2021 fintech technology advancements helping users life - 11' fintech ' that you probably don't know and that can help you make your life easier.

Financial services have long since ceased to be the exclusive preserve of banks. More and more startups are emerging that help in financial management or, at least, in a part of it. Making payments between friends, transfers with fewer commissions or getting a free card without having to pay your payroll are some of the services offered by these start-ups.

In Spain, 463 fintech companies operate, 15% more than a year ago, according to data collected by Finnovating. A significant volume of companies covering different aspects of everyday life related to finance. So many that sometimes it makes it difficult to know which app can help us solve our needs.

To this is added that banks have already begun to launch solutions to rival the functionalities offered by fintech. This is the case of Bizum, promoted by the Spanish bank as a payment solution between friends or with companies, or Twyp, developed by ING, which also serves for payments between individuals or to withdraw money from a store.

Fintech started in many cases as a specific solution to a very specific problem, but they have expanded their tools as they grew. Revolut, for example, was born as an app to have a card with which you can take money abroad with less fees or make payments between friends, but now has many more features, such as investing in criptomonedas or quotations.

2021 fintech technology advancements helping users life

This is a review of the fintech companies that work in Spain and that you can use in your day to day life.

Hire a debit card without paying the payroll... and also make investments

At a time when interest rates are negative, traditional banks are looking to have more linked customers that are more profitable for them. With this scenario, the task of getting a card without having to pay the payroll or contract several financial products with the bank is complicated. Fintech can be a solution to this problem.

The British Revolut, the Spanish Bnext or the German Vivid Money allow you to access a debit card without having to direct a payroll or go to a bank branch. In the case of Revolut and Bnext, it is a Mastercard, while in Vivid Money the option is Visa.

These applications complete the card's service offering with additional functionalities. In the case of Revolut, it allows the management of personal finances by making personal budgets, investing in shares or cryptocurrencies or hiring a card for your child through its Revolut Junior functionality.

For its part, Bnext also offers the option to buy cryptocurrencies, make payments between friends or hire in its marketplace other services of third companies such as loans.

2021 fintech technology advancements helping users life

Payments between friends and international transfers

Another solution offered by fintech is to share expenses and make payments between friends without having to make transfers and knowing only the mobile phone number. It's the case of Verse.

The company, which was bought a year ago by the founder of Twitter through his fintech Square, allows you to make payments between friends knowing the mobile number, but also allows you to make transfers to other banks in the eurozone immediately. This last functionality is something that can also be done with traditional banks, although the difference is that, compared to the commissions that banks charge, Verse allows you to do it for free.

The fintech Wise, formerly Transferwise, was born with the aim of making international transfers cheaper after its founder had to pay more than expected to send money from the UK. It is a service that continues to provide Wise, although fintech has already diversified its functions and also allows you to have an account in which to maintain and convert 54 currencies.

2021 fintech technology advancements helping users life

Virtual wallets

Some of these apps also allow you to include your bank cards in your mobile phone so you can pay with them without having to carry your wallet. The fintech companies that issue cards allow these services to be used through Google Pay or Apple Pay wallets.

To be able to use this functionality and pay with your mobile in a POS of a store, you need your smartphone to have NFC technology.

Buy now and pay later

The fintech category that is known as buy now, pay later for its Anglo-Saxon denomination has become a tool that is increasingly present in Spain. In recent months, several foreign companies have arrived in our country such as Klarna or Clearpay (this one after buying the Spanish Pagantis), while Spanish companies like Aplázame have established themselves.

These companies offer deferral services in 2 or 3 installments without commissions, since it is the merchant who pays a fee for the service with the aim of getting more customers and that they spend more. Usually, this service appears embedded within the payment page of the company where the purchase is being made as if it were a payment service type debit card or Paypal. The purpose is to integrate the experience into the user's purchase.

Some of these companies are also launching consumer loan products with commissions, so it is important to know the details of what is being contracted.

2021 fintech technology advancements helping users life

Save on small amounts

Save small amounts on each purchase so you can invest them later. The Plum fintech, founded by one of the first Wise workers, arrived in Spain a few months ago. Their bet is that you will be saving little by little by withdrawing an amount of money from your main account, a feature that you can suspend or pause if it does not work for you at that time.

Another fintech looking to improve savings is Goin. This app has different possibilities to save money, such as rounding payments and that rounding goes to your savings. Thus, if you pay for a soft drink for 2.25 euros with the app, you can round up to 2.5 and those 0.25 euros would automatically save them.

Manage your finances

Perhaps the best known financial aggregator is Fintonic, which aims to be able to see in an application what are the income streams you have, how you are spending money and organize your personal finances.

Traditional banks are increasingly including more functionalities of this type in their applications. There are also other fintech companies that have launched into this business.

# 2021 fintech technology advancements helping users life #