Our updated report on FinTech in Germany
We have published our updated report on Fintech in Germany.
The report provides:
- a comprehensive overview and analysis of the German FinTech landscape
- details on the major hubs, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, Cologne, and Stuttgart
- information on the industry players, e.g., unicorns, M&A deals, and our watchlist
- 5 market trends, including cashless payment, AI in Finance, the digital euro, sustainability, and crypto securities
- recent regulatory developments
- information on market entry
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- FinTech in Germany is decentralized. Several hubs exist, each with a decent share of the total number of FinTechs. Among the top ones, Frankfurt is home to many B2B FinTechs, while Berlin is rather B2C, due to its e-commerce roots.
- Many FinTechs are now in the scale-up phase and are gradually becoming profitable while also succumbing to pressure from their investors.
- Funding has almost dried up since the last quarter of 2022, following the global trend. From €6 bn in 2021, it fell to €3.8 bn in 2022, and we expect only €1 to 1.5 bn this year.
- Frankfurt and Berlin are the two official FinTech hubs assigned by the German government as part of its digital hub strategy (de:hub). Cologne and Munich are the two official InsurTech hubs.
- Overall, Berlin dominates FinTech in Germany with 30% of the active FinTechs, 66% of funding volumes, and 74% of ecosystem valuation.
- Berlin attracts many developers and excels in Digital Banking and Blockchain/Crypto. Major topics in Frankfurt are Open Banking and RegTech, driven by rich process & infrastructure expertise locally as well as the presence of several German and EU regulatory authorities.
- Significant trends are AI in Finance, in particular Generative AI, Digital Assets, and Green/ Sustainable FinTech.
- The boom in retail brokerage during the pandemic has slowed down considerably, but the second trend of cashless payments is still on the rise.