In partnership with

Hey, fintech fam! 💜

I can’t believe I’m writing my final newsletter of 2024! What a year it’s been.

• I regained ownership of Fintech Is Femme, transforming it into my dream business that elevates powerful women in fintech.

• Produced 12 events, including four summits, and sold 2,000 tickets.

• Wrote 104 newsletters (214,500 words!), reaching 4 million impressions.

• Published Fintech Feminists, toured with it, and signed books in front of lines (still surreal!).

• Won 4 awards, including the Elevate Creatives Fund and Top 50 Women in Media.

• Hit 1M LinkedIn impressions and 12k followers.

• Launched The Academy of Fintech with 50 founding members and entered profitability.

But behind all the success, this year was also gut-wrenching. The stress, uncertainty, and growing pains of building something from scratch tested me in ways I didn’t expect.

Entrepreneurship is a mirror—it reveals who you are and what you’re capable of. It’s not just the highlight reel, but the resilience, grit, and growth that carry you through.

To anyone in the trenches: keep going. The journey is where the magic happens. 🌟 

Happy New Year, fam. Let’s make 2025 the best yet.

INNOVATION

Looking Back to Move Forward – A 2024 Review and a Look Ahead to 2025

As 2024 draws close, I’m looking back at a year of incredible growth and transformation in the fintech landscape.

It’s been a year where innovation has intersected with resilience, and women's voices in fintech have been heard louder and clearer than ever.

As we enter 2025, the stories that dominated this year offer us a roadmap to the future. If 2024 was about recovery and recalibration, 2025 will be a year of acceleration.

2024: A Year of Highs and Strategic Shifts

There’s no question that 2024 was a good year for fintech in many ways.

The sector has proven its resilience with the F-Prime Fintech Index up nearly 40%, outperforming the Nasdaq (+33%) and S&P 500 (+25%).

Over the past decade, the fintech space has outpaced the S&P 500 by an astonishing 730 percentage points, a feat that speaks to the enduring strength of digital finance and the appetite for disruptive innovation.

By year’s end, fintech companies in the index had added $185 billion to their market cap and $20 billion in new revenue, indicating a rebound from earlier turbulence and a solidifying of their place as market leaders.

Once regarded as speculative, the fintech sector now finds itself in a new maturity phase.

This is a space that is consolidating its dominance, but it’s also one that remains precariously balanced on a precipice.

AI, embedded finance, blockchain, and sustainability are all emerging as critical forces in shaping fintech’s trajectory, but these forces are far from simple.

They are technologies and trends that promise a great deal, but they also come with their share of challenges and uncertainties.

Take blockchain and crypto. After a period of skepticism, 2024 saw a renewed focus on blockchain as a transformative technology.

Yet, even as 90% of European financial leaders express optimism about blockchain’s future, regulatory challenges and market volatility remain significant hurdles.

And crypto, while back in the public eye, remains in its early stages of adoption.

The promise of faster, more affordable transactions is clear, but scaling these technologies while navigating a patchwork of regulations will continue to test the sector’s mettle.

Fintech has matured, but the space is far from being settled.

Women Leading: Not Just Joining the Table, Shaping It

One of the more exciting developments of 2024—and frankly, an ongoing trend that deserves further attention—is the continued rise of women in fintech.

It’s no longer a story of women just joining the ranks in a traditionally male-dominated space; women are leading in fintech.

Stories like Alinea Invest’s rapid growth alongside the launch of an AI-powered financial adviser, Ellevest reaching the $2 billion AUM milestone, and Angel Rich’s $100 million Series B are emblematic of a much larger shift.

This isn’t a new development but a legacy that has spanned decades.

More than just leaders in their firms, women are pushing for inclusive innovation—and the data backs this up.

The IFC’s report on fintechs serving women highlights that companies focused on female consumers are seeing long-term success.

Meanwhile, Artemis closing a $36 million fund to back diverse founders and the growing momentum around women-led fintech startups are underscoring the industry’s shift toward recognizing the value of diverse perspectives—not just for equity’s sake, but for long-term profitability and growth.

These shifts are crucial, especially as millennials and Gen Z enter their prime earning and spending years, demanding financial products that meet their needs and align with their values.

This is not about token representation; it’s about sustainable, meaningful change that drives the future of fintech.

The numbers speak for themselves. The fintech firms that embrace gender inclusivity and diversity in leadership are consistently outpacing their counterparts.

In 2025, those who fail to understand this will risk being left behind.

2025: The Horizon—Where Fintech Is Headed

So, what can we expect from fintech in 2025? Based on what we’ve seen this year, several themes are likely to define the space:

#1 Gamification and Content as Key Drivers of Financial Literacy: It's not just about offering new financial products; it's about empowering new generations gaining wealth to take control of their financial futures.

