Newly licensed fintech: the double trust dilemma.
Fresh enough to attract, safe enough to retain funds. These two requirements are not contradictory, but they do not naturally reconcile either.
Newly licensed fintechs need to build their identity in two parallel layers: the trust layer represented by licenses, privacy policies, and transparent processes, and the accessibility layer represented by modern visual language and clear interface experiences. No layer should overshadow the other. Without trust, customers won't dare to use it; without accessibility, customers won't bother to try.
When a fintech is newly licensed by the central bank, there are often two opposing reactions within the founding team. One side wants the brand to look modern, youthful, and different from traditional banks. The other side worries that if it looks too "startup," customers may hesitate to deposit money. Both concerns are valid. And that is exactly why the identity challenge for newly licensed fintechs is harder than in most other industries.
The first barrier is not competition.
In most industries, new brands must overcome market indifference. In finance, the first barrier is different: it’s the fear of losing money. Customers are not unaware of you because you are not well-known enough. They haven’t used you because they don’t trust you enough to put their assets in your hands.
The Edelman Trust Barometer 2025 reports that the financial sector achieves a global trust level of 64%, but ranks near the bottom compared to other sectors. This is the starting point for every fintech: not starting from a neutral point, but starting from a point of suspicion. Brand design is not something that builds trust for you, but it is the first thing customers see before deciding whether to learn more.
The trap of safe blue
When needing to appear trustworthy, founding teams often gravitate towards dark blue, neutral sans-serif fonts, and formal language. The result is a brand that looks serious but is not memorable. About 61% of tech company logos use blue. This includes dozens of fintechs launching each year. When everyone looks the same, no one truly owns that "trustworthy" signal. It becomes background noise.
Nubank in Brazil is a notable counterexample. They chose purple, a color that no one in that financial sector owned, and built their entire identity around transparency and simplicity. The result is not because the "psychology" of purple creates trust, but because Nubank consistently operates according to what they promise, and purple becomes a distinctive, unmistakable identity asset. Color is an asset to own, not a universal psychological signal.
A brand is not a logo. A brand is a person's gut feeling about a product, service, or organization.
Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap
Trust architecture: two parallel layers
Instead of choosing between "fresh" and "safe," new fintechs need to build their identity with two layers operating simultaneously.
The first layer is trust. This is the foundational layer that cannot be overlooked: a clearly displayed central bank license, privacy policies written in reader-friendly language, verifiable complaint handling processes, and specific numbers instead of vague adjectives. "Licensed by the central bank under Decree X" says more than "top-tier secure platform." Trust must be specific, not decorative.
The second layer is accessibility. This is what determines whether customers want to try: a clear interface right from the first screen, conversational language instead of legal text, and a fast onboarding experience so customers don’t drop off. Freshness does not mean being overly cheerful. It means not causing unnecessary friction.
These two layers do not contradict each other. They only conflict when the design team cannot distinguish where each layer needs to appear. The privacy policy page needs the trust layer. The thank you screen after a successful transaction can be warmer. Error messages need to be clear and trustworthy, not witty.
Tone: consistent voice, flexible tone
One of the most common mistakes of new fintech companies is choosing one of two extremes in tone and rigidly applying it across the board. Either as serious as a central bank press release, or as cheerful as an entertainment app. Both are wrong.
The principle of operation is more about distinguishing between voice and tone. Voice is the core personality of the brand, which does not change with the situation. For example: transparent, straightforward, not beating around the bush. Tone is the nuance adjusted according to the specific context. The same organization can use a warm voice when welcoming new users and a confident voice when explaining the refund policy. This is not inconsistency. This is consistency at a deeper level.
Proof instead of promises.
Financial customers do not trust taglines. They trust verifiable evidence. This means: the number of successful transactions processed instead of "stable platform," the names of banking partners instead of "collaborating with reputable organizations," actual processing times instead of "fast and convenient."
Every touchpoint in the user journey is an opportunity to accumulate evidence. Clear transaction confirmations build more trust than a glossy About Us page. Timely complaint responses say more than a meticulously designed logo. A brand is not just what you say about yourself. According to Wally Olins, a brand is behavior: how the product operates, how the environment you create feels, how your team reacts when issues arise.
For newly licensed fintech companies, this is good news. You don’t need a 20-year history to build trust. You need 6 months of consistent, transparent operations, without letting customers lose money due to your mistakes. Good design facilitates this by placing the right information in the right place, at the right time, for the right people.
Reference source
Edelman Trust Barometer 2025. Decision Lab, Vietnam Consumer Tracker. McKinsey, Business Value of Design, 2018. Kantar BrandZ. NHNN Vietnam, regulations on e-wallets with a minimum capital of 50 billion VND. Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap. Byron Sharp, How Brands Grow.
Frequently asked questions
Should new fintechs use blue to appear trustworthy?
Blue is such a popular choice that it loses its distinguishing effect. Market research shows that about 61% of tech company logos use blue, making it hard for customers to remember who is who. Trust comes from consistent behavior and specific evidence, not from a color. If choosing blue, it needs to be combined with a form and language unique enough to own it.
When should fintech choose a cheerful tone, and when should it be serious?
The core voice should be consistent, while the tone adjusts according to the situation. Transaction error messages or privacy policies need a clear and trustworthy voice. Onboarding or success notifications can be warmer. A common issue is that fintechs choose one of two extremes: either overly cheerful, making customers hesitant during issues, or too stiff, causing younger customers to avoid trying.
Does brand design affect the ability to obtain licenses or collaborate with banks?
Directly, no, because the regulatory authority reviews legal documents and financial capabilities. But indirectly, yes. Professional, consistent, and transparent identity creates the impression of an organization capable of operation. Banking partners or distribution partners often assess the seriousness of an organization by how that organization presents itself before reading through the entire documentation.