In the midst of the global fintech market downturn, the crypto and blockchain sector managed to become a leader in investments in a number of major European markets.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to the report \u201cState of European FinTech\u201d, released\u00a0by the Amsterdam-based fintech venture fund Finch Capital, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region experienced a 50% drop in fintech investments in the first half of 2023. The total amount of funding fell from $27.3 billion in H1 2022 to $11.2 billion in H1 2023. <\/p>\n
However, crypto businesses stand out in the overall picture, gaining a leading position in investments attracted across several large markets. In the United Kingdom, the blockchain and crypto sector grabbed a 28% share of all the deals, struck in fintech in H1 2023. This number is even higher in the Netherlands \u2014 35% of all deals. In Germany and France, the crypto\u2019s share constitutes 27% and 29% respectively. <\/p>\n
Related: <\/u><\/em><\/strong>Venture capital exec says \u2018lack of innovation\u2019 drives funding away from crypto<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The main competitor of crypto is the lending sector, which appeared to be the leader in market share in Ireland and overall across the region in terms of deal volume. <\/p>\n Despite the bearish tendencies in fintech as a whole, the interest of investors in the digital economy appears solid. According to another recent report, 24% of asset management firms have adopted a digital assets strategy, with an extra 13% planning to do so in the next two years. <\/p>\n Moreover, some crypto companies still report significant gains. For example, European digital asset manager CoinShares revealed a total revenue of 20.3 million pounds ($25.9 million) in Q2 2023, a 33% increase compared with the prior year\u2019s quarter.<\/p>\n