FinTechs in China : with a special focus on peer to peer lending

Abstract

This paper studies the development of financial technology companies (FinTechs) in China. We describe the recent development of payment services and P2P lending and analyze empirically the determinants of P2P lending in different regions in China in 2014-2017. Our descriptive analysis shows that the surge in the number of the P2P platforms in China follows an inverted U-shaped phenomenon. However, the outstanding balances of P2P lenders is still increasing, while average yields of P2P lenders have sharply plunged. Our empirical findings indicate: (i) P2P lending is more extensive in region with more mobile phone subscriptions; (ii) outstanding balance of P2P lenders in region is negatively associated with the size of traditional banking sector; and (iii) the number of the P2P platforms in negatively related to the fixed assets investments in region, whereas average yield is a positively associated with the fixed assets investments.