Fintech went from a full-blown surge to a near standstill in just two years. At its peak, about 25 percent of all venture dollars were pouring into the category. By late 2022, that number had collapsed to almost zero. In this conversation, a16z General Partner David Haber and Plaid cofounder and CEO Zach Perret unpack what actually happened during that cycle and why the market is heating up again.

We explore how the industry moved from the explosive growth of 2020 and 2021 into a deep freeze, and why we are now seeing real momentum return. We also dig into the forces reshaping fintech today: AI’s outsized impact on fraud and underwriting, incumbents finally embracing external software, the renewed importance of deposits, and the rise of embedded finance across entirely new categories.

Zach shares how Plaid has navigated these shifts, what the company is building now, and how he sees the next phase of fintech taking shape

Timecodes:
0:00 FinTech’s Seasons
1:10 The Rise of FinTech (2014–2019)
3:32 COVID-19 and the FinTech Boom
4:43 Venture Capital Surge and FinTech Summer
8:25 Solving the Access Problem
10:41 Is Crypto Fintech?
13:51 Plaid’s Evolution and Industry Impact
17:26 Consumer Behavior and Adoption
21:48 Global FinTech Expansion
27:43 2026 Predictions: AI and Fraud
40:26 Emerging Trends in Fintech
43:34 Plaid’s Anti-Fraud and Credit Innovations

Resources:
Find Zach on X: https://x.com/zachperret
Find David on X: https://x.com/dhaber

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