If you follow the finance and banking news, you may have seen a growing amount of mentions of Fintech or FinTech but not actually know what it is and if it is something that may affect your personal loan or business finance. In line with our approach to educating our customers on finance, we're providing this explainer of Fintech and how it may affect you.
Explainer: What is Fintech?
Fintech is short for financial technology and while quite established in some areas is still considered as an emerging trend in finance. In some areas it is seen as booming so it’s worth knowing about it. In simple terms, it is the use of innovation and technology in the provision of financial services to deliver services that compete favourably with the more traditional ways that the finance industry has always operated.
So there is financial technology and then there are companies, organisations and applications that are referred to as ‘Fintechs’. Essentially companies that operate exclusively via technology.
It can probably best be explained by some of the Fintech applications and services that are widely known and you probably know already. Paypal is a one of the biggest globally, but there is Apple Pay and other mobile applications that enable consumers to pay for goods directly from their device and to pay friends.
With these sector growing significantly as people continue to embrace tech and more convenient ways to carrying out their finances, traditional banks and lenders are looking to move into the area in order to compete. Banks are launching their own apps to meet customer demand for this type of technology. Closing branches could be seen as a nod to the increased demand for more tech-based delivery of financial services. There was a report in the media recently that one of the major Australian banks had acquired a major interest in a Fintech company to bolster its services and capabilities in this fast-growing sector.
The coronavirus pandemic could also be seen as providing a boost to the use of technology in financial transactions as the general public was discouraged from using bank notes and coins and instead using cashless payment methods. A move which looks set to stay long after the pandemic passes.
Fintech companies are extremely active in Australia with reports that there are over 800 fintech businesses operating across the country. This large number of operators makes Australia one of the most dynamic in the sector on a global basis.
These companies provide services in many areas of financial services including:-
- Wealth and Investment
- Lending
- Payment and Wearables
The services provided will vary from business to business but are diverse and they operate in the consumer and business arena.
Jade Finance and Fintechs
Jade Finance has long been adopter of new technologies as they emerged with the key objective of providing a better lending service for both personal loans and business finance requirements. We embrace technology and especially a contactless approach to service delivery as a convenience to our customer, to contain our operating costs to keep costs to customers down and to speed up the entire loan process while delivering the cheapest loans across multiple sectors.
Due to the way we operate, we can be included in the general definition of FinTechs and many of the non-bank lenders that we are accredited with, define themselves as Fintech companies. So if you have already arranged a loan or finance through Jade, you may already have engaged with a fintech without realising it.
Our Technologies
Jade Finance has established a business model based significantly on providing customers with convenient and fast access to cheap loans and finance via contactless methods. We have long had our loan calculators available and we have recently added to these resources and expanded the capabilities.
You now have use of both our loan calculator and the interest rate comparison calculators. There are very few lenders that will provide you with a list of leading lenders in a certain sector with the interest rates on offer from each. Plus include the advanced functionality to auto-calculate estimated repayments across all in one action.
We have of course our apply over the phone or via our online application form which provides convenience and simplicity to the entire loan process.
We are continually investing in boosting our technological capabilities to provide you with even more resources and loan tools to increase access to our cheap finance services.
Tech v Trad
So where do traditional styles of lending services come into the future of the sector? For many people the personal contact will always be welcomed and in many cases required to secure their finance. Those seeking bad credit business loans, some low docs and no docs applicants, those not proficient with technology and businesses with complex structured finance requirements may require a more one-on-one, direct contact approach.
At Jade Finance we do combine both tech and trad by providing our customers with their own consultant and the option of engaging with us by phone or completely electronically.
Whichever way you choose to source your finance through Jade Finance, you can always be assured of better interest rates and cheaper loans.
To discuss your business or personal loan requirements, contact Jade Finance Call 1300 000 008
DISCLAIMER: THE INFORMATION PRESENTED IN THIS ARTICLE IS NOT INTENDED AS THE SOLE BASIS FOR INDIVIDUALS TO MAKE FINANCIAL DECISIONS. THOSE THAT REQUIRE ADVICE OR GUIDANCE IN REGARD TO THEIR FINANCIAL DECISIONS SHOULD CONSULT WITH AN ACCOUNTANT OR FINANCIAL ADVISOR. THE INFORMATION AS DETAILED IS BASED ON DATA, SPECS AND REFERENCES AS SOURCED FROM A RANGE OF SOURCES AND LIABILITY IS NOT ACCEPTED FOR MISINTERPRETATIONS, MISREPRESENTATIONS OR ANY ERRORS IN THE CONTENT. THIS ARTICLE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATIVE PURPOSES ONLY.
