The rise of digital assets, including stablecoins and tokenised deposits, is reshaping the future of the fintech industry, according to a new report from McKinsey & Co.
The report identified digital assets as one of four key factors impacting the fintech industry, alongside AI, changing use of banking licenses and a new wave of ‘horizontal’ fintechs.
“Digital assets have the potential to transform all four areas of banking, from moving money to storing it, lending it and investing it,” the report said. “Over the next five years, we see potential for high double-digit growth in digital assets across banking, with the fastest growth in investment use cases and the largest absolute upside around money movement.”
The report noted that stablecoins offer the most obvious potential product-market fit, as adoption increases in line with regulatory clarity in the US and EU.
It outlined multiple use cases for stablecoins, including global remittances and B2B payments, as well as how stablecoins can be used in emerging markets and capital markets.
As a result of the rapid adoption of digital assets, traditional finance and fintech are converging with blockchain infrastructure at a structural level.
For fintechs, this means the firms with a competitive edge are the ones that can combine blockchain-based efficiency with trusted brands, regulatory clarity and scaled distribution.
