The advancement of technologies expectedly leads to growing client requests, stimulating the Fintech industry to keep up with the times and be quick in offering popular services.

The last year spurred a substantial transformation in financial technologies and highlighted issues that need to be addressed in the nearest future.

Here is an overview of Fintech trends expected in 2022.

Crypto and CBDC to Raise Even More Investments

The popularity of cryptocurrencies is increasing each year. They are becoming more understandable to an average person. In 2021 all companies seeking our services already worked with altcoins. A mere three years ago they all preferred fiat money.

It is safe to predict that the cryptocurrency investment spree which started in 2021 will continue. According to Fast Future, the crypto economy capitalization will skyrocket to 7.5 trillion dollars—against 3 trillion dollars the previous year.

Up to date over 60 central banks are engaged in CBDC development, as evidenced by a PwC report. For instance, the Bahamas launched the Sand Dollar in 2020. The project can be considered successful as the islanders are actively using the digital dollar.

Also in 2020, China’s Central Bank proceeded to test its e-yuan. The country is currently expecting the official currency presentation which is scheduled in February during the Winter Olympics-2022 in Beijing,

Digital currencies will continue gaining popularity. An increasing number of countries plan to issue their own CBDC. According to experts, over 25 countries will introduce their digital currency by the end of this year.

Cryptocurrency Law: Enhanced Government Controls

The growing popularity of cryptocurrencies is drawing increased regulatory attention toward virtual assets. Countries are looking to adopt the rules of play in the cryptocurrency market to their regulatory framework.

For instance, several CIS states implemented cryptocurrency laws in 2021 to regulate the market.

Russia adopted the Digital Financial Assets Law which recognizes digital currencies as property and permits cryptocurrency exchange but payments for goods and services remain inaccessible.

Ukraine approved the Virtual Assets Law, under which virtual money is recognized as an intangible benefit. Cryptocurrencies are now not considered a payment means in Ukraine, but exchange transactions are allowed.

China banned mining, and Estonia imposed stricter rules for crypto companies operating in the territory.

So, we observe that many central banks fear losing control of the money stock, hence the negative moods about cryptocurrencies. This trend is likely to continue in 2022 as well.

Cyber Security and Data Protection as the Main Task of Fintech Companies

Passport particulars, phone numbers, social security numbers, email, income statements, addresses, bank details—all of that is now available to banks and financial institutions, and those data can fall into the hands of cybercriminals.

For that reason, companies will particularly focus on cyber security and safe-keeping of user data.

Neobanks Substantial Expanding their Geography

Neobanks will also continue emerging and growing thanks to the desire of customers to access online banking services and save some of their time.

The total number of neobanks worldwide exceeded 250 in 2021. An important side note: seven of them are Ukrainian companies: izibank, monobank, neobank, O.Bank, sportbank, todobank.

Speaking of European neobanks, the TOP 10 usually includes N26 (Germany), OakNorth Bank, Monzo and Revolut (Great Britain), Numbers (Switzerland), Starling Bank, Atom Bank, Monese, Tandem Bank, and Crypterium.

Round-the-clock wallet access and ease of use remain the key advantage of digital banking, raising more new investments exactly in this industry.

According to the latest research, the number of online banking users will reach 2.5 billion people by 2024.

We have described the top trends which will be observed in the Fintech market in 2022, and the main observation is demand breeds supply. Companies all over the world are guided by client requests, meaning that the financial technology market will continue growing in an attempt to offer newer and higher-quality services.