Fintech and Regulation

About this course

Additional course information

• Weekly sessions and topics

  There will be 3 to 4 hours of lectures scheduled each day. Additionally, you will have the opportunity to work on assignments under supervision. The lecture times will typically be between 10:00 MA and 12:00 PM, and between 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM. Supervised work sessions can take place before, during the break, or after the lectures. Due to the availability of guest lecturers, we kindly ask for a flexible attitude.

  Week 1 

  July 7 Introduction to Ecosystem Design:

  Introduction blockchain. How can blockchain replace trusted third party (i.e. Banks) based on games ecosystems. Are you able to use the checks and balances of your origination a network? How are organizations going to change if trust can be distributed?

  July 8 Stakeholder Engagement & tokenization:

  Tokens: Tokens are the digital representations of a particular asses, Merit, or utility in a blockchain. Use cases Tokens: Customer loyalty and energy. 

  July 9 Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) & Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs):

  Guest lecture. Grasp the foundational principles of Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI). Explain the core concepts, including decentralization and user control. Differentiate SSI from traditional identity models.

  July 10 

  Excursion to the NFT playground. Working on exercises. 

  July 11

  Presentations exercises.

  Week 2

  July 14 Role of the Regulator in Innovation

  Explore the regulator's role in balancing risks and opportunities of new financial technologies. Engage in a collaborative exercise to test YOUR design in a regulatory framework.

  July 15 Impact of New Technologies on Financial Institutions

  Discuss case studies on the evolving responsibilities of banks, insurers, and assets managers. Participate in a group activity to map technological impact on financial system stability. 

  July 16 Regulatory Regimes and Challenges with Innovation

  Compare financial activities under different regulatory regimes and their key differences. Examine difficulties in applying traditional regulations to new technologies like cryptocurrencies. 

  July 17 

  Excursion to a financial institution.

  July 18 

  Presentations exercises.

  * Please be advised that we try to do 2 excursions and 3-4 guest lectures. Location and topics might differ due to availability of the expert, but it will be the most valuable part of your course. 

• Learning outcomes

  • What is Blockchain? (What is Distributed Ledger Technology?)
  • How to apply this technology as a finance professional? (How does it work?)
  • Benefits and use cases (For whom and for what financial activities is it appropriate?)
  • Who and what is regulated? (How to ensure compliance?)
  • Is this technology changing the financial system? (What is its future?)

• Learning objectives

  By the end of this course, students will be able to:

  - Understand and Apply Systems Thinking to Blockchain Ecosystems: Participants will to design and optimize blockchain-based ecosystems for greater efficiency and sustainability.

  - Design and Evaluate Blockchain Solutions for Real-World Challenges: Participants will gain practical skills to create and assess blockchain-driven solutions within multi-stakeholder environments.

  - Are able to work in cross-cultural teams, write a lean plan and present a innovation and funding request in a Dragons’ Den setting.

  - Understand the role of the regulator to balance risks and opportunities of new technologies used by financial institutions.

  - Assess the impact of new technologies on the roles of different financial institutions in the financial system.

  - Assess which financial activities are regulated under which regulatory regime and understand the main differences between these regimes.

  - Grasp some of the difficulties and challenges in applying ‘old’ regulation to ‘new’ technologies.

• About the course coordinators

  Vera Lubbersen is an Economist in the Market Infrastructure & Innovation department of the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) and a PhD student at the Finance department of the Vrije Universiteit (VU). Her main research areas are in payments and new digital forms of money. At DNB she provides policy advice on regulatory issues arising due to new technologies used by financial institutions and financial market infrastructures.

  Bernhard van der Biessen holds a degree in Urban, Port, and Transport Economics and one in Technical Transport Sciences.  He has worked at Statistics Netherlands (CBS), where he engaged with various models.  By combining his technical background with economic insights, he is uniquely capable of analyzing and clarifying complex blockchain ecosystems. Since 2010, he has been actively involved in education, and from 2017 onward, he has focused on blockchain. Collaborating with numerous industry partners such as Rabobank and Capgemini, he has successfully supervised various blockchain student projects. This has given him unparalleled expertise in building decentralized ecosystems

• Course syllabus

  Here you can find the course syllabus for 2025.