PFs Make Showing on Forbes Fintech 50

This week, Forbes magazine announced its 2019 listing of the Fintech 50 – a group it describes as “innovators who are changing how people save, spend and invest.”

According to the publication, the 2019 list includes more payments companies than ever, and payment facilitators made a distinct showing on the list.

In an introduction to the payments segment of the list, the publication noted an increase in global funding for payments companies from $8 billion in 2017 to $12 billion last year. It cited CB Insights research saying that payments consumed 15% of fintech funding in 2018, more than any other category.

“So, it’s no surprise that we had more payments companies on this year’s Fintech 50 list than we’ve ever had in our four years of running it,” the article said.

Of the 12 payments companies on the list, three of them are listed as registered payment facilitators. That number is up from just two (Adyen and Stripe) last year. PFs’ inclusion demonstrates the growing role of integrated payments and the ability of technology and data to solve payments problems across verticals.

The PF innovators who made the list:

• Bolt provides checkout software for ecommerce sites. Bolt touts its integrated fraud detection and a streamlined checkout interface as differentiators for its platform. Forbes notes Bolt’s rapid growth, expanding from 10 to 75 employees since it was launched early last year.
• Stripe provides technology for online commerce and, according to Forbes, it is the most highly valued financial technology company in the U.S. Just last week, it was reported that the company had raised another $100 million, bringing its overall valuation to $22.5 billion.
• Toast is focused on POS technology for restaurants, offering a platform that combines software and hardware specifically tailored to the needs of the restaurant industry. Forbes called out its ability to perform restaurant-specific tasks beyond the POS, such as managing food inventory.

Bolt and Toast are newcomers to the list, while Stripe has made it on every list since the publication begin it in 2015.

Forbes said that it compiles its list by looking for companies making industry-changing innovation. It does not include public companies, and the companies must have operations or customers in the U.S., it said.