Fintech leads as Electronic Payments International lists the top five terms tweeted on payment tech in May 2020, based on data from GlobalData’s Influencer Platform. The top tweeted terms are the trending industry discussions happening on Twitter by key individuals (influencers) as tracked by the platform.

1. Fintech – 4,057 mentions

How the fintech is sustaining in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic and how it will in the future, challenger banks making it easier to open accounts, and the gradual pick up of online payment companies, were popularly discussed during the month of May. According to an article shared by Spiros Maragaris, a VC futurist, the fintech industry was growing horizontally. This implied that while some companies were building ‘full-contact’ relationships with their customers, others were concentrating on building infrastructure, the article noted.

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Jim Marous, a financial industry strategist, meanwhile believes that many fintech firms will not be able to survive the Covid-19 crisis. Despite being better positioned in terms of digital transformation strategies, they may be facing more risks than their legacy banking counterparts, the article suggested. Inflow of funds, partnering with traditional banks, or selling the firm, may be some alternatives for fintech start-ups and others, the article noted.

In other news, Chris Gledhill, a fintech influencer, stated that May 1 was the largest transaction day in PayPal’s history. PayPal fell short of first-quarter expectations as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the digital payments pioneer revealed that transactions were improving in April and beyond.

2. Bitcoin – 2,850 mentions

Building and driving Bitcoin adoption, money laundering, and the pace of the crypto currency adoption in the coming months, were some popularly discussed in the month of May. According to an article shared by Tyler Winklevoss, a crypto currency and bitcoin investor, Goldman Sachs revealed that in 2019, $2.8bn in bitcoin investments was sent to currency exchanges from criminal sources. However, reports suggested that the financial services company had facilitated $6bn in money laundering via 1MDB scandal from 2012 to 2013.

Build and drive Bitcoin adoption, and hold onto the crypto currency than sell it, stated Adam Back, a cryptographer. He further added that it was probably the most effective thing to do and enough, rather than getting caught in the chaos.

In other news, Dan Morehead, the founder and CEO of Pantera Capital, shared an article on the possibility of Bitcoin hitting $115,212 in Aug 2021. Bitcoin overtook gold during the Covid-19 crisis, and will come of age in this one, the article noted.

3. Banking – 1,229 mentions

Embracing a disruptive mindset to discover banking opportunities, and the need to support consumers and small businesses post the coronavirus pandemic, were popularly discussed during the month of May. According to an article shared by Jim Marous, a financial industry strategist, financial institutions that moved more quickly and decisively to embrace new future of work realities as a result of the pandemic, will be the ones to gain in the future. This implied new environments, new collaborative tools, new digital skills, and new methods of leveraging technology to augment human capabilities, the article noted.

Jim Marous also tweeted on how the banking industry will have to support consumers and small businesses post the Covid-19 crisis. From fee waivers to loan payment deferrals, big efforts have been made by financial institutions of all sizes. However, it is unclear if the institutions will continue further funding once they run out payroll funding, the article noted.

In other news, Bank of Jordan’s mobile banking app went from a 2.8 to 4.7 star rating on Google Play, according to Spiros Maragaris, the VC futurist. From being hated to loved, the article detailed how the bank teamed up with UXDA to create a comprehensive UX transformation that changed the app dramatically, making the app more accessible, useful, and convenient for banking for millions of customers in the Middle East.

4. Blockchain – 946 mentions

The usefulness of blockchain technology, smart contract platforms, blockchain integration, world changing innovations in the crypto world, were popularly discussed during the month. According to an article shared by Jimmy Song, a bitcoin educator, developer, and entrepreneur, blockchains are not useful other than Bitcoin. He also added that Altcoins are not a good investment.

There is also much discussion going around about the amount people are actually paying to use blockchains, stripping out the inflation subsidy, according to the cofounder of the cryptoassets company Placeholder, Chris Burniske. He also highlighted that Ethereum was leading compared to other smart contract platforms such as Tezos, Waves, and Lisk combined.

In other news, Don Tapscott, a media theorist, author, and professor, shared an article on how Baseline Protocol, an open source initiative, secured business process automation across SAP and Microsoft Dynamics using Ethereum public blockchain. The demo showed how to privately and securely synchronise data and business logic between companies, using the Ethereum Mainnet and through an approach called ‘baselining’.

5. Covid-19 – 889 mentions

Slow economic recovery, the role of digital assets, how the Covid-19 crisis has impacted banking and payments behaviour, and how global central banks are responding to the virus emergency, were popular topics discussed in the month. According to an article shared by Laura Shin, a crypto journalist, Pantera Capital’s CEO is of the opinion that the economy will not recover very easily from the health crisis, that it was turning out to be positive for Bitcoin, and that combined with the Bitcoin halving, BTC could go to $115,000 next year.

Covid-19 has changed the way do everything, right from working, shopping, socialising to banking and making payments, according to industry expert Jim Marous. While digital payments, the use of payment wallets and digital banking was gaining pace before the pandemic hit hard, experts are beginning to realise some strong trends that will shape the way people will bank and pay. For instance, consumers would not choose to visit banks, or use cash, cheques or point-of-sale systems requiring tactical engagement, the article detailed.

In other news, Spiros Maragaris, the VC futurist, shared an article on how global central banks are responding to the Covid-19 crisis with monetary policies such as policy rate cuts, liquidity support, and more.