FinTech & Financial Services

Technology platforms powering payments, banking, insurance, and financial infrastructure

Overview

FinTech software encompasses platforms that power modern financial services — from payment processing and banking infrastructure to trading systems and insurance technology. These platforms are reshaping how money moves, is stored, and is managed.

Key Sub-Categories & Top Players

Payments & Payment Infrastructure

Company	Focus	Key Strengths
Stripe	Online payment processing	Developer-first APIs, 135+ currencies, Stripe Connect (marketplaces), Treasury, Billing
Adyen	Unified commerce platform	Single platform for online + in-store + mobile, enterprise-grade, data-driven insights
Square (Block)	SMB payments & commerce	POS hardware + software, Cash App, Afterpay (BNPL), ecosystem for small businesses
PayPal / Braintree	Consumer & merchant payments	400M+ consumer accounts, Braintree (developer gateway), Venmo, global reach

Banking Infrastructure & BaaS

Company	Focus	Key Strengths
Plaid	Financial data connectivity	API connecting apps to bank accounts, 12,000+ financial institutions, identity verification
Marqeta	Card issuing platform	Modern card issuing APIs, just-in-time funding, used by DoorDash/Block/Klarna
Thought Machine	Core banking platform	Cloud-native core banking (Vault), used by JPMorgan, Lloyds, Standard Chartered
Mambu	Cloud banking platform	SaaS composable banking, rapid launch for neobanks and lenders

Trading & Capital Markets

Company	Focus	Key Strengths
Bloomberg Terminal	Financial data & analytics	Gold standard for market data, news, analytics, 325K+ subscribers
Refinitiv (LSEG)	Market data & trading	Eikon platform, LSEG acquired, comprehensive market data
Alpaca	Trading APIs	Commission-free stock trading API, broker-dealer, used by fintech apps

InsurTech

Company	Focus	Key Strengths
Guidewire	Insurance platform	Core systems for P&C insurers, claims/policy/billing, industry standard
Duck Creek	Insurance SaaS	Cloud-native policy, billing, claims for P&C insurance

Key Trends

Embedded finance: Financial services embedded into non-financial platforms (e.g., BNPL at checkout)
Real-time payments: Instant payment networks (FedNow, PIX, UPI) transforming fund transfers
Open banking: APIs enabling third-party access to banking data (PSD2, Open Banking standards)
AI in finance: Fraud detection, credit scoring, algorithmic trading, and robo-advisors