3 California-based FinTechs revolutionising the financial industry

By Edlyn Cardoza

Post the Global Financial Crisis in 2008; there was a significant distrust among the public towards traditional financial institutions. This, along with the 2009 release of Bitcoin v0.1 and the further boom of various cryptocurrencies, shaped the financial world as we know it today.

Additionally, even the market-wide use of smartphones that provided internet access to millions of people across various parts of the world led to the emergence of FinTech. The financial services industry has constantly attracted startups that strive to change how businesses and people borrow, spend, invest, and save money.

From digital banking and insurance to wealth management and lending, FinTech companies and FinTech startups are growing fast. Furthermore, America’s most happening state – California, is the origin of many successful FinTech spaces that have earned global fame.

Below are 3 California-based FinTechs revolutionising the finance industry:

• Plaid

Plaid is a data network that powers the tools millions of people rely on to live a healthier financial life. Plaid focuses on democratising financial services through technology. Through their developer-friendly infrastructure and intelligent tools, they give everyone the ability to create unique products that solve big problems.

Founded in 2013 by Zach Perret and William Hockey, Plaid works with thousands of companies like Venmo, SoFi, and Betterment, several of the Fortune 500, and many of the largest banks to make it easy for people to connect their financial accounts to the apps and services they want to use. Plaid’s network covers more than 12,000 financial institutions across the US, Canada, the UK, and Europe.

• Stripe

Stripe is a financial infrastructure platform for businesses. Millions of companies—from the world’s largest enterprises to the most ambitious startups—use Stripe to accept payments, grow revenue, and accelerate new business opportunities. Headquartered in San Francisco and Dublin, the company aims to increase the GDP of the internet.

• Upgrade

Upgrade’s goal is to offer its users more value and a better experience than they receive from their traditional bank. They fulfil that goal with affordable and responsible loans and cards, and no fees and high rewards checking accounts. Upgrade Card combines the flexibility of a credit card with the low cost of an installment loan. Their latest offering, Rewards Checking, gives customers access to no-fee checking accounts with 2% cash back rewards on common everyday spending.

Upgrade’s founding team pioneered FinTech over a decade ago. In 2017, they launched Upgrade to create an online and mobile banking experience that delivers exceptional value to their customers by eliminating fees on everyday transactions and offering affordable and responsible credit through cards and loans.

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