Fintech sets new trends in business education

Technology has been reshaping almost every aspect of our daily life on an unprecedented scale, with financial services spearheading the way. As a leading financial hub in Asia, Hong Kong is at the forefront of the technological revolution that is transforming its finance industry.

Financial technology, or fintech, is an emerging domain in banking and finance, focusing on enhancing and automating the delivery and processes of financial activities through the use of technology. Artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, big data, cloud computing and robotic process automation (RPA), amongst other technologies, are increasingly applied in areas such as payments, clearing and settlement, deposits, lending and capital raising, insurance, investment management, and market support.

From AI algorithms providing insight on customer spending habits and AI-driven chatbots supporting customer service, to predicting client investments and market trends with big data, and blockchain’s decentralized nature to eliminate the need for a third party to execute transactions, fintech drives innovation in financial services globally and changes the nature of commerce and end-user expectations.

The rapid technological development in the finance sector has prompted a competitive drive for talents, opening up golden opportunities for career advancement for finance practitioners and working professionals. To cater to such rapidly rising needs, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) offers a postgraduate fintech program that is top of the league.

In view of the interdisciplinary nature of fintech, HKUST’s program of Master of Science in Financial Technology (MScFinTech) gathers the strengths of the School of Business and Management, School of Engineering and School of Science respectively.

Available in one-year full-time or two-year part-time mode, the course is designed for talents who want to combine technical and financial knowledge to generate innovative solutions that meet the challenges of this emerging field, as it draws expertise from relevant areas such as information technology, blockchain, data science, machine learning, and decision analytics.

The student demographics of the program boast a truly international profile. Over 70% of the class are engineering, mathematics and statistics, business, economics or science graduates from universities in mainland China, the U.S., Australia, the U.K. and elsewhere.

Apart from the academic curriculum that provides students with fundamental knowledge and important skills relating to popular financial technologies and their engineering and financial principles, the program also incorporates enrichment workshops and industry projects to make students learn state-of-the-art ideas and practices from real-life cases.

After completion of the master’s program, students are able to analyze the engineering mechanisms and financial principles of new and emerging financial technologies, and formulate and solve fintech-related problems using practical means supported by the latest engineering methodologies and quantitative techniques.

Career guidance and support services of the program office help students to identify their unique career-related interests, values and capability; to enhance job searching skills; and to access opportunities for internships and full-time employment. Networking, career talks and one-on-one career coaching are provided to enable students to explore options around the region, and to be better-equipped for an international career.

The alumni community is a platform of interaction between alumni and current students to exchange up-to-date insights and knowledge with business professionals from diverse backgrounds. Many an exciting opportunity has emerged from these invaluable networking events.