The bank has become a playground for digital companies, young shoots determined to become the giants of tomorrow or mastodons. The sector is shaken up by tech and challenged by followers of decentralized finance.

The banking sector was one of the most affected by the bubbling of the first internet bubble at the turn of the millennium. Will the current digital wave this time be a game-changer? The financial firepower has changed sides. New entrants to the financial sector are attracting capital in droves. In the first half of 2021, according to the BCG Fintech Control Tower, fintech raised $55 billion, more than in all of 2020 (50 billion). Neobanks Revolut and N26 were valued at $33 billion and $10 billion, respectively, in recent rounds. Broker Robinhood went public based on a price of $32 billion. Do these new companies threaten incumbent banks? In the proliferation of fintech, it is important to distinguish between companies that work with the financial sector, and those that intend to "disrupt" it and do the job of banks instead of banks.