Cupid’s Got a Ledger: Romance and rivalry in finance

A Valentine’s Month take on banks and fintechs

Last week, I teased a mystery topic, letting you stew in curiosity about what was coming. Well, the wait is over! Given that Valentine’s Day was just last Friday, I’m leaning toward a theme that fits the season: unions & collaborations.

We often dive into stories of partnerships that start with fireworks and flawless roadmaps — only to crash and burn for one reason or another. But today, let’s moonwalk through this. Let’s talk about rivals who went from side-eyeing each other to shaking hands (at least in the business world).

Take banks and fintechs, for example. Their early days were more ‘battle for dominance’ than ‘let’s work together’ — fintechs painted themselves as challengers, while banks saw them as pesky invaders. But time and market realities have a way of reshaping narratives.

Now, banks and fintechs are increasingly recognizing their strengths. It’s a classic ‘you complete me’ scenario — if corporate romance were a thing.

But let’s hit rewind for a moment. How did these once-feuding forces go from wary opponents to strategic allies? And where do these kinds of relationships stand now?

Let’s dig in.

Block vs. J.P. Morgan Chase: From competition to cooperation

J.P. Morgan Chase initially saw Square (now Block) as a major small-business payment competitor. In 2014, CEO Jamie Dimon famously warned that Silicon Valley was “coming to eat our lunch.” Square’s success with small business payments and its Cash App product placed it in direct competition with Chase’s merchant services.

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