LBUSI6202 Fintech and Financial Innovation Course Descriptor

Course Overview

This course offers a broad overview of the world of Fintech, from the perspectives of both large financial institutions and small startups. It evaluates the financial services industry, forces at play that may lead to disruption in the industry, startups that have already succeeded in bringing about change, the technological tools that may be used to make changes, and how both startups and established firms might respond to the continued pace of change.

The course will use a combination of textbook readings, case and article discussions, news articles, guest speakers, and lectures, and will proactively solicit students’ engagement and insights into this emerging field. This is a highly interactive course that encourages diversity of thought, experiences, and collaboration.

The aim of the course is to prepare students with:

• An understanding of the world of financial services and how advances in technology combined with changes in consumer behaviour may disrupt existing financial institutions.
• An overview of the major financial services sectors, identifying how those sectors
• function today, how technology has caused change to-date, and what might happen next.
• High-level exposure to the technologies employed, including front-end and back-end programming languages, AI, data analytics, and distributed ledger processing/blockchain.
• Introduction to the tools large financial services companies and emerging Fintech companies use today.
• Introduction to Fintech ecosystem and how these stakeholders interact with each other to support innovation and emerging disruptions.

Students will gain insight  into the world of Fintech and how they might best pursue careers in financial services/Fintech if they choose.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding

Subject Specific Skills

Transferable and Employability Skills

Teaching and Learning

This course has a dedicated Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) page with a syllabus and range of additional resources (e.g. readings, question prompts, tasks, assignment briefs, discussion boards) to orientate and engage students in their studies.

The scheduled teaching and learning activities for this course are:

Lectures/seminars/workshops

40 scheduled hours – typically including induction, consolidation or revision, and assessment activity hours.

Version 1:all sessions in the same sized group

OR

Version 2: most of the sessions in larger groups; some of the sessions in smaller groups

OR

Directed study

4-12 scheduled hours, the exact number varying according to the balance of 1:1s, 2:1s, or small groups. The plan will be confirmed by the start of the course, taking into account student numbers and      the proposed      topics,      readings, and specific tasks.

Faculty hold regular ‘office hours’, which are opportunities for students to drop in or sign up to explore ideas, raise questions, or seek targeted guidance or feedback, individually or in small groups. 

Students are to attend and participate in all the scheduled teaching and learning activities for this course and to manage their directed learning and independent study.

Indicative total learning hours for this course: 150

Assessment

Both formative and summative assessment are used as part of this course, with purely formative opportunities typically embedded within interactive teaching sessions, office hours, and/or the VLE.

Summative Assessments

Further information about the assessments can be found in the Course Syllabus.

Feedback

Students will receive formative and summative feedback in a variety of ways, written (e.g. marked up on assignments, through email or the VLE) or oral (e.g. as part of interactive teaching sessions or in office hours).

Indicative Reading

Note: Comprehensive and current reading lists are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative reading list provided below is for a general guide and part of the approval/modification process only. The readings in this course should mix academic literature with practical reading that invites students to follow cutting-edge developments in Fintech.

Examples of relevant academic reading could be found, for example, in the following highly ranked academic journals, which regularly publish on Fintech:

• The Journal of Finance
• Review of Financial Studies
• Financial Review

Examples of practical reading to stay on the cutting edge might include readings like the following popular newsletters:

• Finextra
• Fintech Futures
• Sifted
• Business Insider

Indicative Topics

Note: Comprehensive and current topics for courses are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative topics provided below is used as a general guide and part of the approval/modification process only.

• Elements of the financial services industry
• What is disruption?
• Managing change in organisations