Global funding for FinTech start-ups has fallen to the lowest levels since 2017 with investment in the first quarter of 2024 falling by 16 per cent to $7.3 billion, according to new research.

A study from CB Insights looking at funding for start-ups found that $16 billion of funding went into 1,271 FinTech start-ups in the first quarter of 2023. In the first quarter of 2022, $32.9 billion was invested in 2,026 FinTech start-ups.

FinTech also saw the amount of unicorns slip from eight to six over the first three months of this year.

The report said that mega-rounds, or deals worth over $100 million grew, increased by 30 per cent compared to the same quarter of 2023 to 105 in total. These large deals represented 45 per cent of total funding in the quarter, up 11 percent from the previous quarter.

Challenger bank Monzo received the largest deal of the quarter, raising $430 million. Flexport, a provider of trade finance and cargo insurance, raised $260 million.

Investment in Asia declined by eight per cent, while deals in Europe fell nine per cent in the first quarter of 2024 compared to 2023. The US fared the best, seeing funding increase by one per cent over the same time period.

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