Discovering current trends and forecasting future research directions in FinTech by way of co-word-burst analyses

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify the existing research themes and future directions of the FinTech field by analyzing the dynamics of co-word burst. Design/methodology/approach A dataset of 1792 SCI or SSCI articles retrieved from the Web of Science database. First, the paper conducted a scientific production analysis. Then, using bibliometric analysis, the paper conducts co-word-burst analyses for keywords, title, abstract and Keywords Plus to detect the emerging trends. Based on these trends, future research directions were forecasted. Findings The study detected six research themes: the knowledge of FinTech, FinTech applications, FinTech technologies, COVID-19, FinTech ecosystem and FinTech implications for research. These six FinTech research themes were further conceptualized as a six-dimensional analytical framework for FinTech investigations. Then, the study forecasts that these six themes and related conversations will be an ongoing focus of Fintech research, particularly COVID-19 effects on FinTech. Originality/value This study is the first attempt to review FinTech literature based on quantitative and qualitative analyses of co-word burst. It overcomes the limitation of individual/group determinant(s) studies and presents a holistic view of current research themes and future research directions in FinTech field.