The Promise of Fintech


Book Description

Technology is changing the landscape of the financial sector, increasing access to financial services in profound ways. These changes have been in motion for several years, affecting nearly all countries in the world. During the COVID-19 pandemic, technology has created new opportunities for digital financial services to accelerate and enhance financial inclusion, amid social distancing and containment measures. At the same time, the risks emerging prior to COVID-19, as digital financial services developed, are becoming even more relevant.




The REGTECH Book


Book Description

The Regulatory Technology Handbook The transformational potential of RegTech has been confirmed in recent years with US$1.2 billion invested in start-ups (2017) and an expected additional spending of US$100 billion by 2020. Regulatory technology will not only provide efficiency gains for compliance and reporting functions, it will radically change market structure and supervision. This book, the first of its kind, is providing a comprehensive and invaluable source of information aimed at corporates, regulators, compliance professionals, start-ups and policy makers. The REGTECH Book brings into a single volume the curated industry expertise delivered by subject matter experts. It serves as a single reference point to understand the RegTech eco-system and its impact on the industry. Readers will learn foundational notions such as: • The economic impact of digitization and datafication of regulation • How new technologies (Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain) are applied to compliance • Business use cases of RegTech for cost-reduction and new product origination • The future regulatory landscape affecting financial institutions, technology companies and other industries Edited by world-class academics and written by compliance professionals, regulators, entrepreneurs and business leaders, the RegTech Book represents an invaluable resource that paves the way for 21st century regulatory innovation.




FinTech Regulation


Book Description

Responding to growing interest in new regulations adopted by the EU, US, and UK authorities, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the legal and economic aspects of FinTech and the current regulation surrounding it. In particular, the book observes the technological evolution of finance and the ‘economic space’ that lies between the regulated market and the illegal circulation of capital. Analysing laws that influence the application of technology to the banking and finance sector, the author considers market infrastructure and illustrates how firms execute their activities on a global scale, away from the scope of public supervision and monetary backstops. With globalisation and digitalisation boosting efficiency, the economical relevance of technology is becoming ever more important and therefore this book provides a much-needed examination of the current trends in FinTech regulation, making it an essential read for those researching financial markets, and professionals within the industry.




Fintech


Book Description

The paper finds that while there are important regional and national differences, countries are broadly embracing the opportunities of fintech to boost economic growth and inclusion, while balancing risks to stability and integrity.




The Bali Fintech Agenda


Book Description

"Rapid advances in financial technology are transforming the economic and financial landscape, offering wide-ranging opportunities while raising potential risks. Fintech can support potential growth and poverty reduction by strengthening financial development, inclusion, and efficiency—but it may pose risks to consumers and investors and, more broadly, to financial stability and integrity. National authorities are keen to foster fintech’s potential benefits and to mitigate its possible risks. Many international and regional groupings are now examining various aspects of fintech, in line with their respective mandates. There have been calls for greater international cooperation and guidance about how to address emerging issues, with some also cautioning against premature policy responses. In response to these calls from member countries, the IMF and the World Bank staff have developed the Bali Fintech Agenda, summarized in Annex I of this paper. The Agenda brings together and advances key issues for policymakers and the international community to consider as individual countries formulate their policy approaches. It distills these considerations into 12 elements arising from the experiences of member countries. The Agenda offers a framework for the consideration of high-level issues by individual member countries, including in their own domestic policy discussions. It does not represent the work program of the IMF or the World Bank, nor does it aim to provide specific guidance or policy advice. The Agenda will help guide the focus of IMF and World Bank staff in their work on fintech issues within their expertise and mandate, inform their dialogue with national authorities, and help shape their contributions to the work of the standard-setting bodies and other relevant international institutions on fintech issues. Implications for the work programs of the IMF and World Bank will be developed and presented to their respective Executive Boards for guidance as the nature and scope of the membership’s needs––in response to the Bali Fintech Agenda—become clearer."




