Fintech Rebellion: How Developers Are Disrupting the Future of Commerce

Shopify earns nearly 70% of its revenue not from its core product, but from embedded financial services. Learn how developers are leading this fintech rebellion with simple APIs.

#1about 2 minutes

Software is eating the world and changing commerce

The digital commerce we see today is only the tip of the iceberg, as software continues to redefine jobs and industries.

#2about 2 minutes

The origin story and failure of CashDash

The initial attempt to build a consumer-facing digital wallet failed due to immense regulatory and compliance challenges in financial services.

#3about 2 minutes

Pivoting to create a fintech infrastructure platform

The company pivoted from a failed consumer app to building an API-first infrastructure platform, similar to AWS for cloud, to simplify global financial services.

#4about 3 minutes

Why every company is becoming a fintech company

Companies embed financial services to create customer stickiness, build direct relationships, and open new, recurring revenue streams.

#5about 4 minutes

How fintech powers modern gaming and marketplaces

Fintech infrastructure enables complex money movement behind the scenes for seamless user experiences in gaming, marketplaces like Uber, and e-commerce.

#6about 5 minutes

Using a single API for global payment methods

A fintech API can abstract the complexity of global commerce, allowing developers to accept local payment methods worldwide with a single integration.

#7about 3 minutes

The rise of closed ecosystems and super apps

Major fintech trends include companies building closed ecosystems to retain funds and the evolution of super apps that embed payments and financial services.

#8about 3 minutes

Moving beyond ads to fintech-based monetization

The advertising-based revenue model is no longer viable for most apps, making embedded fintech the primary strategy for monetization and profitability.

#9about 4 minutes

Q&A on challenging SWIFT and the role of open banking

The speaker addresses the eventual replacement of legacy systems like SWIFT, the potential of open banking to accelerate innovation, and examples of government-led payment APIs.

#10about 2 minutes

Q&A on developer influence and entering the fintech field

Developers can drive fintech adoption by proposing new financial service ideas to leadership, and newcomers should start by learning the fundamentals of money movement.