FinTech Innovation

Preface

So far, most of my professional life has been spent at the intersection between FINance and TECHnology, whose line of separation has recently been blurred by financial technology companies (FinTechs). The forces that are fostering their innovative mindset are unveiled in this book, which closely scrutinizes the revolution occurring in the wealth management industry, and particularly digital advice, personalized investing, and cognitive analytics being used to give insight into the behaviour of customers. The findings are based partially on market research and academic material, but mostly on what I owe to the hundreds of business conversations with industry leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs and colleagues. They have enriched this book, transformed any business travel that I have undertaken into a scholarly opportunity, and ultimately made my humble career, which started in risk management, an invaluable journey. Back in the 1990s, I learned to implement advanced quantitative methods to manage trading risks and I engaged periodically with top managers and regulators in search of graphical yet robust simulation methods to turn complex mathematical equations into intuitive reporting. When the wind of innovation blew at my door in the early days of the FinTech revolution, I was easily led on an entrepreneurial journey, it was my goal to change the investment experience as it existed between financial advisors and their respective clients, to allow them to speak more comfortably ...