Research Paper

Spreading Fintech Solutions into New Crucial Sectors

Read about the latest trends in fintech and learn about the companies in the fourth cohort of the Financial Solutions Lab, which seeks to identify, test, and bring to scale innovations that improve Americans’ financial health.

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By Eric Wilson

Program:

Financial Solutions Lab
Category:

Fintech

Monday, January 14, 2019

Spreading Fintech Solutions into New Crucial Sectors

Now in its fourth year, the $30 million, five-year program with founding partner JPMorgan Chase & Co. supports fintech companies working to help millions of Americans manage their financial lives more effectively. This year’s cohort of eight reflects a growing sophistication in the industry. These are companies simplifying complex systems, using big data to create new underwriting models, and developing solutions that give consumers, particularly the underserved, better ways to reach and maintain financial health.

Trends

Here are some key takeaways from this year’s FinLab class that shed light on where the industry is heading.

Using data to create alternative underwriting models

With access to an incredible amount of consumer data, fintech companies are developing new effective ways of establishing creditworthiness by manipulating real-time data, rather than relying exclusively on FICO scores.

Building technology around consumer behaviors

Research has continuously shown it’s much more effective to build technology around consumer behaviors than to attempt to alter those behaviors to fit the technology. Companies are showing that a focus on behavioral design can help to change the outcomes and lives of consumers in the long run.

Making complex systems easy

Through a combination of artificial intelligence and machine learning, strategic industry partnerships, and thoughtful design, companies are simplifying processes that have been notoriously challenging and expensive for consumers to navigate.

The 2018 Cohort

Alice is software for employers that allows employees to automate pre-tax spending on things they already pay for like commuting, childcare, and healthcare, making paychecks go up and paperwork go away.

FutureFuel.io is an enterprise SaaS platform designed to make debt repayment, roundup and refinancing easy, helping users crush student debt.

Goalsetter lets families and kids redirect money to one of three categories: saving for the future, sharing with others, and experiences that truly matters to them.

Mason Finance is an online financial services platform designed to improve the financial health of people in America over the age of 65.

Petal pioneers cash flow underwriting to expand credit access for new-to-credit consumers.

Resolve guides financially distressed people back to financial health by creating a custom debt relief plan and connecting them with affordable debt relief partners.

Sixup is reinventing student lending with a system that funds and incubates high-achieving, low-income students through the lifecycle of social mobility.

WinWin uses the excitement of winning to encourage young Americans to save.

About The Financial Solutions Lab

The Financial Solutions Lab (FinLab) is a $30 million, five-year initiative managed by the Financial Health Network with founding partner JPMorgan Chase & Co. The Lab seeks to identify, test, and bring to scale promising innovations that help Americans increase savings, improve credit, and build assets. Lab participants share a relentless focus on building products that will improve the financial health of Americans. The Lab provides capital, national partnership opportunities, industry expertise, mentorship, and cutting-edge consumer and design insights necessary to build the next generation of leading financial products and services.

Written by

Eric Wilson

Associate