Check out this link for a cool ranking of 'fintech' logos! https://workweek.com/2023/05/22/re-ranking-the-fintech-logos/ 22 MAY 2023 | FINTECH RE-RANKING THE FINTECH LOGOS BY ALEX JOHNSON Last summer, I published a ranking of the 25 best fintech logos. I was on vacation that week, and I was just looking for something light and fun to run while I was out. Little did I know that the rankings would generate more controversy, by far, than anything I’ve ever published. Founders and marketers with logos that were ranked low (or not at all) got MAD. Founders and marketers with logos that were ranked highly acted like they’d won an Academy Award. It was honestly bizarre. And I learned two things – rankings evoke strong feelings (regardless of how silly or obviously subjective they are), and logos are founders’ babies (and implying that anyone’s baby isn’t perfectly beautiful is a dangerous thing to do). I’m out on vacation again (well, not vacation precisely, but you get what I mean), so we’re doing this once more, but with a twist. I have asked my Workweek colleague Ari Murray to re-rank the fintech logos. If you don’t know who Ari is, you’re missing out. She is the VP of Growth at Sharma Brands and the author of the fabulous newsletter Go-To-Millions. She has extensive experience as a GTM operator, launching and growing some of the biggest brands in the world. She has great taste. And, perhaps most importantly, she has a healthy indifference towards fintech. She’s the perfect person for this job. A couple of quick reminders before I hand it over to Ari: This list is silly and entirely subjective. It is not meant to be taken seriously. Don’t get mad! We truly believe, here at Fintech Takes, that every baby is beautiful. This ranking is not a commentary on the companies themselves. Terrible companies can have magnificent logos and vice versa. This is mostly a re-ranking of the 30 logos I originally ranked (the 25 best + 5 honorable mentions). There are a few newcomers and a few logos that got bumped. Don’t read anything into this. For each logo, I asked Ari to guess what the company does, based solely on the logo. She knew a few of them, but mostly she guessed, and her guesses are hilarious. OK, deep breath, here we go! Honorable Mentions #32: Chime What do you think? I f’ing hate this logo. My least favorite thing on this planet is when a company uses the trademark icon within every lock up of their logo. Chime, with peace and love, we’re not ripping you off, and you do not need to protect this logo with such vigilance. What do they do? Based on the logo, chime sends investment reminders. IDK. I can’t tell at all – probably distracted by the weird m and the trademark. #31: Lili What do you think? The blue is hurting my eyes. Holy HEX CODE. It also looks like a free Adobe Font or the logo of a suburban boutique. What do they do? Based on the logo, Lili is for the investing novice. Investing made uncomplicated. #30: MoneyLion What do you think? TwoWord logos with no spaces and a capitalized first letter are never going to rank highly with me. Also, minus points for the trademark symbol. I do like the little lion. And I like the colors. Still not happy with this. What do they do? Based on the logo, I think this is international market tracking? #29: Plaid What do you think? Ouch, my eyes. I look at the symbol lockup more than I read the name of the company. That’s dumb. PLAID is too small. The symbol is too big. There are too many lines. And I have no idea what this company does – the name and the symbol really aren’t helping. What do they do? Based on the logo, PLAID is a Fintech company, lol? #28: Spinwheel What do you think? 1 too many colors. There is entirely too much going on, don’t you think? What do they do? Based on the logo, I think this is somehow on the blockchain – the NFT side lol. #27: Remitly What do you think? Could this be any less fun? The handshake feels more like a grip than a shake. I absolutely hate this. Like the blue though. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is refinancing but somehow modernized? #26: Alloy What do you think? Powerful font. Powerful use of ALL CAPS. The extra lines in the icon are slightly overwhelming (but I’m easily overwhelmed, so take that with a grain of salt). What do they do? Based on the logo, this is HR related. Cool HR. The Top 25 #25: Moov What do you think? This logo reminds me of Oatly. I am sure that is NOT what they were going for. I also read it as moo-v. Like I just moo’d as I said that. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is a VC that invests in ranching. #24: Zeta What do you think? Not to be mean, but this looks pre-rebrand. The colors are nice, as is the name, but the symbol triggers WordArt memories for me. What do they do? Based on the logo, I’m going to guess retirement planning is somehow involved. #23: Sardine What do you think? This couldn’t be more literal. Sardines are also polarizing. So, bold choice. The fish symbol leans into the whole schtick a little too hard, no? What do they do? Based on the logo, this is related to the food industry in some way which I don’t know how that ties into Fintech, but why is this so fish-oriented otherwise? #22: Current What do you think? Feels fancy, but somehow I know it isn’t. It’s trying hard. I hope it is called current – I’m reading it as current, but parts of the letters have been hacked away, so hard to say. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is somehow tracking the stock market in real time? #21: Public.com What do you think? .com is always hard for me. I use public.com – but I use their mobile app. So, I absolutely hate the name and therefore hate the logo because I don’t use the .com version, and so it feels stupid. The font is clean, but the symbol makes no sense to me – 2 circles. I also use this, and it makes no sense. What do they do? public.com is easy (fool-proof) investing for the newbie (me). #20: Aspiration What do you think? This is trying too hard. Every letter except for the s is working overtime. I like the i’s, though. