“We need banking but we don’t need banks anymore,” said Bill Gates two decades ago, predicting the explosion in start-ups creating web and app-based financial services that we’re seeing right now. With nearly $11 billion last year invested into so-called fintech startups across Asia, the sector is rivaling online shopping and ride-hailing among the hottest tech arenas.

As this seismic shift takes place, nowhere is it more visible than in China. At a Starbucks in Shanghai, a punter pays for coffee with a messaging app, waving their phone in front of a ...