Fintech startups have established themselves as viable competitors in the financial-services business, but now they face a new challenge: Some mainstream banks have started to offer fintech-inspired services such as early paycheck access and no-fee overdrafts.
Fintechs that offer banking services have some marked advantages over banks, especially when it comes to attracting younger consumers, many of whom traditionally have been underserved by banks. Fintechs typically have more-versatile technology than banks, and they have low overhead, giving them the ability to offer more low-cost or no-fee services than banks generally can, says Moutusi Sau, an analyst with research and consulting company Gartner Inc.