North America led all regions in the level of investment in the financial technology (fintech) sector in 2015, which was helped by a rebound from corporate venture capital (VC) in the fourth quarter (Q4), finds a joint study by Amsterdam-based global advisory firm KPMG International and New York-based analytics company CB Insights released on Wednesday.

The inaugural report, entitled Pulse of Fintech, indicates that North American fintech investment rose by 73% to US$7.7 billion in 2015, which trumped total investments in fintech in Asia (US$4.5 billion) and Europe (US$1.5 billion).

This took place during a year in which global investment in fintech reached a new record of US$19.1 billion in deals, with US$13.8 billion invested into VC-backed fintech companies as funding to these firms more than doubled from US$6.7 billion in 2014.

Of the North American total, U.S.-based fintech companies raised US$7.3 billion, which makes the country the “undisputed leader of fintech globally,” the report states. And corporate VC participation made up 25% of all North American fintech deals in Q4, an increase from 18% in the third quarter.

This is happening because large financial services institutions throughout the world are changing their attitude toward fintech companies, according to Brian Hughes, co-leader of KPMG’s enterprise innovative startups network and national co-lead partner of VC practice for KPMG in the U.S.

“Over the past couple [of] years there has been a significant shift as banks have moved from seeing fintech companies as disruptors to co-creators,” says Hughes in a statement. “Today, many of the banks are increasingly collaborating with fintech companies to access new markets and strengthen the user experience of their customers around the world.”

Millennials and their impact on traditional financial services are a predominant factor driving fintech investment. Millennials are looking for personalized services and a desire to control more of their finances, according to the study.

“Their trust in traditional banking is limited, with many preferring to seek advice from their friends and family, and even social networks, rather than from financial advisors,” the report states.

The study also refers to financial services institutions’ growing competition from technology companies. It cites a 2014 study from a division of New York-based Viacom Inc. that found 73% of millennials would be more excited about a new financial services offering from companies such as Mountain View, Calif.-based Alphabet Inc. (more commonly known as Google) or Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple Inc. than from their own banks.

“Threat of competition from the tech sector is driving banks to invest rapidly in fintech companies to enable their own innovation, ability to respond to millennial needs and to solidify their place in the market before the tech giants take a bite out of their market share,” the report states.

The study also notes that 2015 was also good to VC-backed blockchain and bitcoin startups, which raised US$474 million, a jump of 59% year-over-year, although the number of deals actually fell by 5%.