Weekly Update 21

Happy Friday, everyone! Mickey Mouse could soon be bidding adieu to Disney. Here's the scoop on that and our other top stories this week:

👉 Mickey Mouse could soon be leaving Disney👉 Apple wrecked at least 15 startups within a span of an hour this June👉 How Khaby Lame snagged the TikTok crown from Charli D'Amelio

Weekly Trend Report: #EmbeddedFinance is the hot new trend in financial innovation

💸 Embedded finance is when any type of company or online store incorporates services for which you would typically need to go to a bank.

🤳 Non-financial organizations are embedding payment options, insurance, banking, investments, and more into their digital customer experience – the new normal for modern businesses across healthcare, education, hospitality, and real estate.

⬆️ The demand will only intensify as Millennials and Gen Z become a larger part of the consumer market.

What fuelled the rise?

💵 The fear of Covid contaminating paper bills or coins and banks limiting access and hours facilitated embedded finance.

🤑 Companies responded with investments in fintech to make checkout payments more convenient.

📈 Half of the US's non-financial companies are using embedded finance. The sector is now on track to grow 215% to over $230 billion by 2026.

How is it helpful?

🏦 Embedded finance removes the need to commute or fill out forms required at in-person bank interactions.

🌍 It empowers large swaths of previously unbanked people with digital credit and savings options, especially in remote African regions where banks often can't reach.

🏢 Companies and startups can find new revenue streams by embedding finance and increasing customer engagement and lifetime value in the next few years.

Concerns

🤔 Only 27% believed embedded payments were more secure than traditional payments. 3-in-5 people also worried they would be charged the wrong amount.

👛 Embedded finance remains a mystery: many have used digital wallets, but 49% of consumers haven't heard the term "embedded payment."

📝 Educating people is necessary so more people can opt-in as the demand for convenience at checkout increases.

Got any feedback? Drop it here. Have a great weekend!