Despite a decline in venture capital funding for the industry in 2024, many fintechs, especially those serving other businesses, flourished. The Forbes Fintech 50 for 2025 highlights entrepreneurs who have found ways to thrive in a constrained and sometimes turbulent environment. Fintechs that serve other businesses, particularly in the Payments, Business to Business Banking, and Wall Street and Enterprise categories, did particularly well, claiming 31 of the total 50 spots. These three categories also account for 13 of the 18 companies that made their Fintech 50 debut on this year’s list. Only two companies, Plaid and Stripe, have made the cut every single year. Among the first-timers, Parafin, a San Francisco small business lender, and Squire, a New York company that helps barbershops, are notable examples. Newcomer DailyPay, led by former marketing executive Stacy Greiner, lets employees access their wages right after they’ve earned them. Another first-timer, DataVisor, uses patented machine learning algorithms to flag fraudulent payments and grew its revenue 67% in 2024. Personal finance startups also made a strong showing, with True Link, which offers a debit card with customizable spending controls, being a notable newcomer. Profitability emerged as another theme, with 13 winners reporting GAAP profitability in the previous year. Lending businesses seem to be making a comeback, with six lenders among the 18 first-timers. Nova Credit, which made the list in 2020 and then fell off for four years, made a surprising comeback with its cash flow underwriting products. — news from Forbes
