With approximately 718 fintech companies based in all Australian State and Territory capitals, Australia has one of the worlds most exciting and dynamic fintech industries.
In fact, the Australian fintech industry has grown from a $250 million industry in 2015 to a $4 billion industry in 2021. Australia is situated on the doorstep of Asia, which is increasingly home to the world’s economic centre of gravity. This makes Australia an excellent location for companies wanting to establish their Asian regional headquarters. Australian fintech companies are also keen to explore opportunities to grow into international markets, including forming partnerships with overseas Fintech.
The majority of Australian fintech firms are founded or led by experienced financial services professionals who are passionate about finding new ways to deliver financial services to the benefit of customers. Fintech companies provide a diverse range of product offerings for businesses and retail consumers internationally.
For customers, Fintech opens up a world of opportunity and choice for Australian retail consumers. Fintech companies allow consumers to access innovative new products specifically tailored to their needs and often being quicker and cheaper. Australia has one of the world’s strongest and most dynamic fintech marketplaces, largely based on the fact that financial services are Australia’s largest industry.
For businesses, some 70 per cent of fintech firms in Australia provide services to businesses. Typically, these fintech firms have a better understanding of the needs of business owners compared to traditional financial institutions and therefore have filled market gaps. For instance, some fintech firms have dramatically improved lending outcomes for small businesses, while others have reduced the time taken for businesses to be paid for their products from weeks to seconds.
According to Australia's Global Business & Talent Attraction Taskforce, the Australian Government supports targeted funding and incentives for key industry sectors. These thriving sectors are seeing strong growth and exports, powered by Australian innovation and international partnerships. The below schematic outlines the key priority sectors that have been outlined in Australia in relation to Financial Services, in particular the subsector, Fintech.
“The fintech sector is built on Australia’s A$10 trillion financial services sector, one of the largest in the Asia-Pacific, which contributes 9.4 per cent to Australia’s GVA and employs more than 450,000 people,” Tim Beresford CEO of Austrade
Australian Fintech has a strong foundation rooted within the Australian Financial Services industry. The Australian Government has seen the potential and has identified Fintech as a priority sector with access to grants and incentives of $70 billion. To further support, as part of the 2020 Digital Business Plan, the Australian Government plans to invest a further $9.6 million over the next 4 years to support Australian Fintech businesses to access international markets and investment. According to Austrade, from the 2021 Global Fintech Rankings, Australia moved up 2 spots to rank 6th in the world and 2nd in the Asia Pacific region.
"We urgently need more global talent to keep up with the growth of the Australian fintech sector", says Peter Dymond, the Australian Country Manager of the AOYE Group.
Australia Fintech is going through a massive surge in recent years; unlike other industries, Fintech has continued to grow throughout the global pandemic, with data showing record investor capital being raised and a growing number of start-ups moving to the post-profit phase in their life cycle. The Fintech landscape is diverse and is so much more than ‘Digital Payments’, making it so attractive and still so many untapped opportunities. Ongoing government and regulatory support will see Fintech being a strong pillar to support the Australian economy, as the industry can be a lucrative global export, with nearly 40% of Fintech revenue being generated internationally.
According to EY, besides continued Government incentives and industry collaborations, global talent acquisition is critical to sustaining Australia’s Fintech global growth [4]. Candidates like Ms Shou are a perfect fit for such a dynamic, growing environment, and her international experience in the space would be incredibly beneficial to the next era of Australian Fintech.
Sources
https://www.ey.com/en_au/economics/australian-fintech-sector-creating-jobs-and-raising-capital
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