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Advancing FinTech: Introducing Our Comprehensive Sector Coverage

by Eric Walczykowski​, Peter Lawrence, Daniel Zhang

July 25, 2024,
Advancing FinTech: Introducing Our Comprehensive Sector Coverage

The financial technology (FinTech) sector has rapidly evolved from its early days as a niche within financial services to a powerhouse driving innovation across the industry.

Executive leadership within FinTech is crucial for navigating this dynamic segment, where staying ahead of technological advancements and market trends can make or break an investment thesis.

At Bespoke, we have a proven track record of placing transformative leaders in every subsector of financial technology, including commercial banking, investment banking, asset management, capital markets, payments, and more.

For financial technology companies poised for the next exciting stage of growth, our data-driven search process and market-best networks means we can consistently deliver executives who will execute the right strategies and generate substantial value.

Financial Technology Sector

When looking at annual equity funding and deals within FinTech over the last few years CB Insights paints a story that seems to mirror most other markets. The data shows a remarkable peak in 2021 with 6,000 + deals closed totaling $140 billion in funding. 2022 saw a similar deal volume, but with funding plummeting to $479 billion. The declining trend was confirmed in 2023 with deal volume almost cut in half and funding landing at $39 billion.

According to a Biannual analysis of global FinTech funding from KPMG,

The payments space continued to account for the largest share of funding among the FinTech subsectors, despite a drop from $57.9 billion to $20.7 billion between 2022 and 2023. Of the major FinTech subsectors, only PropTech and InsurTech saw total investment rise year-over-year, with PropTech investment rising from $4.1 billion to $13.4 billion, and InsurTech investment growing from $5.9 billion to $8.1 billion. From a technology perspective, despite a drop in funding in 2023, AI remained a clear leader, attracting over $12.1 billion in FinTech investment.

This is consistent with what we are seeing here at Bespoke, with a great deal of our FinTech placements being for payments-related software companies.

Daniel Zhang and Peter Lawrence, Senior Research Analysts tracking the FinTech market for Bespoke, said, "The FinTech sector is dynamic and ever changing. Right now, we are seeing tremendous growth in subsectors like blockchain, as well as a large diversity in end users. The technology our clients create is amplifying the operational capacity for large international banks making billion-dollar transactions down to payroll software being used by a family-owned business. With Bespoke’s depth of experience in FinTech we’ve had the privilege of running searches across every scale of business and vertical application.

2024 Outlook & Predictions

As we look ahead to 2024, several key trends and predictions are shaping the future of the FinTech landscape. Our insights indicate a few dominant themes that will impact the sector significantly:

Consolidation of FinTech Players

  • Bundling services as competition increases and capital availability decreases
  • Fewer players survive and adobe best-in-class features

Increased blockchain applications for consumers and businesses

  • Wider adoption of blockchain technology by companies seeking efficiency
  • Crypto to serve as a settlement layer for various business and consumer use cases

Impact of economic factors

  • Rising inflation rates influence borrowing costs and consumer behaviors
  • Expect more credit offerings and increased upfront payments in services like 'buy now, pay later'

These predictions underscore the dynamic and evolving nature of the FinTech sector, highlighting the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. We are excited to provide our clients with unparalleled access to top-tier leadership that can navigate and capitalize on the opportunities within the dynamic FinTech landscape.

Track Record

To date, Bespoke-placed executives within FinTech have created roughly $20 billion in enterprise value, and we have completed over 90 placements in this vertical. Our placements have spanned every executive function, and our client Net Promoter Score (NPS) for this segment is a near-perfect 9.6 out of 10.

We have worked with top PE firms on FinTech searches including Thoma Bravo, Clearlake Capital, EQT, GSV, Insight Partners, as well as public companies. Our experience proves a strong track record in both enterprise and SMB solutions.

We enable innovative organizations serving the financial sector with leaders who adopt cutting-edge technologies to enhance competitiveness and promote capital-efficient expansion.

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For more information on transformative leaders in Finance Technology please visit:

https://www.bespokepartners.com/fintech-leader-recruiting

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Bespoke Partners Named in Top 10 of the “Top 49 Retained Executive Search” 2-Years Running by C-Suite CV Secure.

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Authored by:

  • Eric
    Chief Executive Officer

    Eric is passionate about building high-performing teams that value doing their best, working together, overcoming adversity and learning.

    As a proven growth executive, Eric has served as CEO, President, Board Member, Investor and Advisor for technology companies that achieved over $4.5B in successful exits.

    Eric brings to Bespoke Partners significant professional services experience from Deloitte and Andersen, as well as the high-growth client executive perspective for private equity-backed technology companies.

    Eric earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BS in Business from Fresno State University.

  • Senior Research Analyst

    Peter is a Senior Research Analyst on the Search team at Bespoke and based in Boston.

    Prior to Bespoke, he worked for RevelOne as a Senior Research Analyst, where he identified top GTM leaders for tech-enabled startups. Peter also previously worked in academic research, studying genetic components of aging and surveying undergraduate mental health.

    Peter has his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Middlebury College. In his spare time, you can find Peter reading, skiing, or playing Quadball.

  • Senior Research Analyst

    Daniel was born in Toronto and raised in Seattle where he spent 22 years of his life. He graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Business Administration and moved to San Diego shortly thereafter to pursue a Master’s degree at the University of San Diego.

    Prior to Bespoke, Daniel was an Analyst at Spencer Stuart where he led research efforts for clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to high-growth startups. He then transitioned into the private equity space at Mainsail Partners where he was responsible for building out the executive leadership teams for their portfolio companies.

    In his free time, Daniel enjoys backpacking, rooting for Seattle sports teams, and producing social media content for the mixed martial arts community.

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