How FinTech is changing SME growth and financial inclusion

FinTech or financial technology has become one of the fastest-growing research frontiers in small-business finance, with a new global review finding a 33.68 percent annual rise in studies examining how digital finance is reshaping small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) credit access, financial inclusion and post-pandemic resilience.

The study, titled Mapping Global Research Trends in FinTech Innovations and SME Dynamics: A Scientometric Analysis and published in Administrative Sciences, analyzed 365 Scopus-indexed research articles published between 2007 and 2023 to map the evolution of FinTech and SME research, identify leading contributors, track dominant themes and outline gaps that remain unresolved in the literature.

FinTech and SME research expands as digital finance moves mainstream

The review shows that FinTech and SME research has grown sharply over the past 17 years, reflecting the rapid spread of digital payments, mobile banking, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending, blockchain, robo-advisory services, RegTech, InsurTech and AI-enabled finance. The annual growth rate of 33.68 percent in the research field suggests that digital finance has moved from a narrow technology topic into a major area of business, finance and development scholarship.

FinTech has lowered barriers to financial services, accelerated access to funding and created new channels through which small firms can secure loans, manage transactions and participate in digital markets. SMEs, often constrained by limited collateral, weak credit histories and information gaps, have become a central focus of FinTech research because digital finance can help reduce financing constraints and improve business performance.

The review identifies 236 unique publication sources and 989 contributing authors across the selected literature, with international co-authorship accounting for 31.23 percent of collaboration. That level of cross-border academic work shows that FinTech and SME dynamics are no longer local or sector-specific concerns. They are part of a wider global debate about financial inclusion, digital transformation, entrepreneurship and economic resilience.

The authors also found that the average age of documents in the dataset was 2.1 years, showing that the field is heavily shaped by recent scholarship. Each document received an average of 11.2 citations, pointing to strong visibility and influence for research on digital finance and small business development.

Publication activity remained limited in the early years but began rising steadily after 2011. The sharpest increase occurred from 2019 onward, a period marked by wider smartphone use, growing digital banking adoption and the COVID-19 shock, which pushed many SMEs toward online payments, digital lending, crowdfunding platforms and remote financial tools. Although citations fluctuated after 2020, the authors interpret this partly as a timing effect because newer articles have had less time to accumulate citations.

Financial inclusion, blockchain and digital finance dominate the field

Financial inclusion is the most visible and persistent theme in FinTech and SME research. The topic gained particular strength between 2019 and 2022, reflecting growing concern over unequal access to finance and the role digital platforms can play in closing gaps for underserved firms and communities.

The authors identify several major research streams. One focuses on FinTech, financial inclusion and China's role in shaping the global FinTech research landscape. China emerges as a dominant contributor, reflecting the country's rapid expansion of digital finance, mobile payments and technology-enabled lending systems. The review indicates that Chinese studies have been particularly influential in analyzing how FinTech reduces SME financing constraints, supports innovation and improves access to credit.

The other stream focuses on blockchain, digital finance and SME dynamics. Blockchain is presented as a rising theme in the literature because of its potential role in supply chain finance, credit-risk assessment, transparency and alternative lending. Researchers have increasingly examined whether blockchain-based financial systems can help SMEs overcome trust deficits and funding barriers by improving the traceability and reliability of transactions.

A third stream examines adoption patterns in developing economies, including Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Ghana, Pakistan, Cameroon and ASEAN markets. These studies look at how financial literacy, perceived usefulness, digital readiness, regulatory conditions, trust and government support influence whether SMEs adopt FinTech services. The review shows that adoption is not simply a matter of technology availability. It depends on infrastructure, user skills, institutional confidence and the ability of small firms to integrate new tools into existing business practices.

A fourth stream focuses on SME financing decisions, financial constraints and information asymmetry. The study highlights how FinTech-based lending, mobile banking, digital finance and peer-to-peer platforms can reduce transaction costs and improve access to credit. These tools can be especially valuable for small firms that struggle to meet traditional banking requirements.

The citation analysis points to influential research on blockchain adoption, small-business technology awareness, AI-driven digital financial inclusion, sustainable SME business models and FinTech's role in bank lending. Highly cited works suggest that researchers are especially interested in how emerging technologies affect SME resilience, sustainability and access to capital.

The review also shows that the field has become more interdisciplinary. Keywords across the dataset connect FinTech with entrepreneurship, microfinance, financial literacy, artificial intelligence, digitalization, cryptocurrency, crowdfunding, supply chain finance, financial stability and sustainability. This network of themes shows that FinTech research is no longer confined to banking or payment systems. It now cuts across economic development, innovation policy, risk management and inclusive growth.

Research gaps point to emerging markets, regulation and long-term SME impact

Despite rapid growth, the study identifies major gaps in the literature.

• Geographical imbalance: Research remains heavily concentrated in China, the United States and Europe, while regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America remain underrepresented despite their fast-growing digital finance ecosystems. The authors warn that this imbalance may limit the global relevance of existing findings, especially because emerging markets often face different infrastructure, regulatory and socio-economic conditions.
• Implementation challenges: Small firms often deal with complex rules, limited technical capacity, cybersecurity exposure and difficulties integrating new platforms with older systems. The review argues that more research is needed on practical implementation barriers, not only the benefits of adoption.
• Shortage of longitudinal studies: Much of the existing research relies on cross-sectional data, offering only a snapshot of FinTech adoption at one point in time. This limits understanding of how SMEs adapt over longer periods, how digital finance changes their financial behavior and whether the benefits of FinTech are sustained. Long-term studies could help determine whether digital finance creates lasting improvements in resilience, credit access and growth.

The study also finds that the financial inclusion impact of FinTech needs deeper analysis. While digital finance is widely seen as a tool for inclusion, there is limited systematic evidence on how different groups benefit across gender, age, region, income level and business type. More research is needed to determine whether FinTech reduces inequality or creates new forms of exclusion for firms and users with limited digital skills or weak internet access.

The authors identify several limitations including that their analysis relied on Scopus-indexed English-language research articles, which may exclude relevant studies published in other databases, languages or formats. Citation metrics also carry bias, since highly cited work is not always the most practically important, and newer studies may be undercounted because they have had less time to gain citations.

Regulatory frameworks must balance innovation with consumer protection, cybersecurity, data privacy and financial stability. For financial institutions and FinTech providers, the study highlights the importance of designing tools that are affordable, accessible and aligned with the operational realities of small firms.

For SMEs, FinTech adoption can improve access to capital, support innovation, strengthen resilience during crises and open new pathways to growth. However, the benefits depend on financial literacy, trust, infrastructure and the ability to manage risks.