Over the last decade, the growth of new Fintech firms has increased significantly. However, when Fintech firms enter the financial market they are met by several obstacles, including the barriers erected by incumbent banks, difficulties obtaining financing and the challenge of gaining the trust of the market. This thesis aims to describe how Swedish Fintech firms work together with, or against, the incumbent banks, how they raise capital and what kind of challenges they experience when raising capital and how they work to gain the trust of potential investors, partners and customers. In this thesis it was found that Swedish Fintech firms do not close their doors to cooperation with the incumbent banks, as in exchange for helping the banks with their technology they can get access to banks' customer base and help with regards to costs. The Fintech firms did however think cooperation was less likely to happen if the incumbent banks did not open their mindset and make their processes more effective. Developing the banks’ technology is something the Fintech firms recognize that they can help with. When it comes to gaining the trust of the market, Fintech firms strive to deliver good customer experience, show earlier accomplishments and build legitimacy. The biggest challenge that Fintech firms encounter is the lack of having a known brand on the market and trying to build a name for themselves from scratch. It was found that most of the firms raise capital through private equity even if many of the interviewed firms raise capital as well through indebtedness. Challenges these firms encounter when it comes to raising capital is to mediate their true potential and vision to the investors and to find investors that can help the firm in more ways than just with monetary support. At the same time it was discovered that a few firms did not have any problem finding investors because of their already good network and experience.

Ingeniero Civil Industrial / 26/03/2022

In the past decade, the financial industry has been criticized to lack a faster digital transformation to provide more efficient services, where FinTech (a neologism generated from the contraction of “(Fin)ancial” and “(Tech)nology”) start-ups or fintechs represent a paradigm shift to reinvent the industry. FinTech is gaining attention in multiple academic disciplines, however, it was found that it has been neglected from the international business discipline to understand the internationalization process of fintechs. Furthermore, as the financial industry is an important cornerstone to foster economic growth and social welfare, particularly in the context of Latin American emerging countries, lack of studies in this context also motivated the development of this thesis. The purpose of this study is to accommodate FinTech in the international business discipline drawing from network theory and born-digital firms’ characteristics, emphasizing on core activities within the digital value chain to analyze the internationalization process and identify the main challenges. A conceptual framework was developed to analyze the internationalization process of Ecuadorian fintechs and the challenges faced. The research has a qualitative approach, employing multiple case studies strategy, where semi-structured interviews with founders and senior managers of four Ecuadorian fintechs were conducted. Empirical findings showed that despite having a high digital value chain and take advantage of internet technologies to internationalize faster, Ecuadorian fintechs followed a gradual regional expansion within Latin American countries and their internationalization process was mostly network-driven. Furthermore, besides the most prominent internationalization challenges such as liabilities of outsidership (LoO) and institutional regulations, additional resource-related internationalization challenges were found such as funding, skilled IT talents and innovation, which raise the importance to emphasize in such challenges for further research.

La siguiente tesis se basa en el análisis y evaluación de un caso de negocio sobre un rubro que en el territorio peruano aún no está del todo explotado, como las son las industrias Fintech, del tipo lending. Para lograr dicho objetivo cual se ha hecho una investigación del entorno global y nacional que rodea este nuevo ecosistema financiero que se está formando, determinar las principales características del consumidor objetivo del estudio, que viene a ser la generación Z (centennials) que vive en Lima Metropolitana y cuáles serían los factores que determinarían s vinculación con nosotros, mediante encuestas realizadas en el periodo de investigación Luego de estudiar las distintas variables del consumidor, posicionamiento de la marca en toda su extensión y los componentes fundamentales como empresa, se realizó el estudio financiero respectivo para evaluar la viabilidad del proyecto, mediante VAN y TIR respectivos a los datos proyectos. / The following thesis is based on the analysis and evaluation of a business case on an area that in the Peruvian territory is not yet fully exploited, such as the Fintech industries, like the lending business. To achieve this objective, an investigation of the global and national environment that surrounds this new financial ecosystem that is being formed has been carried out, to determine the main characteristics of the target consumer of the study, which is gen - Z (centennials) living in Lima - Metropolitana - and what would be the factors that would determine your relationship with us, through surveys carried out during the investigation period. After studying the different variables of the consumer, brand positioning in its entirety and the fundamental components as a company, the respective financial study was carried out to evaluate the viability of the project, through NPV and IRR, respectively, to the project data. / Trabajo de investigación

