FIN TECH - 2024/5

Module Overview

FinTech is revolutionizing and rapidly changing the global financial services industries. Business models that can facilitate disintermediation, revolutionize how existing firms create and deliver products and services, address privacy, regulatory and law-enforcement challenges, provide new gateways for entrepreneurship, and seed opportunities for inclusive growth. This module provides an introduction to the FinTech sector. Topics may include but are not limited to: blockchain, cryptocurrencies, decentralized applications, smart contracts, payments services, alternative and P2P lending and crowdfunding, AI, machine learning (including applications such as robot-advising) and Insurtech. Students are expected to develop a broad understanding of recent FinTech development, valuation, risk and its impact in the financial industries.

Module provider

Surrey Business School

Module Leader

BUCHANAN Bonnie (SBS)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 6

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 2

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

N/A

Module content

Indicative content includes, but not exhausted to: 

• The FinTech Ecosystem


• Crowdfunding and P2P Lending


•  Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies


•  Payment Services


•  Central Banking and FinTech


•  Artificial intelligence, Machine learning and deep learning


•  Insurance Technology (Insurtech)


•  PropTech (real estate fintech)


•  FinTech, Web 3.0 and the Metaverse


•  The Future of FinTech

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of: 

• Students are assessed through one piece of in-class test (30%)


•  final exam (70%). Formative assessment Class test - 1-hour test (short answer responses)

Feedback Students will be provided with opportunities to receive written and/or oral feedback during the semester in order to support and prepare for the summative assessment. Additionally, the module offers a platform for students to give and receive feedback via SurreyLearn.

Module aims

• The unique characteristics of technology innovations in finance.
• How FinTech is reconfiguring business models for financial services.
• The impact of FinTech on the traditional financial intermediaries.
• The key elements of successful FinTech innovation and the key disruption points.
• The factors that affect the valuation of FinTech products and firms.
• How FinTech can aid sustainable finance.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:  Enable students to develop the knowledge, skills, and critical thinking to be able to understand the current innovation and issues in financial technology (FinTech) industries. Engage students with different learning backgrounds and maximize their learning by drawing on their own experiences and contribution to discuss FinTech-related events in difference markets and countries.  Develop students cultural awareness, digital literacy, confidence, and competence in working with others, leadership, communication skills, employability, and professionalism. The teaching and learning methods include lectures, seminars, independent learning, and self-reflection. Specifically, the lectures (pre-recorded material is made available to students prior to seminars) intend to introduce theories with support materials and reinforcement covering the topics in the above. In seminars, students will undertake interactive exercises such as group discussions in order to demonstrate the application of theory, team-working, professionalism, confidence, and communication skills. It is expected that students will conduct wide readings, work with peers on the development of the group presentation, individual research, and reflective review in their independent learning. Formative feedback will be provided to students during these interactive sessions.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: MAN3218

Other information

Employability: The module provides a variety of current events and live information on FinTech industries that mimic professional life. Key to this, students develop the ability to critically evaluate the problem at hand, interact with peer with different working experiences, and exchange their ideas. As a result, students develop and enhance the interpersonal and professional skills. Global and Cultural Capabilities: Fintech is a global trend and an innovative topic. Students will learn and develop their ability to work in groups effectively with other students from diverse backgrounds to broaden their world view, own perspectives and interpretations and reinterpreting issues against a broader spectrum of ideas and representations. Digital Capabilities: The skills taught in this module provide students with a solid grounding in the foundation knowledge of FinTech by learning from a various of digital resources, such as Annual Meeting held by FinTech pioneer companies, TED talks on latest innovations in Finance industry, and online platforms for simulation of blockchain mechanism. Students will also collect financial data from datasets to conduct data analysis using Excel and other data process software. Students will be exposed to real-world situational problems which will allow them to evolve skills and attributes to be forward-thinking in their application and implementation of digital solutions to meet diverse and complex challenges. Students will develop proficiency in all aspects of digital engagement. Resourcefulness & Resilience (R&R): Students will develop attributes such as confidence, adaptability, self-regulation, self-efficacy, problem solving and decision-making abilities, through interacting in their groups, and engaging with their group members. The effectiveness of the R&R will be inherent in assessment design.

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2024/5 academic year.