Recent Advances in Fintech: The Case of Italian Challenger Banks

Fintech or financial technology is a relatively recent and expand­ing phenomenon, which identifies the application of technologies, in par­ticular digital, in the financial sector. In the context of Fintech, a recent­ly born sector is represented by challenger banks (CBs), i.e. banks that do not have branches but operate exclusively through apps and smartphones. There are currently 96 challenger banks in Europe, of which 12 are located in Italy. This study aims to analyze the performance of the Italian challeng­er banks in the three years 2019-2021 to grasp the strengths and weaknesses of their management. The study highlighted how Italian challenger banks have overcome the pandemic with satisfactory results compared to 2019. This is partly due to the advantages that digital services offer in conditions in which physical travel is limited or prohibited. However, income performance also grew in 2021 and confirms the progressive strengthening of the sector.