Digitalization is increasing in our society and continues to move in that direction. The shift from traditional banks to online banks is becoming more popular, and with an online bank, the international markets open. Although previous research about internationalization exists, there is no in-depth research on the specific topic of online banks. This study aims to provide information regarding how online banks internationalize, to understand the underlying factors for the process better as well as provide recommendations for both online banks but also traditional banks. Factors such as motivators, the entrepreneur, and resources are investigated to find an answer to the given research question. The way of internationalization is connected to the already pre-existing strategies of global or regional markets. The third theoretical concept that is applied to understand the internationalization process is which path of internationalization is used, either Born Global or Born Regional. This thesis is a qualitative study with a deductive approach. The empirical findings are derived from case studies through semi-structured interviews, and the sampling selection is online retail banks operating in Europe, with more than one million customers. The selected cases are Revolut, N26, Monzo, and Monese, where one interview per bank is conducted. The interviewee’s understanding of the subject is gathered in the empirical findings, through summarizing the transcription of the actual interviews. The researchers are analyzing the internationalization process and present both similarities and differences between the cases and connect it to the prevalent theories. In conclusion, some statements are drawn that highlight the importance of traditional banks to follow the new shift towards more simplified banking with understandable products that aim to help the people. This study, therefore, contributes not only to the theoretical understanding of the subject, but it also offers practical implications both for traditional and online retail banks

Increasingly more people lack the basic financial knowledge that would help them plan for their future. One aspect of it is not being aware of the long-term benefit of investing in the stock market. Increasing financial literacy with better financial education is a long-term solution. In the meanwhile, there is room for technological innovation to reduce the need for financial literacy which has not been covered by previous research and is therefore the topic of this research. More specifically, this study examines how financial literacy can be reduced in financial planning for households by helping them setting up a stable financial future. A case study method was used to choose three web-based robotized products and evaluate how they scored in mitigating three identified barriers to stock market participation. The result demonstrated that choosing any of the three products significantly reduced the need of financial literacy since they all scored high. In conclusion, these types of technological products can help not only the financially illiterate but also those who want to delegate the task of planning for their financial future.

Digitalization is a comprehensive area today that is constantly evolving, with the aim of streamlining business processes to promote both individuals and companies. In line with today's ongoing development of digitalization, the growth of FinTech has had a major impact in the banking sector. This is because FinTech has contributed to the possibility of establishing innovative financial services, as banks have previously lacked this capability. FinTech companies are covered by higher innovation capacity and banks are thus today facing challenges, to create value for their customers. While FinTech development promotes opportunities for banks, cyber risks and threats also occur because of the rapid changes. This study aimed to describe how the major Swedish banks express that they relate to the relationship with FinTech companies, and whether the major banks experience increased cyber risks, in connection with the FinTech development. The major Swedish banks include SEB, Swedbank and Handelsbanken and have thus been applied as study objects. A qualitative study was conducted using primary data collection from semi-structured interviews. Secondary data have also been obtained from the Swedish major banks' published documents and literature collections, which have been considered regarding the study's theoretical frame of reference. The results of the study showed that the major Swedish banksfind opportunities for collaboration with FinTech companies, as a collaboration can streamline the major banks' slow-moving and complex systems and contribute to new FinTech solutions. However, Handelsbanken differs from the remaining major banks, as they have chosen not to include external FinTech companies to the same extent. In conclusion, it was also stated that all major banks are experiencing increased exposure to cyber risks, because of FinTech's development, which contributes to rapid changes in society. / Digitalisering är ett omfattande område i dagens samhälle som ständigt utvecklas, med syfte att effektivisera affärsprocesser för att främja både privatpersoner och företag. I takt med dagens pågående utveckling av digitalisering har framväxten av FinTech haft en stor inverkan inom banksektorn. Detta eftersom FinTech har bidragit till möjligheten att etablera innovativa finanstjänster, då banker tidigare har saknat denna förmåga. FinTech-företag omfattas av högre innovationsförmåga och banker står därmed idag inför utmaningar, för att skapa värde för sina kunder. Samtidigt som FinTech utvecklingen främjar möjligheter för banker, förekommer även cyberrisker till följd av de hastiga förändringarna. Denna studie syftade till att beskriva hur de svenska storbankerna uttrycker att de förhåller sig till relationen med FinTech-företag, samt om storbankerna upplever ökade cyberrisker, i samband med FinTech utvecklingen. De svenska storbankerna innefattar SEB, Swedbank samt Handelsbanken och har därmed tillämpats som studieobjekt. En kvalitativ studie har genomförts med hjälp av primär datainsamling från semistrukturerade intervjuer. Sekundärdata har även inhämtats från de svenska storbankernas publicerade årsredovisningar, samt litteraturinsamling, som har beaktats med hänsyn till studiens teoretiska referensram. Studiens resultat påvisade att de svenska storbankerna finner samarbetsmöjligheter medFinTech-företag, eftersom ett samarbete kan effektivisera storbankernas trögrörliga och komplexa system samt bidra till nya FinTech lösningar. Handelsbanken skiljer sig dock från resterande storbanker, då de har valt att inte inkludera externa FinTech-företag i lika storutsträckning. Avslutningsvis konstaterades även att samtliga storbanker upplever ökad utsatthet för cyberrisker, till följd av FinTech utvecklingen som bidrar till snabba förändringar i samhället.

