One of the definitions by the Oxford Dictionary for revolution is “a dramatic and wide-reaching change in conditions, attitudes, or operation,” and if you take a close look at what is taking place in the financial sector, that is exactly what is taking place. Whether it is personal saving bank accounts being taxed in Cyprus or large banking institutions getting bailed out, while individual account holders are left holding the bag, a breaking point has taken place. These actions have resulted in individuals and newly formed organizations discarding the old way of doing business in the financial sector by using technology.

People are fed up with over regulated institutions that seem to continually abuse the trust of their customers and end up on the winning side. The revolution that is taking place at the moment is made possible by new sets of technologies and talent that is willing to abandon the old guard and put in place new systems designed to benefit everyone.

The financial technology space is growing by leaps and bounds by going after an increasingly disgruntled customer base willing to give a new formula of doing business the benefit of the doubt. Whether you want to invest your money, get funding for a startup, manage your wealth, get a loan or make a payment, you can find newly established companies that will provide these services without having to deal with established institutions. Some of the standouts include:

• WePay – launched in 2008, it give users a better option than PayPal (News - Alert). Their platform provides an easier interface and more options for small businesses and individuals without unnecessary rules and penalties.
• Kickstarter – a source for crowdfunding that so far has managed to raise $376 million for budding entrepreneurs with great ideas as well as helping small investors who don’t have trust funds to make six or seven figure contributions.
• Lending Club – is a peer-to-peer lending organization established in 2007 and now has issued over $1 billion in personal loans with higher return rates for the lenders than the anemic one to two percent currently being offered nationally.

These are just a few of the examples of the many companies currently doing business in what many would argue is a better way of doing business. It should be noted most of the large institutions currently in business started out like these pioneers, but as they started capturing larger market shares, they started championing for regulations designed to protect what they work so hard to earn. Only time will tell if these organizations will follow the same path, but if past history is an indicator they will have to follow their predecessors if they want to stay alive.