The Centre aims to research the rapid and transformative effect of fintech on the competitive environment in banking and financial services, on service delivery and the supplier-customer relationship.

Themes will include the impact of fintech on the nature and dynamics of competition and on the efficiency of service delivery, the implications for the structure and operations of banks and other financial service providers, the attitude of consumers to new delivery modes, issues of digital and data security and the emergence of a new regulatory agenda.

The Centre will harness its academic capabilities and its network of industry partners in interrogating these questions and will disseminate its research findings across academic, business and policymaking communities.

Its research will both inform and be informed by contemporary practice, whilst embodying the highest academic standards in terms of research rigour and integrity. The work of the Centre will also underpin innovations in undergraduate, postgraduate and post-experience programmes. A formal launch event will take place later this year.

The Centre will be directed by Professor James Devlin who will be joining NBS, part of Nottingham Trent University, from the University of Leicester, where he is currently serving as Dean of the School of Business. Professor Devlin has long-standing research interests in the areas of consumer decision making and behaviour in financial services, policy issues in financial services and firm strategy in the sector. His recent work has focussed on trust, fairness, professionalism and ethics in financial services. He has a track record of research publications and the generation of research funding, as well as senior-level engagement with the practitioner and policymaking sectors.

Professor Alistair Bruce, Associate Dean of Research at NBS, said: “NTU’s £3 million strategic investment will help establish NBS as a major player in fin tech, and we will harness the deep connections with our industrial partners to positively impact both policy and practice in this fast-developing sector.”

Professor Baback Yazdani, Executive Dean of NBS said: “NBS has a long tradition of combining academic rigour with the worlds of practice and policy and we aim to recruit top researchers to focus on answering some of the underlying questions that will shape the fin tech sector for many years to come.”