March 2, 2021, by Jackie Thompson
Jobs For The Future: Careers In Fintech
By Evelyn James, Freelance writer
Financial technology, or ‘fintech’, has been a fast-growing field over the last decade. Traditional finance companies have caught onto fintech’s potential in recent years and ramped up investments in it, while disruptors have led the way and showcased the innovations that can come from it.
These ‘old’ and ‘new’ businesses have also begun to band together to learn from one another, extending those innovations even further and leading to a spate of mergers and acquisitions. In fact, as Business Insider reports, there is now barely a distinction between financial services and fintech. Almost all financial institutions are looking at how to evolve, particularly amid the coronavirus pandemic when customers have increasingly looked to digital offerings.
All this adds up to big business. Fintech’s market value is expected to reach $305 billion by 2025, according to GlobeNewswire, with a compound annual growth rate of 20%. That also means an increasing number of jobs in the sector, with both start-ups and the giants of the industry, in everything from graduate to senior roles.
Working in fintech can mean working on any financial service (either back-end, consumer-oriented or business-focused) that uses the internet, mobile services, software technology, cloud services, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning… the list goes on.
To give you a better idea, here are four areas you could move into within a career in fintech.
AI-powered business analysis
There are companies out there that help other businesses access readable and dynamic performance analytics and business intelligence, using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. For example, Avora’s service provides ‘augmented analytics’ which tell any employee in a company not just what has happened but why, where to focus to improve, and what is likely to happen in the future.
The appeal to a business is not just the ability to make better, data-informed decisions, but to cut out the need to bring in costly data analysts and scientists to assess their performance.
For a role such as this, you’ll need some knowledge of analytics or even data science, especially if your degree focuses on data. It may be worth considering a masters in these topics, or something similar.
Online investment management
The new generation of investment platforms allow people to buy, hold and sell investments in one digital account, and allow machines and formulae to decide on the composition of the investment based on the user’s risk appetite. Their ease of use makes them popular with new and inexperienced investors.
The sector includes newer players such as Nutmeg and evestor, but also older, larger players such as Vanguard and HSBC, which have introduced automated systems (sometimes known as ‘robo-advice’) into their platforms.
Blockchain development
You’ve probably heard of blockchain as the technology that underpins major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. But getting a job as a blockchain developer could mean working in a range of different areas, such as developing smart contracts, working on supply chain issues, speeding up financial transactions, or developing other long-term solutions for governments and big banks.
It’s a complex topic and a challenging one to learn, but the current lack of developers means that doing so could mean big rewards.
Quantum computing
Another complex field, and another one that’s on the rise. In a nutshell, quantum computers can solve big computational problems much faster than regular computers. The finance industry is looking at them in relation to cybersecurity risks, fraud detection and improving transaction speeds. When combined with artificial intelligence and machine learning, they will also have the potential to automate processes such as loan and mortgage approvals.
In summary
Quantum computing, artificial intelligence, machine learning and blockchain development are all subjects worth looking into if you are considering a career on the tech side of fintech. Of course, with the industry experiencing such growth, there will also be jobs that require knowledge of the ‘fin’ side, as well as in sales, marketing, management, and all the other roles a business requires.
If you’re interested, keep an eye on the start-up world and follow dedicated news sites such as the Fintech Times and Fintech Weekly as well as fintech coverage in mainstream news sites. The jobs of the future are out there.
Sound appealing? If you want to find out more and chat to an adviser, book an appointment with one of our team.
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