Why Are We Here?
The world isn’t necessarily looking just for another AI-focused cyber company, or a new fintech startup trying to reinvent payments. What the world does need, and what we’re obsessed with at Team8, is innovation at the intersection of fintech and cyber. Because that’s where the magic happens: combining capabilities from both domains to build secure, scalable, and trustworthy solutions.
Cybersecurity and fintech aren’t just two of the hottest verticals in Israel; they’re practically national exports. In 2024, these two sectors led the country in median investment size, according to Startup Nation Central’s 2024 report. But more importantly, these two domains share a deep, fundamental connection: risk. Whether it’s a ransomware attack on an enterprise or a fraudster draining someone’s bank account, the most significant opportunities for innovation can be found in managing and mitigating risk.
In this blog, I’ll explore the convergence of fintech and cyber (Fintersection), and how it shapes what we do at Team8.
Breaking the Traditional Mold
For too long, fintech and cyber have operated in silos. The majority of cybersecurity companies have focused on securing networks, endpoints, and data, while most fintech companies have concentrated on payments, lending, and financial infrastructure. But the reality is, that these two domains are inextricably linked, and as financial services become increasingly digital, they are becoming even more interconnected, to the point where one cannot exist without the other.
With increasing regulatory pressures demanding stricter defense lines, rising customer expectations for seamless security, and attackers growing more sophisticated by the day, the need for fintech-cyber innovation has never been more urgent. Companies in this space must take action – combining these capabilities to not only mitigate risk but also build the next generation of industry-defining businesses that set new standards for trust.
The Israeli Powerhouse of Fintech-Cyber Innovation
If you look at Israel’s track record, it’s clear we’ve been brewing fintech-cyber hybrids for a while now. Here are just a few examples of success stories in this space: Fireblocks is securing digital assets for institutions and preventing crypto-related breaches, while Forter is bringing real-time AI-driven fraud prevention to e-commerce and payments. At-Bay blends cyber risk analytics with insurance to help businesses mitigate threats proactively, and Transmit Security is redefining identity security with passwordless authentication and fraud prevention solutions.
At Team8, we don’t just invest in companies operating at these intersections – we build them from the ground up. Actually, our first vertical expansion was from cyber to fintech, driven by the need to solve additional core problems for the members of Team8’s CISO village, a network of global cyber leaders. Curv (acquired by PayPal in 2021) redefined how cryptographic security could enable financial innovation. VisibleRisk (our joint venture with Moody’s, later acquired by BitSight) applied cybersecurity risk assessment principles to financial management and decision-making. These companies, and many others, prove that fintech and cyber are stronger together.
This isn’t a coincidence. Israel breeds top-tier talent in both domains, thanks to:
- Elite military training – Intelligence units like 8200 have been instrumental in shaping the cybersecurity industry.
- Multinational giants setting up shop in Israel – PayPal, Intuit, Citi Innovation Labs, and more have built R&D centers here, nurturing fintech expertise.
- A new wave of fintech unicorns – Serial entrepreneurs and seasoned executives leverage their experience to launch the next big thing. While PayPal leaders in the US went on to found Tesla, Linkedin, and Palantir, Payoneer execs from Israel are now at the forefront of fintech innovation. Oded Zehavi (ex-CRO of Payoneer) went on to found Mesh Payments, Eyal Moldovan (ex-GM at Payoneer) co-founded 40Seas, and even Yuval Tal, the Founder of Payoneer, just launched a new company, Linguana (read more about the drivers behind Fintech unicorns in our report)
The Next Wave of Fintech-Cyber Innovation
The fintech-cyber intersection is still in its early days, and there’s so much more to build. As AI-driven threats evolve, as financial crime becomes more sophisticated, and as digital payments continue to explode, the need for security-first financial infrastructure is only going to grow. At Team8, we’re doubling down on this space because what’s clear is that innovation at this intersection isn’t just a nice-to-have – it’s a necessity.
Stay tuned for Part 2 – where we break down why risk is the common denominator across fintech and cyber.
