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My guest today is Stephanie Choo, Partner at Portage, a global fintech-focused VC that traces its roots back to Canada. The firm focuses on fintech companies and currently manages over $3 billion in AUM.
We discuss:
The fintech opportunity in Canada and why most fintech verticals in the country are winner-take-all
"If you look at the market caps of any of the top five banks in Canada… many of them are in the top 10 in North America. Period. You can build big companies, multibillion-dollar companies if you focus and you are the winner… you need to be strategic because you probably need to invest in the winner. In many cases, this is a winner-take-all type market environment."
In light of a looming recession, Steph shares five counter-cyclical fintech themes she’s especially interested in these days:
Businesses that collect deposits
Debt collection & debt repayment
Credit underwriting software
Reinsurance
B2B Payments
Portage’s take on crypto and why they remain very bullish on the category
“I'm really bullish on the intersection between FinTech and crypto. It's a place where we spend a lot of time. If you are investing in FinTech, you have to be investing in crypto. I think it could be completely disruptive to a lot of the sectors.”
The future of fintech partnerships and why a lot of the growth from the industry will be driven through collaboration between fintechs, big tech, and incumbent banks… and a lot more!
“[Big Tech] they're going to partner [with fintechs] because of the regulatory burden. They're already under so much regulatory scrutiny as it is - around competition, monopolies, data use, and everything that we've been reading about in the last years. So, my guess is they're not gonna want to invite more regulatory scrutiny by acquiring [banking] charters.”
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Miguel Armaza is Co-Founder & Managing General Partner of Gilgamesh Ventures, a seed-stage investment fund focused on fintech in the Americas. He also hosts and writes the Fintech Leaders podcast and newsletter.
Stephanie Choo, Partner at Portage – Counter-Cyclical Fintech Opportunities, The Great Canadian Fintech Market, & The Future of Crypto