Australia ranks fifth in world for fintech adoption, but the sector says there’s a long way to go

Australia is one of the world’s top five leading global fintech markets, with one in three digital consumers using fintech technologies, according to a report from Ernst and Young released this week.

The report saw Australia rank fifth in the world for adoption of new financial services technologies, with a 37% consumer adoption rate. This places Australia behind China, which has a 69% adoption rate for fintech services, then India, the UK and Brazil. The global average rate of adoption is 33%, with the US sitting right on that average figure.

The rate of fintech adoption in Australia has grown significantly in the two years since the first report was released in 2015, when it sat at a low 13% adoption rate: this represented one in seven digital consumers.

Since then consumers have embraced fintech technology, particularly in the money transfer and payment services which were utilised by 50% of all fintech users in the last six months.

Ernst and Young FinTech advisor Meredith Angwin notes the sector is “gaining widespread traction, both locally and globally, and has achieved the early stages of mass adoption in most countries”. Read more

Angela Castles - Startup Smart -  29 June 2017