Role of FinTech in Job Creation During the Pandemic

Businesses and companies across India have gone through unique ups and downs ever since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in 2020. However, India’s FinTech industry has emerged as a game-changer amid the pandemic. With more than 2100 FinTech companies in the country, the industry is estimated to be worth $50-$60 billion at present. Undeterred by the pandemic, the industry is further expected to achieve a market size of $150 Billion by 2025, as per the report by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) and Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

In fact, a report by RBSA Advisors has indicated India to be the biggest FinTech destination in Asia. The growth of the industry can be credited to the country’s deep-rooted customer demand, diverse capital glows, strong tech talent, and enabling policy framework. The fact that the Indian FinTech industry is promising reflects in the $2.7 Billion investment received by the FinTech startups in the country in 2020, according to the Pulse of Fintech H2’20, a bi-annual report on global fintech investment trends published by KPMG.

Since the Indian FinTech market holds a $100 billion opportunity, the Indian technology companies and startups riding the digital wave on investments are opening up new avenues for employment and growth. As a matter of fact, a Naukri.com report in March had said that the recovery in India is led by IT companies. It indicated a robust growth of 23% in the Jan-Mar’21 with regards to the hiring activity. The growth has been fuelled by the ITeS Sector, especially retail and financial segments promising recovery.

It is safe to say that the FinTech industry is leading the hiring space in the technology sector. Reports have also suggested that many Indian companies are looking forward to expanding their offices aggressively by offering the hottest jobs in the market in the current financial year. It is not only the Indian companies with massive investments adding to the job creation. The promising growth in the FinTech industry is attracting foreign companies to set up their offices in India. Today, many foreign FinTech players are leveraging India’s strong talent pool to hire for multiple functions ranging from HR, Finance, Growth, and Marketing to Recruitment, Compliance, Risk Management, and Technology.

While this is the direct contribution by the FinTech companies towards job creation, the industry is also helping SMEs survive the pandemic, hence saving many jobs. During the entire course of the pandemic, the SME segment, the principal driving force of India’s economy, has been one of the worst-hit sectors. However, FinTechs are helping SMEs by providing easy access to financial products including credit, cash flow management, and so forth.

The growth of the FinTech industry has been accelerated due to the pandemic as digital payment solutions gained popularity among people to check the spread of coronavirus. The widescale adoption of digital payments has built trust among people towards the financial services available digitally. They offer an improved customer service experience, with everything available at the touch of a button on smartphones. Some of the FinTech platforms are even empowering customers by offering innovative stockbroking solutions, which were earlier limited to a few. It is driving more retail investors towards the ripe market and adding to the revenue streams of investors from tier 2 and tier 3 cities. From the country’s economic growth to job creation, it is the marriage between finance and technology which is saving many from the crisis.