Financial Technology

Technological innovation in financial services have generated profound changes in business models, channels, applications, processes, and products.

These will have a material impact on financial markets, financial institutions, and the provision of financial services with substantial potential benefits for consumers in the form of lower costs, efficiency gains, and greater access to financial products and markets. However this may come at increased risks for the stability and sound functioning of the financial system.

The workshop will explain financial technology and its enablers, key transformative technologies, and impact on financial sector activities. It will describe the role of large technology companies (BigTech) and other non-bank entrants in providing financial services.

The response of international bodies such as the Financial Stability Board and Bank for International Settlements will be outlined as well as that of global and domestic regulators.

Outline:

• Financial technology described
• Enablers of financial technology such as cloud services, the internet of things, big data, natural language processing, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and smart or advanced analytics (generally statistical)
• Key transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence, distributed ledger technology and infrastructure and distribution software packages
• Impact of financial technology on financial sector activities such as banking, credit, financial advice, investment management, insurance, payments, and trading
• The role of large technology companies in the provision of financial services (BigTech)
• The use of technology by supervisors (SupTech) and regulated financial institutions to meet regulatory requirements (RegTech)
• Crypto assets and digital currencies including central bank digital currencies
• Regulatory response of international bodies, standard setters, and regulators
• The response of South African regulators