Fintech and the Future of Finance


Book Description

Fintech—the application of digital technology to financial services—is reshaping the future of finance. Digital technologies are revolutionizing payments, lending, investment, insurance, and other financial products and services—and the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this process. Digitalization of financial services and money is helping to bridge gaps in access to financial services for households and firms and is promoting economic development. Improved access to basic financial services translates into better firm productivity and growth for micro and small businesses, as well as higher incomes and resilience to improve the lives of the poor. Technology can lower transaction costs by overcoming geographical access barriers; increasing the speed, security, and transparency of transactions; and allowing for more tailored financial services that better serve consumers, including the poor. Women can especially benefit. Yet too many people and firms still lack access to essential financial services that could help them thrive. It is time for policy makers to embrace fintech opportunities and implement policies that enable and encourage safe financial innovation and adoption. Fintech and the Future of Finance: Market and Policy Implications explores the implications of fintech and the digital transformation of financial services for market outcomes, on the one hand, and regulation and supervision, on the other hand—and how these interact. The report, which provides a high-level perspective for senior policy makers, is accompanied by notes that focus on salient issues for a more technical audience. As the financial sector continues to transform itself, policy trade-offs will evolve, and regulators will need to ensure that market outcomes remain aligned with core policy objectives. Several policy implications emerge. 1. Manage risks, while fostering beneficial innovation and competition. 2. Broaden monitoring horizons and reassess regulatory perimeters. 3. Review regulatory, supervisory, and oversight frameworks. 4. Be mindful of evolving policy trade-offs as fintech adoption deepens. 5. Monitor market structure and conduct to maintain competition. 6. Modernize and open financial infrastructures. 7. Ensure public money remains fit for the digital world. 8. Pursue strong cross-border coordination and sharing of information and best practices.




Strategy for Fintech Applications in the Pacific Island Countries


Book Description

The Bali Fintech Agenda highlights 12 principles for policymakers to consider when formulating their approaches to new financial technology (fintech). The agenda aims to harness the potential of fintech while managing associated risks. This paper looks at how some elements of the Bali Fintech Agenda could be used in Pacific island countries, which face significant financial-structural challenges.




Regulating Crypto


Book Description

This book brings together experts from different fields and with different jurisdictional focuses to provide fresh ideas and deep insights into crypto regulation. Cryptoassets engage many different areas of law, with their own specific terminologies, uncertainties, and regulatory fragmentation. Unsurprisingly, then, crypto has faced calls for new laws, for reform of existing laws, and in some instances outright banning. Against this backdrop, this collection explores different aspects of crypto regulation, with reference to current developments, such as the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, and technological innovations, including central bank digital currencies, smart contracts, and non-fungible tokens. Market, user and law-/policy-maker perspectives are examined to explore not only innovation and opportunities, but also regulatory and policy challenges. This volume will be a key resource for scholars and practitioners of law, finance, public policy, criminology and economics. It was originally published as a special issue of Law and Financial Markets Review.




The WEALTHTECH Book


Book Description

Get a handle on disruption, innovation and opportunity in investment technology The digital evolution is enabling the creation of sophisticated software solutions that make money management more accessible, affordable and eponymous. Full automation is attractive to investors at an early stage of wealth accumulation, but hybrid models are of interest to investors who control larger amounts of wealth, particularly those who have enough wealth to be able to efficiently diversify their holdings. Investors can now outperform their benchmarks more easily using the latest tech tools. The WEALTHTECH Book is the only comprehensive guide of its kind to the disruption, innovation and opportunity in technology in the investment management sector. It is an invaluable source of information for entrepreneurs, innovators, investors, insurers, analysts and consultants working in or interested in investing in this space. • Explains how the wealth management sector is being affected by competition from low-cost robo-advisors • Explores technology and start-up company disruption and how to delight customers while managing their assets • Explains how to achieve better returns using the latest fintech innovation • Includes inspirational success stories and new business models • Details overall market dynamics The WealthTech Book is essential reading for investment and fund managers, asset allocators, family offices, hedge, venture capital and private equity funds and entrepreneurs and start-ups.




Islamic Fintech


Book Description

The implementation of new technologies is expected to boost the development of Islamic Finance by increasing accessibility to banking and other financial services in Islamic communities and democratizing access to investment opportunities. At the same time, new technologies will increase financing opportunities and facilitate asset management for Sharia-compliant businesses. This collection of essays from selected experts in the field comprise some of the most topical issues on Islamic Fintech, combining a business focus with legal insights. The book takes as a point of departure the role that Islamic Fintech can play in promoting sustainability. The social vision of welfare improvement and justice is already embedded in Sharia’s economic rules, which makes Islamic Finance particularly well suited to bridge the gap between sustainability and funding. Although it is not without challenges for the industry, technology will help unleash its potential. With a holistic approach to Islamic Fintech, the contributing authors address the application of new technologies to Islamic Finance, including robo-advisory, crowdfunding and digital ledger technology (both in the issuance of bitcoin and the registration of securities in tokenized form) and in certain sectors such as takaful (takaful-tech) and health (e-health). Finally, they explore the challenges posed by anti-money laundering (‘AML’) in the specific realm of Islamic Fintech. The book combines theoretical analysis with a practical focus, both through case studies and directly through the experiences of leading entrepreneurs. In addition, it provides insights on legal and regulatory aspects, which are key in a field that is still in its infancy and needs support from lawmakers and regulators. It is, thus, a reference for academics, legal practitioners, policymakers, entrepreneurs and the Islamic Finance community.