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is somehow at the intersection of fintech and the medical industry. #19: Copilot What do you think? Clean. Predictable. Pleasant. We’re not winning any design competitions, but we’re not losing any fans, either. What do they do? Based on the logo, I’d guess we were a fund of some sort. #18: SoFi What do you think? I do not like such a muted grey with such a bright blue – I’d prefer a black instead of the grey. The font is again a little skinny, I’d like to give it a snack. What do they do? SoFi is combined finances, so you can just use one app. #17: Sundae What do you think? Marching to its own drum! LOVE LOVE LOVE THE FONT. Really different than all 32 other options. A happy logo. That said, no idea what this is – no indication that this is related to fintech, and doesn’t feel “serious” enough. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is tied into design in some way – I have no idea. UGH. THIS IS HARD!!! #16: Hummingbird What do you think? I can’t think of one thing bad to say. Or one thing nice. I feel entirely neutral. Maybe the bird could look a little more friendly? I think if it were chunkier, I’d feel better about it. What do they do? Based on the logo, I’d guess this was a high-yield savings account. #15: Wise What do you think? (Editor’s note – Wise changed their logo fairly recently, so Ari got to compare the previous version to the new one. She moved it up 8 spots!) I still have absolutely no idea what they do. I really love the chance they made to the S. The color helps big time, but the S absolutely SINGS. The previous S was snake inspired, which can’t be good for $. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is long-term retirement planning related. #14: Column Tax What do you think? I want to delete out like 10 pixels between these words + the symbol. Column Tax would be so much more lovely than Column Tax. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is tax related. I know I’m supposed to guess these in more detail, but I genuinely have zero idea, which I’m sure you can tell. Sigh. #13: AngelList What do you think? The best name, but could use a space in-between the words, but can’t go back and rename the company, now can we? The peace sign feels random – if we’re going for a cheesy symbol, use angel wings? What do they do? AngelList is angel investing – a place for deal sheets, wired money, quarterly updates, tax forms, and tracking your portfolio. I know I clearly don’t know a ton about fintech, but I do know a lot about tech tech and am a proud angel! #12: Albert What do you think? THIS HAS TO BE AI RELATED. The little bow tie to make Albert seem like a real (non-robot) type of thing. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is AI-powered investing. #11: Pinwheel What do you think? I like this more than I should. It’s pretty simple – but that blue HEX is somehow friendly. The name is also fab. I genuinely have ZERO IDEA WHAT THIS DOES THOUGH. The logo and the name aren’t teaching me, but that’s okay because look at that BLUE! 😍 What do they do? Based on the logo, I think this is a high-yield savings account. #10: Human Interest What do you think? Love the navy instead of black. the little play on the i is fun (for fintech, lol). What do they do? Based on the logo, I think this is 401K / HR vibes. #9: Nova Credit What do you think? The colors work nicely together. Grey and navy aren’t coupled enough. The ALL CAPS are also nice. The font is too skinny for me, but hey, I’m picky. What do they do? Based on the logo, I’d guess this was cloud-based home loans (whatever that means). #8: Square What do you think? The name is perfect. The logo makes sense. Are we rocking the boat? No. Is it crisp and clean, and do I use it daily? Yes. I’m an ecomm girl – you can’t sneak Square past me! Minus points for no use of color. What do they do? I know what this is; it’s invoicing meets POS meets a small business’s best friend. #7: Ramp What do you think? BEST FONT OF THE DAY. The symbol is a touch too literal, but better than the other way around. I love the font – have I mentioned that? What do they do? This is a business credit card. #6: Acorns What do you think? what a font!!! what a cute little acorn! i like the color, but can’t stare at it for too long. notice the lowercase i’m using? trying to respect their taste! What do they do? based on the logo, i think this is a venture fund. #5: Robinhood What do you think? I LOVE THE SYMBOL. The feature reminds me of the Robin Hood we all grew up with – who steals from the rich. This doesn’t feel rich, which maybe is the point? The shade of green is hard to look at – but that feels unpretentious somehow, so I get it. What do they do? Robinhood is easy-to-use investing – the cooler public.com. #4: Jeeves What do you think? I AM IN LOVE WITH THE FONT. Feels very different than everything else and stands out in a powerful way. Really happy with this. ZERO IDEA WHAT IT IS. BUT I LIKE. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is international investing, where you hold multiple currencies. #3: Block What do you think? This is fun! Big sucker for an animation over here. I absolutely love the colors. I don’t have any complaints. Shocking, I know, lol. What do they do? Based on the logo, this is fancy investment insurance that protects your investments. LOOKS RICH. #2: Klarna What do you think? I LOVE IT. But not for the reasons you might think (this isn’t my shade of pink, thank you very much). I love it because, on a PDP (product detail page) on websites, this sticks out in a GREAT WAY. It’s a badge that is super easy to spot, and split-payment options are so important for conversion. The period at the end is a little try-hard, but again, I’m a big fan. What do they do? Klarna is split-payment and has cornered a lot of the ecomm fashion market. #1: Petal What do you think? CUTE!!! 5 colors, and I’m not overwhelmed. All are so pleasant. I am also thrilled that the P in Petal is capitalized – we’re not trying too hard, and it shows! What do they do? Based on the logo, this is a crypto wallet.