According to a recently published study from Utility Bidder , the fintech sector is set to surpass $382 billion in 2027. It also estimates that blockchain-specific fintechs are likely to be worth in excess of $67.4 billion in the same timeframe. The report also had good news for Kraken, which it named the most influential blockchain company of 2021.
The Utility Bidder study analysed 50 fintech firms selected from the Forbes’ Fintech 50 report. They used four factors to assess each firm: total funds raised, the latest known valuation, number of Twitter followers, and the global searches stemming from Google Ads Keyword Planner between August 2020 and July 2021. Each one was given a score out of 10 for each factor, and as the report’s results show, Kraken was a very clear winner with a total influence score of 5.64.
Kraken is one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world and also was the most followed fintech company on our list, with a Twitter following of over 780,00, far more than the majority of other fintechs Utility Bidder looked at. It is now available in over 170 countries around the world, with over 70 cryptocurrencies available for trade Kraken also recently became the first crypto exchange in the United States to be granted a special purpose depository institution (SPDI) charter.
Gemini, in second place, only managed to achieve 2.33, while the others in the top 10 didn’t even manage to score 2 – Alchemy at the eight spot only scored 1.10. It is interesting to note that Kraken has a valuation of $20 billion, whilst Gemini’s valuation is around $5 billion. Alchemy has a valuation of only $505 million.
Robinhood is another winner
In terms of financial technology as a whole, the top five fintech firms include Robinhood, Stripe, Kraken, Klarna, and Wise. Robinhood clocked up a score of 7.22 for being the “most searched for” fintech on this list, with over 28 million searches in the last twelve months, and they’ve also raised the greatest VC funding with $5.6 billion. As the report says, Robinhood is one of the big boys of the fintech world, with over 13 million users using the app to invest in stocks and funds commission-free.
Stripe, the software as a service company that has changed the game when it comes to payments, with no monthly or setup fees and no hidden costs scored 6.07. Started by two brothers in Ireland, Stripe is now worth an estimated $95 billion having experienced rapid growth and it is now investing in other start-ups such as Monzo.