中国：全球金融科技创新的领导者

中国：全球金融科技创新的领导者

毕马威与H2 Ventures的最新报告显示，全球前五大金融科技创新企业中有四家来自中国，尤其P2P在中国增长迅猛。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

KPMG毕马威会计事务所

Indisputable明白的；无争论之余地的[ɪndɪ'spjuːtəb(ə)l]

powerhouse精力旺盛的人；动力室['paʊəhaʊs]

innovate创新；改革['ɪnəveɪt]

cite引用；传讯；想起[saɪt]

dub配音；打击；授予称号[dʌb]（过去式 dubbed)

P2P（peer-to-peer）,点对点网络借款，是一种将小额资金聚集起来借贷给有资金需求人群的一种民间小额借贷模式。属于互联网金融（ITFIN）产品的一种。

China challenges London’s fintech lead（543words）

By Emma Dunkley

The UK is at risk of losing its reputation as the world’s leading fintech centre as the number of innovative companies in China is rising rapidly,according to a new report.

The annual study by advisory firm KPMG and investment company H2 Ventures shows that four of the top five global innovators in financial technology now come from China,reflecting the“indisputable”growth of fintech in the country.

Topping the list,which is determined by the amount of capital raised and the degree of traction with consumers,among other factors,is Hangzhou-based Ant Financial,an online payment service provider. Earlier this year,Ant Financial raised $4.5bn in a record fintech private placement.

The report shows that the UK is losing ground,occupying 13 of the top 100 positions compared with 18 last year. Only Atom,a mobile-focused bank that launched this year,made the top 10.

Fintech companies seeking to shake up the traditional bank-dominated business of lending and payments have all flocked to London in recent years with the aim of offering customers superior and often lower cost services.

London is considered a fintech powerhouse as it provides efficient access to capital,skills and regulation that is focused on the sector.

But Warren Mead,global co-head of fintech at KPMG,said the emergence of China as“a market leader”and the increasing globalisation of fintech means UK policymakers and regulators will“have to continue to work hard to maintain our position”.

Competition is heating up globally with 17 countries now making the top 50 established companies,up from 13 last year. The UK is still in second place to the US,which holds a quarter of the 100 spots on the list.

Funding for fintech is on the rise,with the top 50 companies attracting $14.6bn of capital since last year,marking an increase of more than 40 per cent in just 12 months.

However,funding in the UK has come into question following the Brexit vote and intensifying competition elsewhere,especially in China.

Innovate Finance,the UK’s financial technology trade body,recently reported a decline in venture capital funding for UK fintech companies,which fell by a third in the first half of the year.

Companies saw $386m of investment for the first half,down from $580m for the same period last year. Innovate Finance cited Brexit as the main reason for the dip. In contrast,venture capital funding for global fintech companies grew nearly 150 per cent.

Toby Heap,of H2 Ventures,said that although China is growing rapidly in this sector,there are a number of“exciting”fintech companies emerging globally,in countries such as India and the Philippines.

Most of the top 50 fintech companies are dubbed as“disruptors”that seek to challenge established financial services companies and traditional business models.

A number of peer-to-peer or marketplace lenders have grown in the past decade,as a way to provide more efficient lending compared to traditional banks. P2P matches investors with borrowers through a website,allowing for loans to be made more quickly.

P2P has surged in China,which is dominated by large state-owned banks that prefer lending to state-owned industrial companies. Chinese platform Lufax,which was valued at $19bn earlier this year,is fourth on the KPMG list.