Financial technology―or fintech―is gaining in popularity globally as a way of making financial services more efficient and accessible. In rapidly developing China, fintech is taking off, catering to markets that state-owned banks and an undersized financial sector do not serve amid a backdrop of growing consumption and a large, tech-savvy millennial generation. It is becoming increasingly likely that some of China’s fintech firms will change the way the world does business.
In China’s Fintech Explosion , Sara Hsu and Jianjun Li explore the transformative potential of China’s financial-technology industry, describing the risks and rewards for participants as well as the impact on consumers. They cover fintech’s many subsectors, such as digital payment systems, peer-to-peer lending and crowdfunding, credit card issuance, internet banks, blockchain finance and virtual currencies, and online insurance. The book highlights the disruption of traditional banking as well as the risks of fintech and regulatory technology. Hsu and Li describe major companies including Alipay and Tencent, developer of WeChat Pay and a wealth-management business, and other leading fintech firms such as Creditease, Zhong An Insurance, and JD Finance. Offering expert analysis of market potential, risks, and competition, as well as case studies of firms and consumer behavior, China’s Fintech Explosion is a must-read for anyone interested in one of the world’s breakout sectors.
I had really high hopes for this book. I made the mistake of starting it immediately after finishing Xiaowei Wang's "Blockchain Chicken Farm," which was just simply a better written, more insightful book on overlapping subject matter. I'd recommend "China's FinTech Explosion" if you have zero foundation in the subject and are not put-off by a writing style that consists mainly of listing percentages with minimal analysis. I will grant that it is well researched.