Fintech becomes Core Financial Infrastructure | Financial Services Review

Fintech becomes Core Financial Infrastructure

Financial Services Review | Wednesday, September 30, 2026

Fintech has evolved from a collection of digital alternatives into an important layer of the financial system. Fintech solutions now span payments, lending, banking, wealth management, insurance technology and embedded financial services. For enterprises, the category increasingly influences how customers pay, how businesses access capital and how financial decisions are made.

The scale of digital transactions explains why the category matters. The Federal Reserve reported that U.S. consumers, businesses and governments made 236.6 billion noncash payments in 2024, an increase of 31.9 billion from 2021. Cards represented more than three-quarters of payments by number while ACH transfers accounted for almost three-quarters by value.

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Fintech is no longer confined to consumer applications. Enterprises are incorporating financial capabilities into commerce platforms, business software, payroll systems and marketplaces. The strategic question is shifting from whether financial technology has a role to where it can improve customer access, payment experiences, financial decisions and revenue opportunities.

Payments Become a Technology Battleground

Payments remain one of the most active areas of fintech development. Faster settlement, digital wallets, accountto-account payments and instant payment networks are changing expectations around how quickly money should move.

The Federal Reserve identifies instant payments, digital wallets, mobile payment applications and digital assets among the developments reshaping payments. Pay-bybank is also emerging as a model that allows funds to move directly between bank accounts, creating another alternative to conventional card-based transactions.

Adoption remains uneven. Federal Reserve research found that about 11 percent of U.S. adults had made at least one open-banking payment transaction during the previous year in 2024. Younger consumers showed greater willingness to use the method, suggesting that familiarity with accountbased payments could expand over time.

The commercial implications extend beyond transaction speed. Account-to-account payments can influence payment costs, settlement processes and the information available to businesses. Enterprise buyers therefore need to assess integration, authorization, fraud controls and reconciliation alongside the customer experience.

AI And Embedded Finance Expand the Market

Artificial intelligence is becoming an enabling technology across fintech rather than a standalone product category. Financial organizations can apply advanced models to fraud detection, customer service, underwriting and financial analysis.

The opportunity comes alongside stricter requirements for oversight. Financial decisions can affect access to credit, pricing and customer outcomes. Organizations using AI in these areas need sound data practices, model controls and processes for identifying errors or inappropriate results.

Embedded finance is broadening the category further. Payments, credit and other financial capabilities can now sit inside nonfinancial digital experiences. The model can create new revenue opportunities for enterprises while increasing their responsibilities around regulation, customer protection and partner oversight.

Buy Now, Pay Later illustrates the pace of adoption. Federal Reserve research found that 16 percent of U.S. adults used BNPL in 2025. The figure represents a notable expansion from the level recorded when the Federal Reserve began tracking the product in 2021.

Trust Shapes Enterprise Buying

Digital financial services have made security, privacy and consumer protection central to fintech strategy. Federal Reserve research found that financial fraud and scams affected adults across income groups in 2025. Losses involving peer-to-peer payments, electronic transfers and cryptocurrency could be significant for affected consumers.

However, regulatory interest is also increasing. In 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau established federal regulation of some large-scale digital payment apps. The services regulated by such regulation handle, in total, more than 13 billion consumer payment transactions per year.

Enterprise buyers consequently need to look beyond features. A fintech platform must fit existing technology architecture while supporting identity verification, fraud prevention, data protection, regulatory compliance and auditability. Integration matters, but so does the ability to explain how financial decisions are produced and monitored.

“ Fintech has evolved from a collection of digital alternatives into an important layer of the financial system. “

Market fragmentation presents another barrier. Enterprises can work with multiple providers across payments, identity, lending, data and financial infrastructure. Each connection introduces another dependency, making integration, governance and accountability harder to manage as transaction volumes increase.

Fintech Moves Toward Financial Infrastructure

The next phase of fintech is likely to become less visible to consumers while becoming more deeply embedded in business systems. Instant payments, open banking, artificial intelligence and embedded finance can increasingly operate behind applications that customers already use.

That shift will put greater emphasis on infrastructure quality. Buyers will need to examine resilience, interoperability, data governance, regulatory exposure and scalability across products and markets. Technology that performs well in one use case may not translate easily into a broader financial architecture.

Fintech solutions will continue to create opportunities for enterprises to improve financial experiences and develop new business models. Yet technology alone will not determine sustainable adoption. Stronger propositions will combine useful financial capabilities with reliable infrastructure, transparent decision-making and appropriate safeguards.

For decision-makers, the future of fintech is less about replacing traditional finance than changing how financial services reach businesses and customers. The category is becoming part of the connective layer between commerce, financial institutions and consumers. Its next phase will depend on balancing speed and innovation with trust, resilience and accountability.

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