Uppsatsen syftar till att undersöka hur ledningen i små, snabbväxande, kunskapsintensiva företag arbetar med arbetstillfredsställelse för att kunna bibehålla anställda. Studien söker svar på följande frågeställning: Hur arbetar ledningen på små snabbväxande fintech-företag med arbetstillfredsställelse? Genomförandet av studien gjordes genom en kvalitativ intervjustudie med ledningen i ett företag verksamma inom fintech-industrin. Det teoretiska ramverket utgår från begreppet arbetstillfredsställelse där följande huvudområden identifierades: belöning och uppmärksammande, arbetstillfredsställelse med arbetet i sig, balans mellan arbete och privatliv samt ledarskap och organisationskultur. Resultatet visar att bolaget i viss mån arbetar med dessa huvudområden, men att tillvägagångssättet skiljer sig åt beroende på vilken avdelning respondenten ansvarar för. Den övergripande slutsatsen av studien är att ledningens arbete med arbetstillfredsställelse sker på ett osystematiskt vis.

Den snabba framfarten av blockkedjetekniken samt teknikens disruptiva möjligheter inom den finansiella sektorn har lett fram till vad denna studien undersöker; blockkedjeteknikens påverkan på utlandsbetalningar och huruvida marknaden för utlandsbetalningar påverkas av den ökade utforskningen och användningen av tekniken. Faktorerna kostnad tid och säkerhet kopplat till utlandsbetalningar analyseras för att ta reda på hur dessa skulle kunna påverkas. För att lättare få en förståelse för kostnader, tid och säkerhet kopplat till utlandsbetalningar inom bankindustrin utreds även hur en traditionell utlandsbetalning går till. När en ny disruptiv teknik växer fram och börjar användas i allt större omfång kan det frambringa konsekvenser som påverkar hela branschen. Därav tar denna studie även upp hur den finansiella marknaden kan komma att förändras till följd av blockkedjetekniken och vad det kan innebära för organisationer. Fintech-bolag har på senare år tagit allt större plats på den finansiella marknaden och fortsätter att styrka deras marknadsposition. Samtidigt som banker måste anpassa sig till teknikens utveckling måste de även förhålla sig till fintech-bolagens starka framväxt. Många storbanker investerar i fintech-bolag för att på så sätt kunna följa med den snabba digitala utvecklingen. Allianser mellan banker och fintech-bolag benämns fintech 2.0. Tack vare teknikens snabba utveckling i samband med digitaliseringen är det svårt att förutspå vad som kommer att definiera den finansiella sektorn i framtiden. Fortsatt forskning inom området är nödvändigt för att förstå hur processer, organisationer och marknader kommer att förändras till följd av utvecklingen. / The rapid progress of blockchain technology and the disruptive possibilities of technology in the financial sector has led to what this study examines; the impact of blockchain technology on cross-border payments and whether the market for foreign payments is affected by the increased exploration and use of the technology. Factors such as cost, time and security linked to cross-border payments are analyzed to find out how these could be affected. In order to get an understanding of costs, time and security linked to cross-border payments in the banking industry, we also investigate how a traditional cross-border payment is being executed. When a new disruptive technique emerges and begins to be used in a wider range, it can cause consequences that affect the entire industry. Hence, this study also examines how the financial market may change as a result of blockchain technology and what it might mean to organizations. In recent years, fintech companies have taken more place in the financial market and continued to strengthen their market position. While banks must adapt to the technology development, they must also relate to the strong growth of the fintech companies. Many major banks invest in fintech companies in order to be able to follow the fast digital development. Alliances between banks and fintech companies are called fintech 2.0. Thanks to the rapid development of technology in connection with digitization, it is difficult to predict what will define the financial sector in the future. Continuing research in the field is necessary to understand how processes, organizations and markets will change as a result of the development.

Requirements, key artifacts of requirements engineering, are a fundamental part of any software development, used by the different software development roles in their activities, such as designing the interface for a feature, its development, and the creation of test cases made by testers. This study aims to investigate the impact of misalignment in the use, understanding, and intent of requirements between the requirements engineers that create the requirements and other software roles that use them in their work activities and betweendevelopers and testers in their software development and testing activities. The impacted areas that this study focuses on are the work activities of the different roles involved with requirements in the development process, their workload, and their well-being and morale.The two research objectives are:i) How do software development practitioners define the quality of requirements?ii) How do the perceived quality of requirements impact the work of the different roles involved in the software development process?This study was performed as a descriptive interview study that follows the case study guidelines written by Runeson and Höst [14] at a sub-organization of a Nordic bank that developed their own web and apps. The data collection comprises interviewing 20 practitioners:requirements engineers, developers, testers, and newly employed developers, with fiveinterviewees from each group.The results of this study show that there are, in fact, different views across different roles of what makes a requirement good. There are also some similarities between the general characteristics described by the practitioners that they perceive make requirements good and the characteristics described in the ISO [21] and IREB [26] standards.The practitioners stated that, in general, they experienced negative feelings, more work,and overhead communication when they worked with requirements they perceived to be bad. The practitioners also described in general positive effects on their work and feelings when they worked with requirements that they perceived to be good.A conclusion that can be drawn from the study is that the quality of requirements and the requirements engineering process matter to software development and can have big impacts on the morale and effectiveness, and efficiency of the different roles that work with the requirements.