According to a survey of ItaliaFintech, the association that brings together some of Italy’s leading digital finance players, in the period January-September 2021, the total value of loans provided to SMEs through fintech platforms reached over €2.3 billion (2.2x compared to the same period in 2020 and 1.4x compared to the full year 2020).
The number of financed companies also grew, from 3,026 of the period January-September 2020 to almost 6,400 SMEs in the same period of 2021. According to the analysis, these companies are mainly located in northern Italy and primarily active in the industrial, services and construction sectors.
Business loans are not the only form of financing provided by fintech platforms that recorded positive results. The value of factoring products increased by 16.5% compared to the same period in 2020, reaching € 522 million. Also, consumer loans grew, reaching € 160.5 million in the first nine months of 2021 (+97.9% compared to 2020).
According to the Fintech and Insurtech Observatory at MIP, the School of Management of Politecnico di Milano, there are more than 300 Italian fintech startups, operating mainly in the banking services sector (bank accounts, wallets & payments, personal finance management and lending & financing solutions), in investment and insurance services and technological services oriented to the financial and insurance industries.
The Fintech & Insurtech Observatory analysed approx. 150 of these startups, examining their business models, innovative offerings and relationship with the ecosystem. Italian startups are setting their business model towards open architecture, partnering with other financial and non-financial players. What drives this synergy is especially the technological support that startups can provide to large traditional players. However, Italian fintech and insurtech startups seem less inclined to collaborate with other startups. They see each other as their main competitors, even more than financial institutions and insurance companies.
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For more info visit: https://italiafintech.org/?lang=en and https://www.osservatori.net/en/research/active-observatories/fintech-insurtech