RU FINTECH

RU FINTECH

The objective of FinTech is to experiment with and develop technologies, data resources and services that promote innovation in financial service offerings and encourage the development of startups. 

Moreover, to foster interdisciplinary research (form inside and outside of RU) on financial technologies and the potential implications of technology and regulatory changes on financial services and the financial system (including monetary system).

In addition the FinTech center shall have an explicit goal to promote student projects and thesis work on topics related to the center´s agenda.

The FinTech centre will focus on the following themes:

• Technologies and implications (blockchain, cryptocurrencies, regulations)
• Data collection, data analysis and modelling
• Virtualised interactive customer experiences
• Foster an ecosystem of innovation and startups in the area of FinTech

Each theme is broadly defined and refers to technologies, methods, models, implementations and experimentations that relate to the main themes.

Partners

• Íslandsbanki
  Íslandsbanki and Reykjavík University recently announced a collaborative project where RU students and Íslandsbanki employees work together on research and development of new fintech solutions. 
• Fjártækniklasinn
  The Fintech Cluster is a membership association of companies and institutions related to fintech. The Fintech Cluster is located in Reykjavík, Iceland, and operates the Fintech Center, which is a space for startups and other companies in fintech.

Lectures / Workshops

Teqhire, January 2019:

Oddur Sturluson from Teqhire came and gave a talk „Welcome to the Jungle“.
The talk was about the first step in the IT environment after graduation. He advised about the do´s and dont´s also what to do to stand out.

The Icelandic Blockchain Foundation, November 2018:

Kristján Mikaelsson, Managing Director of the Icelandic Blockchain Foundation, came for a visit and gave a talk „Is Blockchain the future?”

In 2008, he said that there was an explosion in innovation in fintech and related sectors after Bitcoin came to light. He spoke about the history and the future of Blockchain but also summarised some key questions relating to the technology itself and the transformation that it might result in

• What are smart contracts and programmable money?
• What impact will programmable money have on machine to machine economy?
• What will be the impact to have national currency on Blockchain?
• Are intermediaries or promotors becoming unnecessary?

Team

• Dr Gísli Hjálmtýsson, Professor at the Department of Computer Science
• Dr Mohammad Hamdaqa, Lector of the Department of Computer Science
• Sigurður Helgason, MSc Student in Computer Science
• Brynja Dagmar Jakobsdóttir, BSc Student in Financial Engineering and Computer Science 
• Tómas Hrafn Jóhannesson, Task Manager in the Fintech Center
• Majd Radwan Soud, Ph.D. Student in Computer Science and assistant teacher
• Kaelene Spence, Associate Director of Operations of the Department of Computer Science

Research Projects

Traceability in the seafood industry, using blockchain smart Contracts:

• An IBM Hyperledger based blockchain platform for storing and verifying the origin of the fish and how it was handled from the moment it was caught to the consumers plate.
• The platform will allow the consumers to view the state and the detail of the product at any point from the time it was caught.
• The platform will increase traceability and trust between seller and consumer. Consumers can see whether all compliance regulations where fulfilled at any state of the supply chain, such as temperature, humidity and so on.

Verifiable digital certificates for educational institutions:

• An IBM hyper ledger based blockchain platform for storing and verifying student certificates in a non-forgeable manner.
• The platform will speed up the process for students and educational institutions and facilitate automatic verification of validity.
• The platform will allow institutions to communicate with the platform where documents are stored in a Hyperledger IBM blockchain.

FinTech Seminar

Until recently, the financial sector was strictly controlled and conservative sector with legacy systems and practices that were kept untouched for decades. However, some disruptive emerging technologies like AI, crowdfunding and Blockchain in addition to new regulations (e.g., GDPR) seems to be destroying this emerge and revolutionise the sector. 

The goal of the course is to introduce students to those Financial Technologies that are reshaping the financial industry. Special focus will be given to blockchain and applications thereof. The format of the course will consist of reviewing research papers, presenting of assigned papers, group discussions on topics such as the potential disruption of financial technology in the service industry, and working on projects in collaboration with RU´s FinTech center´s partners.

Learning Outcomes:

Knowledge:

• Explain the basic concepts, challenges and opportunities of financial technology 
• Understand the foundational blockchain concepts, architecture, and the algorithms used to manage the integrity of transactions 
• State the principles to design an immutable distributed ledger 
• Define elements of trust in blockchain and discuss the consensus protocol.
• Identify the challenges of current blockchain solutions 

Skills:

• Evaluate the where and when a blockchain based solution may be applied 
• Design and implement smart contracts that leverages the blockchain technology to address some of the challenges in existing FinTech applications. 
• Use one particular financial technology for a small scale project

Competence:

• Summarise and critically evaluate research papers in financial technology
• Get experience on specific industry-wide blockchain frameworks such as the hyper ledger framework.