities: consists of all equity, debts, and derivatives resting on a blockchain.

Crypto-commodities: all digital assets residing on a blockchain.

The above countries’ initiatives to regulating cryptocurrencies may spark a global movement towards defining and regulating the crypto market.

One thing is for sure, crypto-enthusiasts, traders, and governing bodies are expecting to see major trends take place during 2020 due to the advancement of blockchain technology and the widening of cryptocurrency regulations.

5 Cryptocurrency Trends for 2020

It is probably safe to say that some of this year’s trends will be expected while others will seem to come right out of the blue.

In either case, the probability that the following five trends will arise and continue throughout the year and perhaps for the better part of next year are very high.

Trend 1: Halvening Will Increase Value

Halvening refers to an event where Bitcoin’s block subsidy gets cut in half.

As there can be only 21 million bitcoins available at any given time, the halvening event, which usually occurs every four years, is necessary to help keep cryptocurrency demand and supply in balance.

It is expected that such an event will happen sometime during this year, increasing supply growth and making Bitcoin more expensive to trade.

Trend 2: Industry-Stalwart Backed Crypto-Launches

While regulation attempts in the past few years scared off many big brands from launching digital currency, this year, new players are expected to enter the crypto market with their version of crypto-coin.

Facebook is expected to launch its Libra coin sometime this year, while JPMorgan will most likely launch its JPM by the end of 2020.

These new launches should entice big-name players like Goldman and Sachs to start trading cryptocurrencies and make it a regular part of their overall investment strategy.

Trend 3: More Regulations

As was discussed earlier, 2020 will not be absent from cryptocurrency regulation.

While some might see this as a negative, serious investors are expected to enter into crypto markets due to the potential legalization of cryptocurrency as legal tender and the increased monitoring of its trading.

Countries like the U.S., China, Canada, Singapore, and Australia are expected to come up with more legislation and regulation regarding cryptocurrency consumer transactions and trading.

Trend 4: Blockchain and AI

The combination of AI and blockchain technology in 2020 will undoubtedly make cryptocurrency transactions even more secure.

Experts are predicting that industry leaders are going to make great efforts to insert machine learning and AI into blockchain technology to make it smarter, faster, and safer.

Not only will day-to-day cryptocurrency transactions be benefited by this symbiotic integration, but cryptocurrency trades as well.

Trend 5: Network Upgrades

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies run on nodes – computers that run cryptocurrency programs.

These nodes are usually connected to other nodes to form a collective network of cryptocurrencies that can be mined, traded, or exchanged for goods and services.

Now and then, these nodes get upgraded to ensure the privacy and scalability of cryptocurrencies.

This year (2020) should see an upgrade to the Bitcoin node network, which will most likely provide a host of benefits to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency stakeholders.

5 Possible Profitable Cryptocurrencies for 2020

While 2019 saw a steep devaluation of many cryptocurrencies, the five trends listed in the previous section will likely supply a boost to the overall crypto market.

In particular, the following five cryptocurrencies should see an increase in their value during 2020 due to the above trends and other positive factors relating to their usage and trading:

Bitcoin

Bitcoin will most likely become the cryptocurrency with the largest market cap in 2020, giving it a boost in share price throughout most of the year.

What is more, Bitcoin’s ecosystem is expected to accommodate eCommerce platforms, micropayment processing, and decentralized applications, which should give it more practical value in everyday life.

Ethereum

This cryptocurrency should increase in price this year because of its functionality and blockchain technology.

Unlike Bitcoin, Ethereum is backed by practical smart contracts and therefore holds tangible value.

While other cryptocurrency values rise and fall based on surplus or deficits, Ethereum has real-world value as it is used for a host of projects centered around digital transactions.

NEO

NEO is not a typical cryptocurrency.

This cryptocurrency combines digital and real assets making it more trustworthy than other digital coins.

It will most likely gain in popularity and thus in share price during 2020 because investors seem to like the fact that its tangible asset backings make it easier for them to assign a value to it.

EOS

EOS is like Ethereum but only better.

EOS is free of all the problems associated with Etherum and other blockchains and is scalable to boot.

The EOS system has a host of dynamic features that make it superior to other blockchains, such as an infinite amount of blockchains and a unique algorithm securing proof of ownership.

What entices investors the most about EOS is that it would be the preferred blockchain for companies like Uber, Twitter, and Amazon should they ever decide to use a blockchain for cryptocurrency transactions.

Ripple

Ripple, XRP for short, was the first crypto ecosystem to partner with large financial market players.

Currently, XRP has partnered with Western Union to reduce money transfer costs between parties.

While Ripple is not expected to make huge gains in 2020, it will likely rise. Even if its share price does not go up, it is still a good long-term investment because of its partnerships and real-world applications.

Conclusion

While some people view cryptocurrency as a vehicle for wealth, others see it as the currency of the future due to its convenience and potential practicality.

Whichever the case may be, cryptocurrencies do not look like they are going to fall out of favor anytime soon.

With governments around the globe trying to regulate its usage and trading of cryptocurrencies, along with blockchain technology becoming more advanced and secure, digital currency looks like it is here to stay – 2020 might even be the year where it is recognized as a viable form of legal tender around the world.

Trends in Fintech

By Jacob Parker-Bowles

On December 12, 2019

In Uncategorized

Over the past decade, fintech has started to re-make the world of banking and finance. Financial technology is designed to update and improve the way financial companies deliver services to their customers. In 2019, fintech has continued to make big strides in a number of parts of the industry. This is expected to continue into 2020.

One big trend in fintech is the focus on millennial customers. Many millennials are still paying off their student loans. That cohort also got hit by the so-called Great Recession of 2008. As a result, they’re buying fewer houses than their parents’ generation did at the same age. There are plenty of startups emerging to help millennials start accumulating assets. Divvy makes rent-to-own possible. Goodly makes it easy for employers to help their staff pay down their student loans. And Flyhome makes it possible for would-be homeowners to make one cash payment, rather than 30 years of mortgage payments.

Fintech companies have also changed the way people approach their paychecks. Startups like Earnin offer cash-strapped people advances at much lower interest rates than traditional payday lenders. Most people receive their pay by direct deposit or deposit their check with an app through their phones. It’s unusual for people to go to a brick and mortar bank and deposit a paper check there. Banks are trying to make changes to appeal to the customers using these new startups. Traditionally, banks were able to count on consumers to deposit their whole paychecks. Today, that’s just not the case. It will be interesting to see what solutions banks develop to combat this issue and become a one-stop-shop for account holders.

There’s still a lot of investment in the fintech sector. Some of it comes from existing technology giants like Apple and Amazon. Venture capital has helped businesses like Robinhood start to change the way finance works as a whole. Robinhood emerged as a platform for fee-free stock trading. By eliminating fees and commissions, Robinhood made investing much more accessible for the average person. Now, the company is applying for a license to provide banking services like accepting deposits. It will be interesting to see how such an innovative, disruptive company changes the traditional world of banking services.