FSPs

FSP stands for financial service provider, a broad term for organizations that offer financial products and services to individuals, households, and businesses. FSPs include banks, credit unions, insurers, pension funds, asset managers, brokers, payment service providers, money transfer operators, microfinance institutions, and fintech firms that perform regulated or quasi-regulated activities such as digital lending, payments, or wealth management.

Most FSPs operate under legal licenses or registrations and are subject to regulatory regimes that oversee consumer protection, capital adequacy, disclosure, and anti-money laundering requirements. They typically perform activities such as taking deposits, extending credit, handling payments and settlements, offering investment services, providing insurance, and offering financial advisory services. Their operations may be domestic or cross-border and can involve partnerships with technology platforms, banks, or other financial intermediaries.

In recent years, the sector has been shaped by digital disruption, financial inclusion initiatives, and evolving regulation. Trends include digital banks and neobanks, mobile money, open banking, and fintech-enabled lending. Challenges include cybersecurity, fraud risk, regulatory compliance costs, consumer protection, and ensuring access for underserved populations.

Disambiguation: In other contexts, FSP may stand for flexible spending plan (employee benefit programs for healthcare or dependent care), or functional service provider, a term used in outsourcing to describe organizations that deliver end-to-end services rather than a specific function.