Building on findings and insights from its landmark 2020 survey, the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) is once again partnering with the World Bank Group and the World Economic Forum to investigate the impact Covid-19 has borne on fintech firms.
The survey, titled ‘The Global COVID-19 Fintech Market Impact & Industry Resilience Survey’ is setting out to collect information and data from firms across the globe to gain insights into fintech performance in the face of the pandemic, the steps the have taken to respond to customer requirements, and how regulatory factors have influenced their development throughout the pandemic.
Bryan Zhang, executive director of the CCAF explains: “Our previous Rapid Assessment Study provided a useful snapshot of how fintech firms had coped with the initial market shocks and operating challenges in a global pandemic. This study aims to collect full-year market data from 2020 that will enable us to assess the impact of the Covid-19 on digital finance services and the resiliency of the global fintech industry empirically.”
The survey will run from July through August 2021, comprising of up to 20 questions directed at firms operating in fintech or Digital Financial Services (DFS) markets and is scheduled for publication in Q4 this year. It will focus on 13 primary fintech verticals and 103 sub-verticals that are representative of both retail-facing and market-provisioning activities according to a taxonomy developed by the CCAF.
Data points that the research aims to capture include:
- Data related to shift in key market performance and operational indicators;
- Changes in product or service offerings;
- Policy and regulatory assistance received and needed; and
- The extent to which fintechs have been able to service key demographic and market segments such as women and the underbanked and unbanked.
“This follow-up survey will allow us to gain a deeper understanding of the differences in the business models of fintech firms and whether and how the pandemic continues to affect them; the overall importance that different types of fintech firms have in Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs), and the key policy and regulatory measures that remain needed for fintech firms to continue delivering critical financial services across EMDEs,” says Ana Fiorella Carvajal, lead financial sector expert, finance, competitiveness and innovation at the World Bank.
Drew Propson, head of technology and innovation in financial services at the World Economic Forum states: “The global reach of this new survey and our previous study will make the collective data particularly valuable. As we examine the longer-term impact of the pandemic on fintech firms, breaking the results down to the country level will allow for analyses across geographies, and will better enable cross-regional knowledge exchange and collaboration.”
The CCAF is working in partnership with leading industry players including Finextra, LendIt, Innovate Finance, GSMA, and Crowdfund Insider as Global Survey Research Partners to spread the report’s findings globally.
The CCAF-World Bank-World Economic Forum joint survey can be accessed via this link: Global COVID-19 Fintech Market Impact & Industry Resilience Survey.