Tag Archives: FinTech

The Architecture of Decentralised Finance Platforms in the Post COVID-19 Era – A New Open Finance Paradigm

By Sherry Zhang | October 22, 2020

During the COVID-19 pandemic a new consensus has emerged which castigates modern finance for its tendency towards excessive leverage, and short-termism. As all this activity took place against a background of disappearing disposable incomes, it is not surprising that it also boosted inequality, especially between the asset-rich and the asset-light classes with the latter having… Read More »

How Central Banks Can Make the Future of Payments Inclusive

By Sherry Zhang | October 15, 2020

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Payment systems are critical infrastructure that generate positive network externalities. The more people who use them, the better off everyone using them is. They allow households, businesses, governments, and nonprofits to clear and settle transactions. People rely on them to receive their income through direct deposit or cashing checks; pay their rent, mortgage, or other… Read More »

FinTech and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Electronic Payment Systems

By Sherry Zhang | September 14, 2020

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The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of the way that individuals engage with banking and payment tools, including various FinTech services. There are several reasons why the pandemic might have accelerated the adoption of FinTech and other digital platforms in payments by consumers and financial institutions. The pandemic may have led to an increase… Read More »

Do Cryptocurrencies Have Fundamental Values? Evidence from Machine Learning

By Sherry Zhang | September 4, 2020

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The rise of FinTech is one of the most critical developments in finance over the past decade. One important FinTech development is initial coin offerings (ICOs), whereby investors can purchase blockchain-based cryptocurrencies directly from entrepreneurs. To those new to the crypto world, ICOs provide a mechanism to raise external funding through the issuance of digital… Read More »

Regulating Central Bank Digital Currencies: Towards a Conceptual Framework

By Sherry Zhang | August 28, 2020

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At this time, numerous initiatives are attempting to provide citizens with a digital form of central bank money, referred to as Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). CBDC promises many benefits for citizens, such as providing a risk-free means of payment, preserving monetary sovereignty in light of the growing usage of private cryptocurrencies, and strengthening the… Read More »

Fintech Toolkit: Smart Regulatory and Market Approaches to Fintech Innovation

By Sherry Zhang | July 6, 2020

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Fintech is re-shaping the financial sector at an unprecedented pace and driving structural changes by digital transformation. Fintech can stimulate competition and product variety and generate positive outcomes for societies and economies. Capturing these upsides, however, requires adequate regulatory responses to Fintech innovation. An enabling FinTech ecosystem needs to support innovation balanced with financial inclusion,… Read More »

Digital Asset Market Evolution

By Sherry Zhang | July 2, 2020

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Throughout history, evolving markets were subject to evolution and de-evolution cycles. The nascent market for digital assets is no exception. Since its inception in 2009, the rapid proliferation of the digital asset market in 2016-18 was followed by significant downward corrections in 2018-19 (called the “crypto winter”). Digital assets cover all types of virtual and… Read More »

Seven Disclosure Recommendations for Cryptocurrency and Utility Token Issuers

By Sherry Zhang | June 25, 2020

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In 2017/18, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrency markets reached all-time highs. At the same time, certain projects like BitConnect made their name as one of the most prominent ICO scams. Therefore, a stain remains on the digital asset industry from the accumulation of failed projects and subpar investment returns since the peak of the… Read More »

Efficient Cyber Risk: Security and Competition in Financial Markets

By Sherry Zhang | June 22, 2020

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In recent years, hackers have imposed additional costs to financial infrastructure providers through data theft and service disruptions, leading to losses for both institutions and clients alike. Are institutions reacting appropriately to these threats? How should their clients respond? Most importantly, at what cost? Crime in the Digital World In March of 2017, Equifax—one of… Read More »

How Much Good Could FinTech Do, If FinTech Could Do Good?

By Lee Reiners | June 3, 2020

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Courtesy of Bryane Michael Financial technology (or FinTech) represents the corporate social responsibility of the 2010s. The very name increasingly represents something wholesome: reshaping social impact and promoting FinTech4Good, and stepping up to tackle the challenges caused by the COVID-19 crisis. Yet, just like the corporate social responsibility (CSR) wave of the 1990s and the… Read More »