30511 - FINTECH FOR BANKING AND FINANCIAL TRANSFORMATION

None, in particular. Although it is suggested that students have attended the basic course in Financial Markets and Institutions in order to fully exploit the value of the course.

The banking industry is changing widely and consistently. Financial digital technologies - such as Open-API, cloud, algorithms, and BigData - are playing an increasing role in the financial services industry, where FinTech companies are rapidly transforming the industry in terms of its regime and structure toward a broader ecosystem of different and interconnected businesses. In this process, FinTechs, Internet giants, and incumbent financial institutions are all changing the way the financial industry is developing and delivering its value and related services. The aim of the course is to provide a deep understanding on the ways Fintechs in the different vertical business (such as payments, lending, investment, etc.) work and then consider how they can compete, pertner and collaborate with banks in the market of financial services, also outlining the most relevant managerial implications and consequences for both the actors, and the industry too.

The course is focused on providing professional knowledge and effective tools to students by assuming a dual perspective of analysis, namely: those working within banks (especially retail and private banks), and FinTech companies and also interested in developing their own FinTech company. Those who, for various reasons, are called to collaborate with banks as external partners (consultants, venture capitalists, technology vendors, and others).

The curriculum is organized by giving students a whole picture of the evolution of the financial services industry and a deep knowledge of what Banks and FinTechs are facing in new challenging scenarios.

 The course is also organized by vertical-product areas that are the spectrum of concepts driving innovations of the principal financial intermediation functions (money and payments, lending, saving, and investment). For each area, we start by analyzing the marketplace, the incumbents, the new business cases, and the strategies of the incoming technology-driven players with an emphasis on the underlying economics, technology applied, and the way competition is changing its features. Students will be able to develop a theoretical and a strong practical understanding of the forces transforming the banking and financial services industry at an international level. To reach this goal, the course is going to be both interactive and interdisciplinary to deepen students' understanding of the economics of Banks and FinTech companies, and encourage their critical thinking, as well as a creative entrepreneurial spirit. In the course, we begin exploring the reasons why FinTech companies enter the market and move forward to know how they are transforming the industry and the market competition. The whole course is supported by examples, case studies, guest speakers, and live discussions on the main topics, for which active class participation is essential.

At the end of the course, students will be able to

• Understand digital innovation in the financial services industry.
• Summarize the domains of FinTech and their main drivers.
• Describe the FinTech market and make arguments for what in the sector is emerging, changing, and transforming.
• Outline the major challenges FinTech companies and incumbents will face over the next years.

The course is structured into four modules aimed at:

1. Understanding the banking business and the status of the FinTech landscape (industry drivers, different product areas - such as money and payments, lending, and investment -, and future trends).
2. Developing a deep knowledge of the market structure and its digital transformation (supply-demand value chain, incumbents and new competitors, business models in banks and FinTech companies).
3. Getting to know real examples of financial technology and how companies are changing the customer's banking experience.
4. Developing a forward-looking perspective to understand the new banking reality.

Digital transformation is radically rewriting the rules of competition in the financial service industries.

In this course, we are exploring the forces shaping the new competitive dynamics: product and service digitization, and changing customer demands. Together, these forces give rise to completely new market structures that force organizations to transform themselves and compete in new ways.

By the time you finish this course, you will learn how to approach all aspects of FinTech innovation with a special focus on the transformation of the industry essence.

You will also have mastered important concepts needed to understand the transformation, learned from best practices in digital industries and seen how firms in financial services are embracing the new rules of competition.

• Students gain knowledge and a critical thinking perspective in the following areas:
  • Identify the main forces of financial transformation.
  • Explain the origins and drivers of the FinTech phenomenon and its hype.
  • Understand and assess the main features transforming the banking industry.
  • Discuss the impact of FinTech in the financial markets.
  • Understand the unique features of banks and FinTech development.
  • Explain the consistency of the FinTech companies’ business models.
  • Reflect upon the role of digital platforms in the FinTech revolution and the evolving of business ecosystems.
  • Compare different perspectives on the idea of FinTech leading the banking industry versus incumbents.

At the end of the course, students will be able to

• Describe and understand the changes that influence the ways the financial sector is transforming itself under different frameworks.
• Evaluate the impact of the major environmental forces of change on the strategies and performance of FinTech companies.
• Appraise the role of FinTech companies in modern society.
• Compare different business models in the same business area by recognizing the differentiator factors.
• Conduct an independent search and review of specialized academic and non-academic literature on banking, and identify and evaluate relevant information.

By the time students finish this course, they have mastered the transformational forces of digitalization and the new competitive dynamics it gives rise to and learned from leading financial companies the many different managerial and entrepreneurial challenges.

• Face-to-face lectures
• Guest speaker's talks (in class or in distance)
• Case studies /Incidents (traditional, online)
• Group assignments
• Interactive class activities on campus/online (role playing, business game, simulation, online forum, instant polls)

The learning experience of this course includes, in addition to face-to-face lectures, case discussions, group works, real examples and interactions with guest speakers from companies that are coping with these issues.

• Face-to-face lectures (cases, readings, and assignments). The class time is overall used to explain syllabus topics, discuss them and outline practical examples. Because we have designed this course to be interactive, you are expected and encouraged to take part in class discussions. We want to deepen your understanding of the economics of FinTech, and also encourage your creative and entrepreneurial spirit. Therefore, students are expected to read, whenever required, the materials before class. Active participation in class also is considered for the overall student's assessment. The use of cases and external speakers aims at better connecting the knowledge covered in the course with real-life examples. The interaction between the instructor and students during the discussions and the presentations helps students understand how to handle managerial decisions both in banks and in FinTech companies.
• Guest speakers: we have a number of sessions with outside experts including consultants, founders of early-stage start-ups, managers from technology companies, executives in financial services, and venture capitalists.
• Group projects: there are different formulas for group projects, which will be explained in detail during the first lesson. They are an opportunity for you to apply the knowledge and tools covered in the course. 

Students can choose the attending status, and this option can offer different learning experiences and a different valuation process.

In this case, the final evaluation takes into account the following learning components:

• Two group assignments (differently weighted but overall counting for 45% of the final grade). They are two different projects and are differently graded, as will be detailed in class. They are both designed for the purpose of verifying the student's ability to:
  • Apply the appropriate tools and methodologies learnt in class.
  • Work on a team and organize and present effectively the relevant outcomes.
• Final written exam (45% of the final grade), based on a mix of open questions (essay style)  aiming to assess the student’s learning level.

General final written exam (100% of the final grade) based on a mix of open questions (essay style).

They aim to assess the knowledge of the course material, the understanding of key concepts presented in the course readings, and the ability to summarize examples and business cases analysis from the course.

• Book: Omarini A., 2019, Banks and Banking: Digital Transformation and the Hype of Fintech. Business impacts, new frameworks and managerial implications, McGraw-Hill publisher

The book is available in both a paper and an ebook version.

• Other relevant materials (articles, cases, class notes, news articles, slides) are posted on the Bboard and/or handed out in class.

Further details on the fewer selected parts for the attending students will be provided later. 

• Book: Omarini A., 2019, Banks and Banking: Digital Transformation and the Hype of Fintech. Business impacts, new frameworks and managerial implications, McGraw-Hill publisher

The book is available in both a paper and an ebook version.

• Other relevant materials (articles, cases, class notes, news articles, slides) are posted on the Bboard.