In the digital age, cash and traditional bank cards have already become distant relics.. The popularity of mobile payments and digital transfers has made a variety of financial services more accessible in people’s daily lives. This financial revolution, known as financial technology (FinTech), is reshaping the way we handle money.
Back in 2017, FinTech took center stage in the business world, leading an unprecedented transformation. Traditional banks teamed up with internet giants, both of which played to their respective strengths, and used innovative technology to disrupt the traditional banking model, and the emergence and popularization of new financial models such as mobile payments, digital transfers, and so on, also laid a solid foundation for the rapid development of FinTech and its impact on the industry.
FinTech, a term coined by Citibank in 1993, refers to the combination of finance and technology. It encompasses the use of modern scientific and technological advancements to transform and innovate financial products, business models, and processes, ultimately enhancing the quality and efficiency of financial development. Technologies such as AI, machine learning, big data, cloud computing, and blockchain play a crucial role in creating new service models in areas like financial payments, financing, investment, insurance, and infrastructure.
Figure 1. Source：Prospective Industry Research Institute
The development of FinTech in China has evolved over three stages. In the Financial Technology 1.0 stage, which began in the 1980s, the financial industry focused on informationization and adopted software and hardware applications to streamline operations, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. Technology companies provided support but did not directly participate in financial business.
The Financial Technology 2.0 stage emerged in the early 21st century and marked the rise of internet finance. Traditional financial services shifted to online platforms, transforming user behavior and generating a substantial increase in user data and information from mobile and internet sources. This period witnessed the emergence of P2P lending, mobile payment, online account opening platforms, as well as the establishment of internet banks, internet securities, and internet insurance companies.
Currently, China is in the Financial Technology 3.0 stage, known as the new finance stage. This stage involves a deeper integration of finance and technology, resulting in significant advancements in areas such as financial information collection, risk pricing models, investment decision-making models, quantitative investment, and digital currency. Technologies like big data, AI, and cloud computing are instrumental in improving the efficiency of financial services and enhancing user experiences. Service methods and logic have undergone substantial changes and innovations during this stage.
China is at the forefront of global FinTech development, leading in technology, infrastructure, market application, innovation, and growth potential. High-tech internet companies like Ant Group, Tencent, and Baidu have ventured into financial services, expanding their business scope to include banking, insurance, and securities. These companies, along with others, have obtained relevant licenses and built robust financial infrastructure. The once seemingly impenetrable payment sector has been disrupted by capital influx.
However, the rapid growth of FinTech has also brought irregularities and risks. Defining the boundaries between technology and finance and striking a balance between business development speed and risk control pose challenges for practitioners and regulators, particularly in the era of quality-focused economic development.
In the Chinese market, FinTech companies can be categorized based on the industrial chain and business type. The industrial chain includes cross-border payment players and payment risk control providers. Cross-border payment players encompass companies like Lian Lian, PayPal, PingPong, and Airwallex, offering platforms for cross-border transactions. Payment risk control players such as Riskified, Forter, and Welab specialize in combating payment fraud and ensuring security.
| Category | Business | Representative Company |
| C-side Financial Services | Provide financial services to end consumers | Alipay, Wechatpay, etc |
| B-side Financial Services | Provide financial services to corporate customers in the form of B2B or B2B2C | Reapay、Adapay, Alipay, Wechatpay, etc |
| Infrastructure | These companies do not directly provide financial services in the traditional sense, but provide technical services such as identity verification, anti-fraud, and bank integration for the above two types of companies in the form of low-code or API&SDK | UnionPay International, Yijiupay, Allinpay, LianLian Pay, Thunes, etc. |
From a business type perspective, financial technology companies can be divided into C-side financial services targeting end consumers (e.g., Alipay, WeChat Pay), B-side financial services catering to corporate customers (e.g., Reapay, Adapay), and infrastructure providers that offer technical services like identity verification and anti-fraud measures (e.g., UnionPay International, Yijiupay).
Cross-border Payment Players
| Name | Country | Business in China |
| 连连数字 Lian Lian Global | China | Cross-border collection platform |
| PayPal | US | Payment service provider/one of the most extensive third-party payment tools |
| PingPong | China | Cross-border payment platform |
| 空中云汇 Airwallex | China | Cross-border payment platform |
| XTransfer | China | Cross-border e-commerce collection platform |
| 转赢科技 TransferMate | Ireland | Provide cross-border remittance solutions for enterprises, including international collection, foreign exchange management, overseas payment, risk management and other services |
| PingPong Payments | China | Cross-border payment and settlement service provider, providing payment, settlement and remittance services for cross-border e-commerce sellers |
| 同花顺支付 Flush payment | China | Provide global remittance services and provide individual and corporate customers with a variety of cross-border payment solutions. |
| Payoneer | US | A company focusing on cross-border e-commerce payment and settlement services, providing cross-border sellers with a variety of payment and settlement solutions. |
| 远鑫支付 FOMO Pay | Singapore | A cross-border payment service provider, providing cross-border payment solutions in China, and cross-border collection and payment. |
| Thunes | Singapore | A cross-border payment service provider that helps merchants make international payments more conveniently. |
| Checkout.com | UK | Global Payments and Anti-Fraud Management |
| Ayden | Netherlands | Cross-border Payment Acquiring Solution |
| Stripe | US | Cross-border payment, financial management |
Payment Risk Control Players
| Name | Country | Business in China |
| Riskified | Israel | Payment risk control Anti-fraud management |
| Forter | US | Payment Fraud Prevention and Payment Security Solutions |
| Welab | HK China | Digital Bank, Payment Risk Control |
| Advance AI | China | Anti-fraud risk management |
| Sift | HK China | Provides global real-time fraud detection and prevention solutions |
| Signifyd | HK China | Provide comprehensive fraud protection solutions |
| Kount | HK China | Provides integrated fraud prevention and digital identity verification solutions |
| Accertify | HK China | Provides integrated fraud prevention and payment risk management solutions |
| 易生金服（E-life Financial） | China | Tourism payment, tourism finance, tourism value-added services |
| CyberSource | US | Payment service provider |
| DataVisor | US | AI payment risk control company |
| Tongdun | China | Payment risk control solution |
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