Swedish Fintech: Light at the End of the Tunnel?

During his keynote about the recent Swedish Fintech Report, Mats Bergius (Lunar & Swedish Fintech Association) captured the mood of the Swedish fintech sector in one sentence:

"There’s light at the end of the tunnel—fingers crossed it’s not an oncoming train."

This sentiment reflects the cautious optimism within Swedish fintech. While securing funding remains a challenge, conditions have improved slightly compared to previous years. However, one of the biggest concerns raised at the event was the disconnect between fintech innovation and policymaking. Many industry players feel that regulators lack a deep understanding of fintech, which can slow down progress and competitiveness—a concern that resonates strongly in Norway as well.

With global players increasingly targeting the Nordics for expansion, bridging this gap is crucial to ensure the region stays competitive and secure.

Vipps MobilePay: Battling Big Tech in Payments

A stark example of this growing global competition came from Vegar Heir, CCO at Vipps MobilePay, in his keynote during the conference. He outlined the rising and renewed threat of big tech companies like Apple, Google, and Amazon in the Nordic payments market.

While Vipps MobilePay has successfully established itself as the leading mobile wallet in Norway, Denmark, and Finland, the company faces increasing pressure from tech giants, rapidly expanding their financial services offerings. Heir highlighted some eye-opening statistics, underlining the need for a Nordic payments collaboration:

• Apple Pay has close to 800 million users globally
• 80% of iPhone users in the U.S. actively use Apple Pay—a trend that could soon affect the Nordics.
• The combined valuation of our top five Nordic banks is the equivalent of 4% of Apple's worth.

Apple Pay is now Apple’s fastest-growing service, fueled by its strategy to dominate local markets with high iPhone usage and strong digital payment adoption—a perfect match for the Nordic region.

To counter this, Vipps MobilePay has doubled down on innovation and collaboration, launching several new solutions:

• Tap-to-Pay on iPhones – Becoming the world’s first real competitor to Apple Pay in this space.
• Cross-border P2P payments – Making it easier than ever for users across the Nordics to send and receive money seamlessly.
• Beyond payments – Introducing new loyalty features, wish lists, and brand engagement tools to build deeper customer relationships.

Vegar Heir emphasized that local fintechs and banks must work together to compete against global tech players. The real competition is not between Nordic fintechs—it’s between the Nordics and Big Tech.

Strengthening Nordic Collaboration

During our stay in Stockholm, NCE Finance Innovation also hosted a networking event at the Royal Norwegian Embassy in collaboration with Innovation Norway and the Chamber of Commerce of Norway and Sweden, bringing together cluster members and community partners for an evening of connection and conversation.

The Norwegian Ambassador, Aud Kolberg, and the Director of Innovation Norway in Sweden, Robert Nygårdhs, shared their perspectives on the importance of fintech as a driving force for innovation and economic growth. They also emphasized the need for stronger collaboration between Nordic countries to maintain the region’s competitive edge in financial services.

Among the Norwegian fintech companies present were Receipts, Mobai, Quantfolio, Vipps MobilePay, and Stacc—all examples of companies with ambitious growth strategies in the Nordics.

Key Takeaways: The Nordic Fintech Challenge

• Funding and talent remains a hurdle in Sweden, but the outlook is slightly better than in previous years.
  
• Regulatory gaps need to be addressed—policymakers must better understand fintech to ensure a competitive market.
• Big tech is aggressively targeting the Nordics—collaboration between fintechs and banks is essential to stay ahead.

As we return home, these insights will help shape our strategy for the upcoming Norway Fintech Festival (April 1-3, 2025), where we’ll continue the conversation on how the Nordics can stay competitive in a rapidly evolving financial landscape.

Thanks to Stockholm Fintech Week for hosting such an inspiring event—we’re looking forward to continuing our great collaboration!