Fintech firms have been missing a trick by largely ignoring the fastest growing and wealthiest demographic - the over 50s, says VC QED Investors.
The fintech sector has mostly focused on younger demographics, reasoning that they are more enthusiastic about adopting innovative digital products and services.
But Yusuf Ozdalga, London partner at fintech-focused QED Investors, predicts that the 50 to 70 age range will soon be ripe for fintech as traditional players squander customer loyalty by overcharging for things such as annuities and pensions, wealth management and insurance products.
If they are to take advantage, fintechs need to wake up to the opportunity. Says Ozdalga: "The irony is that most fintech founders want to improve society, iron out disparities and improve accessibility.
"But they tend to be more inclusive of people just like them, addressing issues they think apply mostly to 20 and 30 somethings, while too easily stereotyping anybody else."
Digitised FX, insurance, digital banking and pensions innovations are especially relevant to people in the older demographic and can offer them huge cost savings, while accounting tools, paytech, credit scoring and lending are just as relevant to businesses owned by those retiring much later in life.
Says Ozdalga: “The digital divide is increasingly not about those with and without access to tech, but between innovators whose products apply to all age groups versus those that target people such as themselves, to the exclusion of certain demographics."