Given the significant interest in fintech globally, and its ongoing evolution in terms of market drivers, technologies and potential use-cases, KPMG and CB Insights are partnering to bring you the pulse of fintech investment globally.
Each quarter, we’ll highlight key fintech deals, issues and challenges around the world, in addition to key trends and insights related to fintech in key regions, including the North America, Asia and Europe.

According to the new report, global investment in fintech companies totaled US$19.1 billion in 2015, with US$13.8 billion invested into VC-backed fintech companies, a 106 percent jump compared to 2014, and a record year for VC-backed fintech investment. We also investigate Blockchain in this report – the technology many believe will be the key to the future to banking – to see whether it’s worth all the hype.

Asian fintech startups had a record year for investment activity in 2015, raising a total of US$4.5 billion (more than the previous four years combined) on 130 deals. In particular, China drove more than half of all funding, as mega-rounds to the likes of Dianrong and Lu.com prompted over US$2.6 billion to Chinese fintech companies. India also saw a major leap in fintech investment, as total funding jumped past US$1 billion for the first time.

According to CB Insights’ Sanwal “In 2015, Asia, and especially China, benefitted from the presence of local corporations both in tech and financial services such as Alibaba, Tencent, and Ping An, all of which become increasingly active investing in and building services in fintech. Combined with the participation of hedge funds and banks, Asian fintech companies enjoyed a somewhat unprecedented funding environment.”

• Download The Pulse of Fintech full report
• Download The Pulse of Fintech infographic