Disruptive fintech startups must address the knowledge gap
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The startups in the fintech space in the last couple of years have done many things — but most of all, they have made finance accessible. Tools like mutual fund investments, start-up financing, and digital payments which were once limited to few individuals & institutions, brimming with unnecessary middlemen, are now within reach for the non-elite as well. What we’re now seeing is a gradual disruption of the old as we pave a way for the new.
Let’s take some evidence from history: iTunes made music accessible — facilitated by sites like Limewire — and in the process made traditional CD’s obsolete. Sites like Pirate Bay made way for streaming services like Netflix and were ultimately instrumental in making DVD rental obsolete by making films & other video content accessible. The key to disruption is large scale access to things that were inaccessible in the past. Just like Netflix, YouTube, and iTunes disrupted the earlier ways of content consumption for the world, companies like GrayQuest, Groww, Cred, and Klub are transforming the way Indians engage with finance. Consumers are now more empowered as a result of access. Be it making interest free long-term payments for your child’s education, making mutual fund investments as small as INR 500 (thereby enabling the middle class), or earning rewards for making credit card payments, we are witnessing a large-scale shift in our ways. Where we could earlier see a distinct, definitive audience who engaged with financial tools, we are now seeing the potential audience become more and more non-homogenous as these tools are being utilised by savvy millennials as well as untrusting baby boomers.
With great power comes great responsibility — and also, well, opportunity. While finance is being made accessible, its knowledge is still lacking. This could be seen as a roadblock for marketers who are responsible for marketing these services, but it is in fact a huge opportunity. Players in this space must (by responsibility) create educational content and take up initiatives to promote financial literacy amongst potential consumers. It is in fact what their brand values must stand by. The objective of their innovation is access to better tools, and if their product was created for access, their content should facilitate it. It is imperative that the players in this space take up this challenge in their stride and help transform the face of small-scale and personal finance in the country.
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