Finance services is an industry that has been particularly male-dominated, with women holding less than 10 percent of senior positions. Despite predictions that the fintech industry could disrupt the gender balance in the traditional finance sector, female leadership in fintech remains low in most of the world.

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In Latin America, however, women are stepping up as fintech leaders, with five times as many female-founded fintechs as the global average. The Latin American fintech industry is booming, and women have been an integral part of the region’s success. In 2019, fintech received 31 percent of the region’s venture capital, and more than 35 percent of Latin American fintech startups have female founders.

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The fintech opportunities in Latin America

The opportunity to create disruptive change attracted many of these women fintech leaders. With 70 percent of the region’s population without a bank account, and smartphone penetration in Latin America predicted to reach 80 percent by 2025, there is huge industry growth potential. Fintech offers convenient solutions to this large population of Latin Americans with mobile devices but no formal banking access, with the goal of replacing cash payments and increasing financial inclusion.

“Fintechs are taking more risks than traditional institutions,” said Inma Canadas, the co-founder and CMO of Keynua, which helps secure digital transactions through verified mobile e-signatures. “We’re rethinking and redesigning services and products in a dynamic way, and we will all benefit from a broader coverage of financial products for the population.”

Covid-19 has further increased the demand for digital financial services. Many Latin American governments are partnering with fintechs to create digital finance programs to increase financial access, fast-tracking the integration of third parties with traditional financial systems through solutions such as open banking. In early June, Mexico’s National Banking and Security Commission published new regulations for open banking, and Brazil will put into effect its open banking regulations beginning in November.

“With open banking coming into effect in Mexico and Brazil, it feels like open banking is becoming a dominant trend,” said Ximena Aleman, co-founder of Prometeo, an open banking fintech based in Uruguay. Prometeo’s platform digitalizes user information and facilitates bank transactions and online payments.

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