European fintechs 2026: neobanks and payments scale

Finextra, in association with Visa Direct, forecasts European fintechs to grow from $85.52 billion in 2025 to $94.14 billion in 2026. The publisher’s 2026 State of Fintech in Europe report and an accompanying webinar will examine cross-border scaling for neobanks and firms in payments, wealth and lending.

The webinar will focus on strategies and barriers for expansion across multiple EU and non-EU markets, including customer acquisition, local market fit, licensing and payments connectivity.

The report identifies three main obstacles to cross-border growth: fragmented national markets, varying regulatory regimes and uneven payments and financial infrastructure. Firms entering multiple countries face different licensing rules, supervision standards and consumer protections that affect product rollout timelines.

Neobanks face higher costs for customer acquisition and must adapt products for local preferences. Payments companies need technical work to connect to local clearing and settlement systems. Wealth and lending firms must adapt products and meet country-specific compliance requirements.

The report highlights technology and infrastructure changes that may affect expansion. It points to wider use of artificial intelligence for onboarding and risk management, upgrades to real-time payments rails, and rising interest in digital assets. The authors will assess whether these technologies can be deployed beyond trial projects.

The webinar will examine partnership strategies. Fintechs often rely on local banks, payments networks and regulated third parties to gain market access and integrate with domestic clearing systems. Panelists will consider where white-label services, distribution agreements and infrastructure alliances fit different business models.

The online event, produced with Visa Direct, brings together payments and liquidity experts and other industry figures to review the report and outline operational approaches for 2026 expansion. Scott Hamilton, global payments and liquidity expert, will moderate the session.

Background material for the webinar states there is no single model for scaling across Europe. Firms may prioritise licensing, local partnerships, infrastructure investment or testing new technologies depending on their product and target markets. The report and webinar will map those options for firms seeking to grow beyond domestic markets.