Fintech refers to emerging technologies that aim to improve and automate the delivery of financial services, from payment, money management and credit to stock and bond investing, crowdfunding, data collection and more. “Many financial services that seemed stable when I was growing up, such as banking, insurance, credit and money management, are changing dramatically,” notes David Musto, professor of finance at Wharton and director of the Wharton Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance. Around the world, we’re seeing this “combination of technology and increased interest from individual investors who have money to invest and more time to spend during a pandemic,” Goldstein says. “It’s going to bring to the surface an intense debate.” Venture capitalists funding startups are investing in financial technology companies, many of which promise to make financial services easier and more accessible to all. “Overall, the pandemic has accelerated online financial transactions,” said Itai Goldstein, professor of finance and economics at the Wharton School. “Given the general inflation of asset prices and concerns about central banks creating more money, bitcoin has attracted many investors who see it as an attractive source of value and a way to generate income,” Goldstein said. According to Mobile Finance 2020 Report, a global benchmark for banking, payments and investment applications, COVID-19 “has significantly accelerated the already exponential growth of fintech applications in 2020.” “That means that when it comes to financial management, there’s probably an app for that, or even several.” The pandemic investment story was GameStop, which looked like a hot investment and attracted many new investors to get in on the action through its Robinhood apps, only to lose money when GameStop’s stock collapsed. “Lenders use Big Data [from various sources] these days, and I don’t necessarily know what sources they’re going to look at when they decide to lend me money,” he says. “Data,” he adds, “also affects the insurance rates you’ll pay as a new driver.” Even companies that don’t consider themselves financial service providers are trying to take advantage of the digital currency boom. If you’re not already on board, now is a good time to learn more about financial technology, better known as Fintech. “Ultimately, we want to create an app that helps you think through your credit decisions,” says Musto, whose colleague Nikolai Russonoff, along with his MBA students, is also teaching a course, Fundamentals of Personal Finance, to high school students in Wharton’s undergraduate program this spring. Do you think we should be a cashless society, or are there too many people, especially outside the traditional financial system, who rely on physical money to survive? How do you feel about the money debate? An article on this topic can be found at the “Related Stories” tab. In many ways, simply collecting data through technology can dramatically change the financial landscape – and your life.