IMF Working Papers

Prometheus Unbound: What Makes Fintech Grow?

By Serhan Cevik

February 21, 2025

Download PDF More Formats on IMF eLibrary Order a Print Copy
More formats on IMF eLibrary Order a Print Copy

Preview Citation

Format: Chicago

Serhan Cevik. "Prometheus Unbound: What Makes Fintech Grow?", IMF Working Papers 2025, 044 (2025), accessed March 26, 2025, https://doi.org/10.5089/9798229001892.001

Export Citation

  • ProCite
  • RefWorks
  • Reference Manager
  • BibTex
  • Zotero
  • EndNote

Disclaimer: IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.

Summary

The rise of financial technologies—fintech—could have transformative effects on the financial landscape, expanding the reach of services beyond the confines of geography and creating new competitive sources of finance for households and firms. But what makes fintech grow? Why do some countries have more financial innovation than others? In this paper, I use a comprehensive dataset to investigate the emergence and spread of fintech in a diverse panel of 98 countries over the period 2012–2020. This empirical analysis helps ascertain economic, demographic, technological and institutional factors that enable the development of fintech. The magnitude and statistical significance of these factors vary according to the type of fintech instrument and the level of economic development (advanced economies vs. developing countries). Finally, these findings reveal that policies and structural reforms can help promote financial innovation and cultivate fintech ventures—particularly by strengthening technological and institutional infrastructures and reducing cybersecurity threats.

Subject: Digital financial services, Financial markets, Financial sector development, Fintech, Population and demographics, Population growth, Technology

Keywords: Copyright page, Cybersecurity threat, Digital financial services, Europe, Financial innovation, Financial sector development, Fintech, Fintech transaction, Fintech venture, Government stability foster fintech growth, Population growth, Technological change

Publication Details

You May Also Be Interested In...

Increasing Public Investment, Fostering Digitalization, and Supporting the Green Transition: A Difficult Challenge

March 26, 2025

Firm Dynamics and Firm-Level Total Factor Productivity in Belgium: Belgium

March 26, 2025

Lost Generations? Fertility and Economic Growth in Europe

March 21, 2025

Could Digital Currencies Lead to the Disappearance of Cash from the Market?

March 21, 2025