Retail Banker International lists the top five terms tweeted in fintech in Q1 2020, based on data from GlobalData’s Influencer Platform. The top tweeted terms are the trending industry discussions happening on Twitter by key individuals (influencers) as tracked by the platform.

1. Insurtech – 7,614 mentions

The future of auto insurance, and the debate over self-driving cars killing the industry or opening new opportunities for carmakers and insurers, key steps for insurers to boost their cloud transformation, and the hottest insurance deals having taken place in Europe in 2019, were some of the popular topics discussed in Q1 2020. For example, an article shared by Alberto Garuccio, an innovation leader, details how thoughtful planning and key steps can remove the barriers to insurer cloud adoption. The article noted four key areas that can help insurers expand and accelerate cloud transformation.

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Alberto also discusses the debate ensuing over whether self-driving cars will kill the industry as we know it, or present new opportunities for carmakers and insurers to come together in another tweet. The article shared, noted that the new insurtech Avinew’s entry into the market in late January and Tesla’s announcement of its own insurance offering in April, led to this debate.

In other news, Florian Graillot, a venture capitalist investor, shared a detailed report on the state of the insurtech industry, with over $6bn invested in the industry last year. The report highlighted that the number of insurtech financings in Asia and North America reached record levels in 2019.

2. Blockchain – 7,168 mentions

Modernising financial services by leveraging the blockchain technology, and visualising the cryptocurrency ecosystem and how it is transforming the financial world, were some popular topics discussed in this quarter. According to Jean-Baptiste Lefevre, a top insurtech and fintech influencer, blockchain has four surprising use cases such as in preventing human trafficking, in tracking diamonds, allowing artists to release songs directly to their fans, and registering land as in Sweden.

Meanwhile, Xavier Gomez, a fintech and insurtech thought leader, discussed how financial services enterprise such as JPMorgan and Fidelity are leveraging blockchain to modernise financial services. However, among the many barriers to fully embracing blockchain is the need to enhance data privacy and security. Multi-party computations (MPCs), it is being believed, will provide a solution to existing business and technical pain points.

In other news, Alberto Garuccio, an innovation leader, tweeted on visualising the new cryptocurrency ecosystem, which is helping in creating a more innovative and accessible financial system around the world.

3. Fintech startups – 5,325 mentions

Fintech startups growing in countries like India in 2020, investments in seed insurtech startups, and how to start a startup, were some popularly discussed topics in Q1 2020. David Doughty, a corporate governance expert, re-tweeted on how fintech start-ups have grown exponentially in the past years in India. The article shared noted that this was on account of innovations by financial institutions, startups, and new policies by the government. As a result, banks and regulators have been revisiting models and policies to generate more participation and collaboration.

In other news, Alberto Garuccio, an innovation leader, discusses how to start a startup, and to evaluate whether ready for finserv challenges.

4. Big Data – 5,189 mentions

The need to translate data into action in order to bridge gaps in digital transformation, and whether finserv big data management is evolving into a full data experience, were some popular topics discussed during the quarter. Alberto Garuccio, an innovation leader, shared an article on why analytics alone is no longer enough. The article further noted that there was a need for synthesis and analysis to connect distributed data to the analytic supply chain.

In other news, Xavier Gomez, a fintech and insurtech influencer, shared an article on translating data into action to close the digital transformation gap. The article noted, for instance, enterprise systems that control workflows in financial institutions tend to be enormously complex, and that prevents data teams from injecting data into the workflow. However, AI-driven business intelligence (BI) apps that can build workflows in the BI tool can help bridge this gap.

5. Innovation – 4,878 mentions

Exciting time for crypto ahead, strategic priorities for digital banking, the rise of the invisible bank, were some of the popular topics discussed in the quarter. Brian Armstrong, the co-creator and CEO of Coinbase, tweeted on technology driving down costs and leading the way for new innovations that will both democratise the access and also level the playing field. The influencer added that exciting times are ahead for cryptocurrencies, as well as the open financial system.

Alberto Garuccio, an innovation leader, also shared an article on the rise of the invisible bank, where digital banking will become less visible because it will be embedded in day-to-day activities with the help of technologies such as AI, IoT, voice banking, analytics, and more.

In other news, Jim Marous, a financial industry strategist and co-publisher of The Financial Brand, shared an article on the top 10 strategic priorities for financial institutions in 2020, such as improving the digital experience for consumers, enhancing data analytics capabilities, and more.