Finnovista is a research and industry 'catalyst' firm that is tracking fintech growth across Latin America and Spain; in a recent report on Brazil, they track 219 fintech startups in the country, making it the most prominent Latin American country based on that metric; Mexico follows with 158 startups, then Colombia, Argentina and Chile each having 55 to 80 such startups; an infographic indicates that 26% of Brazil's fintech startups are in the payments sector, 10% in balance sheet lending (with some web presence or other innovation), 2% in true P2P lending and 8% in crowdfunding. Source
As fintechs gained traction in Argentina, financial access to accounts has become nearly universal, according to a central bank report.
Finnovista is a leading market advocate for fintech in Latin America and Spain; looking ahead to 2017 the organization thinks fintech will be important in promoting financial inclusion specifically with 40% of the fintech services in Latin America focused on unbanked and underbanked consumers and businesses; Finnovista's Fermin Bueno says Latin America has the ecosystem, venture capital and government support for fintech growth and financial inclusion improvements; Bueno also predicts growth in fintech will increase competition for traditional providers with 30% of traditional industry income at risk from fintech companies. Source
More than two dozens neobanks are vying for digital customers in Mexico, Latin America's second-largest economy.