DIGITAL FINANCIAL SERVICES AS THE MAIN PRODUCT OF FINTECH COMPANIES

Abstract

Despite the widespread use of the category “digital financial services” and its apparent importance in financial relations in the formation of the digital economy, the theoretical nature of digital financial services remains insufficiently disclosed and proven. In addition, the understanding of digital financial services is too narrow, given the growing trend of their use in the world as the main product of fintech companies. The article aims to analyze and compare existing approaches to understanding the essence of digital financial services and justify our own approach considering the trends caused by the activities of fintech companies in the digital economy. In this context, the paper finds that most scholars and experts view digital financial services in the context of financial inclusion and low-cost access to financial services in developing countries, identifying this category with mobile money or mobile financial services as a process of using mobile phones to access to financial services and basic financial transactions. The bibliometric analysis of scientific works devoted to studying the category “digital financial services” allowed to identify four clusters of scientific publications that identify critical features of digital financial services, characterizing them as an integral part of the digital economy. There are three groups of components: finance, the digital economy, and people’s needs. Also, the author’s definition and graphic substantiation of the essence of digital financial services are offered in work. The analysis proves that digital financial services are part of finance and fintech products of the financial sector, provided within various forms of e-commerce using current information and digital technologies to meet the needs and values of different gender components, financial security, place of residence, social status, and type of employment of different categories of people. The comparative characteristics of traditional and digital financial services are presented. Several advantages of digital financial services for meeting the needs of consumers are emphasized. It is determined that the success of digital financial services depends on the combination of digital technologies and business innovations chosen by the fintech company within a specific fintech area, which includes the areas of payments, digital banking, lending, insurance, and capital management.