Fintech is transforming global finance, and fintech developers are making this all possible. S & P Global Market Intelligence’s original research with Rapyd reveals collaboration is at the core of this transformation for developers. Collaboration with other fintech developers is highly valued, with 95% of developers currently or previously involved in open source projects. A large majority of devs are also seeking out opportunities outside of their jobs to work with others, with 83% contributing to public repositories on Github in the last year.
Fintech developers are continuously challenged by the intense level of complexity and quick evolution of the sector however, our study shows that devs are excited about the industry and their professional future. The majority (60%) are satisfied with their jobs, and nearly nine out of ten respondents are optimistic about the fintech industry’s growth prospects over the next five years.
In this original study commissioned by Rapyd, we set out to assess the current state of the global fintech developer. This article summarizes the first third of our findings on trends and the State of the Fintech Developer in 2021. This section of the report focuses on fintech developer careers, industry outlook, and professional development.
COVID-19 posed professional, personal and financial challenges for developers, including working longer, difficulties maintaining coworker relationships, and dealing with a workforce reduction. Our survey also revealed interesting differences between regions. This change was more noticeable for the developers in the UK, where 44% of respondents noted poor morale. The US on the other hand did a better job of maintaining employee satisfaction, with only 28% reporting poor morale.
Despite the rapid rise of the industry, the report also identified a concerning level of dissatisfaction among developers, with 26% of respondents somewhat or very dissatisfied with their current jobs, a cause for concern for companies that have come to learn just how critical their developer workforce truly is.
Another crucial factor in employee satisfaction was good job benefits. When asked, “What is the most important work/employee benefit that a company should offer to retain developers such as yourself?”, the most desired benefits were not perks but rather competitive salaries (52%), flexibility (40%), and good benefits (37%).
When asked, “What is your growth outlook for the fintech industry over the next five years?”, nearly nine of ten developers (88%) predicted strong or moderate growth. Only 7% of respondents predicted a decline, with the remaining respondents neutral. This overwhelming optimism is linked to the industry’s meteoric growth, large funding rounds, and the increased adoption of fintech technologies worldwide.
Seniority influenced respondents’ perspectives, with older respondents (45+) with the strongest growth outlook (94% positive) compared to those aged 30 – 44 (87%) and <30 years (86%). It’s encouraging that the developers with the most experience are also those who are the most excited for the future of the industry.
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Where are fintech developers learning the skills to keep up with this fast-evolving sector? According to 40% of developers surveyed the most common way of acquiring this skill set is learning from college courses. However, non-traditional educational and skill development paths are also popular, with 29% learning from online courses or bootcamp programs. Other responses included internship (9%), learned from a friend (8%) and self-taught (8%).
For many developers, coding is more than just their job; it’s also a personal passion. Our survey found nearly half of developers (43%) spend their free time contributing to developer forums (e.g., Stack Overflow), while 39% work on personal tech projects like mobile app building or freelance work (37%).
Our study reveals collaboration with other fintech developers is absolutely critical, with 95% of developers currently or previously involved in open source projects. The vast majority of these devs are also collaborating by contributing to public repositories on Github over the past 12 months.
Additionally, despite ongoing challenges and complexities within the fintech ecosystem, our study shows that devs are excited about their professional futures. While a notable minority is less than satisfied or neutral, the majority (60%) remain satisfied with their jobs. More promising still, nearly nine out of ten respondents are optimistic about the fintech industry’s growth prospects over the next five years.
Rapyd’s State of the Global Fintech Developer study with S & P Global Market Intelligence’s 451 Research is a study based on primary research survey data. This assesses the market dynamics of a key enterprise technology segment through the lens of the “on the ground” experience and opinions of real practitioners — what they are doing, and why they are doing it.
The findings presented in this report draw on a custom global survey of 502 fintech developers. The survey was fielded in Q2 2021 and included respondents based in the US, UK, Singapore, New Zealand, India, Hong Kong and Australia.
Photo by Christina Morillo for Pexels.
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