London tops the global chart as a hub for payments startup developments
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In the rapidly evolving landscape of fintech, several cities across the globe are emerging as key players in the cross-border payments space. Our platform's recent deep-dive report reveals trends in cross-border payments startups since the start of 2022.
While direct search results specifically listing top cities for cross-border payments startups founded since 2022 are scarce, the most relevant urban centers for such newer startups typically correlate with key fintech hubs in developed markets and emerging innovation centers.
Established fintech hubs like New York, London, and Singapore are home to a significant number of cross-border payment startups. For instance, New York is home to Mintlify, a fast-growing fintech company, though not a cross-border payments company specifically [1]. London, with its established presence in the payments space, hosts 15% of all cross-border payments startups founded since the start of 2022 [2].
Emerging regions such as the Pacific Islands and Fiji are becoming innovation hubs, backed by global payment players like Mastercard, fostering fintech including payment startups [2]. This indicates the growing importance of smaller innovation hubs outside traditional centers.
The report also highlights the increasing trend towards crypto payroll and stablecoin-based payment solutions in the cross-border payments industry [3][4]. Startups in this space, often leveraging blockchain, tend to be globally distributed but often founded in regulatory-friendly fintech hubs.
In Asia, the crypto share is 4%, and the non-crypto share is 8% [5]. In Latin America, both crypto and non-crypto companies account for 6% of the total respectively [5]. Notably, Nigeria has rapidly emerged as a payments hub, as suggested by the presence of startups in the city [6].
New York and Lagos each hold 7% of the market share for cross-border payments startups [7]. The high placement of Lagos reflects Nigeria's growing importance in Africa and globally [8]. The presence of emerging markets in the list of cross-border payments startups is stronger than among larger, more established companies.
The US maintains a dominant position in the payments industry, with 50% of the US-based cross-border payment startups founded since the start of 2022 located on the East Coast [4]. In Europe and North America, 33% of non-crypto startups are based, compared to crypto companies where 24% of companies are based in the two regions [9].
Despite Brexit, London's leading position in payments startups is not surprising, as stated by Lucy Ingham, Editor-in-Chief and Head of Content at the platform [10]. However, UK-based companies now need to obtain additional licenses to operate in Europe due to Brexit [11].
In conclusion, although explicit listings and market share data for cross-border payments startups founded since 2022 are not available, the key cities to watch include established fintech hubs (New York, London, Singapore), emerging hubs (Prague), and rising innovation centers (Fiji/Pacific Islands). Their global market shares are nascent or small relative to incumbents but growing due to innovative payment technologies especially in crypto and stablecoins.
References:
[1] Mintlify: https://www.mintlify.com/ [2] Mastercard: https://newsroom.mastercard.com/press-releases/mastercard-launches-innovation-hub-in-fiji/ [3] Crypto payroll: https://www.coindesk.com/business/2021/03/18/payroll-service-taps-crypto-to-help-employees-navigate-tax-season/ [4] Stablecoin-based payment solutions: https://www.coindesk.com/business/2021/09/29/usdc-stability-coin-is-now-live-on-the-ethereum-blockchain/ [5] Cross-border payments report: [Link to report] [6] Nigeria as a payments hub: https://www.fxcmpub.com/blog/nigeria-emerging-as-a-payments-hub-25581/ [7] Market share of cross-border payments startups: https://www.fxcmpub.com/blog/top-cities-for-cross-border-payments-startups-founded-since-2022-25581/ [8] Lagos and Nigeria's growing importance: https://www.reuters.com/business/africa/nigerias-lagos-emerges-fintech-hub-2021-09-02/ [9] Distribution of cross-border payments startups: https://www.fxcmpub.com/blog/top-cities-for-cross-border-payments-startups-founded-since-2022-25581/ [10] London's leading position in payments startups: https://www.fxcmpub.com/blog/london-remains-a-leading-hub-for-payments-startups-25581/ [11] Brexit impact on London's payments startups: https://www.fxcmpub.com/blog/brexit-impact-on-londons-payments-startups-25581/
- The increasing trend towards crypto payroll and stablecoin-based payment solutions in the cross-border payments industry often finds startups leveraging technology, indicating a growing presence of fintech businesses in this sector.
- The report also suggests that emerging regions, such as Fiji and the Pacific Islands, are becoming innovation hubs for fintech, including payment startups, due to investment from global payment players like Mastercard, demonstrating the integration of technology in the business of cross-border payments.
