Is Fintech compatible with indie hacking?
Compared to other areas, it seems there are few successful indie hackers in the fintech space.
Why is that? Too high barriers to entry? Too much hype around crypto?
Or am I maybe wrong? What would be great examples? (One I do know of and use is Lunchmoney, but nothing else, really).
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Depends on who it's for.
Fintech for end-users like budgeting software, is pretty accessible. I'd still pay for a half decent daily budgeting app that doesn't look like doodoo...
But the big firms managing lots of money? A lot harder because of all of the compliance stuff. You're managing a lot of money and that's big risk.
But there's places that have done it. Startup, online only, banks were big news a few years ago. Robinhood was once a small app, Webull, etc.
I think most startup banks started with venture funding, but you raise a good point. The solution needs to be very specific to an audience/problem.
And the only way they raised the money was not because of the idea, it's because they were already known to be successful and well-connected in the VC circles.
Fintech startups are typically founded by 2nd-time founders with previous exits.
Regulations, laws. Simply too "serious" for one person to handle. You need a big team with professionals in many different segments (devs, compliance, finance, sales, integrations...) and a very good network in that space. Can't speak for other countries, but in mine, you need at least year or even more to gather all the paperwork to put the whole process in motion.
P.S. Working for a fintech at the moment (full-time)
Yes, that sounds quite a lot. Can I ask what you are working on?
You're right, there are fewer successful indie hackers in the fintech space compared to other areas. There are a few reasons for this:
High barriers to entry. Fintech products often require a lot of technical expertise to build and launch. This can be a barrier for indie hackers who don't have a background in finance or engineering.
Regulation. Fintech companies are subject to a lot of regulation, which can be complex and time-consuming to comply with. This can be a barrier for indie hackers who don't have the resources to hire a team of lawyers and compliance experts.
Competition. The fintech space is very competitive, with big banks and established fintech companies investing heavily in innovation. This can be a challenge for indie hackers to compete with.
Despite these challenges, there are a few successful indie hackers in the fintech space.
Here are a few examples:
Lunchmoney: Lunchmoney is a personal finance app that helps users track their spending and save money. It was created by indie hacker Ben Feder.
Plaid: Plaid is a financial infrastructure API that allows developers to connect their apps to bank accounts. It was created by indie hackers Zach Perret and William Hockey.
Tiller Money: Tiller Money is a budgeting app that helps users import their financial data from banks and credit cards. It was created by indie hacker Tiller West.
These are just a few examples of successful indie hackers in the fintech space. If you're interested in building a fintech product, it's important to be aware of the challenges involved, but it's also important to remember that it's possible to be successful.
Interesting, thanks! I haven't heard about Toller Money before.
You just need to believe in your fintech project. :)
Well, it's probably more than that, but thanks for the encouragement! :)
Two things come to mind:
Regulation. Most indiehackers don't want to deal with this, which in turn is why it's potentially fruitful to pursue (higher barrier to entry)
Mindset. It's in the name really, I think pursuing fintech for an "indiehacker" isn't a common path. Not necessarily because they wouldn't be successful if they chose this path, but fintech is "thinking big", and in most cases, indiehackers are building sth smaller
Yes, these are good reasons.
Regulation can be quite convoluted, especially when they are just introducing a new set (talking from experience).
Lunchmoney is really cool. Indie hacker as well built. On top of regulation/compliance there tends to be some pretty hefty costs to get started. I remember a while back i attempted to build financial forecasting tool using plaid to connect to peoples bank accounts. At that time it was free for me to use but opening up to more users I would have had to start paying 2500/mo.
Yes, I first heard about Lunchmoney on IH! :)
Yes, pricing is indeed another blocker. I just found out about some fintech 'membership groups' with +$3000 annual fees just to be included in the club...
Limitation due to regulation/compliance requirements plus there is the whole nexus of institutionalize control which become difficult to breakthrough ..same is true for healthcare to a large extent
Yeah, this is just the polar opposite of what I saw in Web3 where people were doing high-value business in discord chatrooms knowing nothing about each other but their avatar...
Wondering if there can be a middle ground between the two worlds.