With tools like gamification and educational content, fintech platforms will work to make financial autonomy accessible to those who have long been underserved. But this isn’t just about appealing to millennials and Gen Z’s appetite for fun; it’s a deeply strategic move.

Financial education will be the key to unlocking this generation’s full potential in the market, and fintech will play a pivotal role in guiding them.

#2 Blockchain’s Maturity Will Depend on Regulation: While blockchain and crypto are back in focus, their future is anything but certain. Much of the hype is still tempered by regulatory uncertainty, and 2025 will likely see significant efforts to regulate or abandon these technologies altogether.

But the promise of faster, more affordable transactions will continue to drive adoption, especially if U.S. and European regulators take more concrete steps to provide clarity.

#3 AI and Embedded Finance: The Growth Catalysts: AI will no longer be the buzzword it has been. By 2025, expect AI to become a more integrated part of fintech offerings. Personalized financial advisors, smarter loan models, and more efficient fraud detection systems will take center stage.

But so will embedded finance—the integration of financial products directly into non-financial platforms. This trend will likely be one of the most transformative, making it easier for consumers to access a variety of financial services, from banking to insurance, without ever leaving the apps they already use.

#4 Sustainability as a Market Imperative: The millennial and Gen Z generations have made it clear that they care deeply about their financial decisions' social and environmental impact.

In 2025, ESG investing will be more than a buzzword—it will be a critical metric for fintech companies. Those who succeed in this area will attract investors and build consumer trust. Women are already leading the way in climate fintech.

#5 Wealth Management: The Rise of Feminized Wealth: The feminization of wealth drives a major shift in the fintech landscape. As women continue to control a growing share of global wealth, fintech solutions tailored to their specific financial needs are becoming a key market opportunity.

From apps that address women’s unique financial challenges to the rise of female-led fintech firms, this sector is not only about equity—it’s about tapping into a powerful, underserved market.

In 2025, the success of these firms will challenge the industry to rethink its traditional models and, in doing so, open up opportunities for a broader range of consumers.

A 2024 Recap Worth Revisiting

Before we race into the future, let’s take a moment to revisit some additional highlights from 2024 (these are stories you engaged with most and loved!).

• Aileen Lee’s insights on the current state of VC funding and the future of startups are a must-read for anyone looking to understand fintech’s next wave.

• Synapse’s collapse reminded us of the dangers of fast growth without a solid foundation, but it also showed us that fintech’s promise is far from gone.

• The $4 trillion opportunity in women’s wealth is still one of the most important—and under-discussed—topics in fintech. This will undoubtedly remain a key focus as we head into 2025.

• Catering fintech products to women is a savvy business strategy that can propel your company ahead of the competition. Read about 17 fintech apps created by women for women in my Forbes column here.

• Courage, struggle, and finishing the dish—lessons from the FEMMY Award winners you can’t afford to miss.

If you haven’t read these stories yet, now’s the perfect time to catch up and understand how they’ll shape the next chapter of fintech.

The Bottom Line

The story of fintech in 2024 is one of resilience and recovery—but more importantly, it’s a story about where the industry is heading.

If 2024 was about rebounding from past challenges, then 2025 will be about accelerating the trends we’ve seen emerging this year.

AI, blockchain, embedded finance, and sustainability will continue to evolve and reshape how we think about money and finance.

But the real story isn’t just about technology.

It’s about people—the leaders, the consumers, the innovators.

As we move into 2025, those who understand this dynamic will lead the next wave of innovation.

As always, it’s a thrilling time to be in fintech.

And as we look back on 2024, we can confidently say that the best is yet to come.

SPONSORED BY

2 Cards Charging 0% Interest Until 2026

Paying down your credit card balance can be tough with the majority of your payment going to interest. Avoid interest charges for up to 18 months with these cards.

Learn More

_{I WANT IT, I GOT IT}

• 📰 Today’s Read: See above (plenty of reads to catch up on!)

• 🍿 Today’s Watch: Is anyone else ringing in the New Year by watching Wicked? If you are, we're definitely on the same wavelength.

• 🌍 Today’s Listen: ICYMI: The latest episode of Humans of Fintech dropped with Frances Zelazny, Founder & CEO of Anonybit, talking about one of the coolest topics in fintech today: biometrics. Tune in here.

_FINTUNES

🎵 Beyoncé - TEXAS HOLD 'EM

Song of the year goes to…

_{LET’S CONNECT}

📰 Share this newsletter with a friend and start growing your network.

🔗 Connect with me on LinkedIn for daily insights on female leadership.

🤝 Grow your business through content & community by partnering with me.

📣 Promote yourself to 50,000 subscribers by sponsoring this newsletter.

🎤 Host an epic event by booking me as a speaker, moderator, or emcee.

📚 Increase your expertise by ordering your copy of my book, Fintech Feminists: Increasing Inclusion, Redefining Innovation, and Changing the Future for Women Around the World.

That’s all for now! See you Thursday!

Love,

Nicole 💜