Fintech companies have been in the limelight owing to a significant increase in remote financial transactions amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The trend is expected to continue in the foreseeable future thanks to rapid digitalization. So, both 360 DigiTech (QFIN) and Upstart Holdings (UPST) could witness increasing demand for their solutions. But which of these two stocks is a better buy now? Read more to find out.Headquartered in Shanghai, China, 360 DigiTech, Inc. (QFIN) operates a digital consumer finance platform under the 360 Jietiao brand. Its platform provides online consumer finance products to borrowers, funded by institutional funding partners. In comparison, California-based Upstart Holdings, Inc. (UPST) operates a cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) lending platform. Its platform aggregates consumer demand for loans and connects it to its AI-enabled bank partners’ network.
Data security concerns and cyber-attacks are affecting the growth of most fintech companies. However, the industry still holds immense upside potential in this digital era due to rapid technological advances based on improvements in the internet of things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI). According to a The Expresswire report, the Fintech market is expected to grow at an 8.6% CAGR over the next three years. As a result, both QFIN and UPST should benefit.
UPST has gained 398.9% so far this year, while QFIN has returned 58.6%. Also, UPST’s 99% gains over the past six months are higher than QFIN’s negative returns. Moreover, in terms of past months’ performance, UPST is the clear winner with 70.3% gains versus QFIN’s negative returns.