Abstract: For the recent twenty years, the business application of Internet has not only impacted the traditional financial institutions significantly, but also promoted the internet thinking in the financial business. New payment forms, new investment and financing channels are derived, for instance, P2P lending, crowdfunding, and credit loan based on big data. This paper systematically reviews the internet finance concepts, definitions, growth processes, business models, research status, and development challenges. Moreover, this paper also analyzes the social and economic backgrounds of the rapidly developing internet finance in China and discusses the future researches in the area.