Bocconi and Algorand together for research

The goal is to promote the most beneficial financial applications for society through the new Algorand Fintech Lab, a collaboration between the university and Algorand foundation and directed by Claudio Tebaldi. The research areas of the Algorand Fintech Lab are those destined to be most affected by the innovative wave of fintech technologies that, Tebaldi points out, “is changing at the root the relationship between financial institutions, markets and society itself.”

Algorand Fintech Lab: four main areas of research

The research areas of the Algorand Fintech Lab are those destined to be most affected by the innovative wave of fintech technologies, namely Central Bank Digital Currencies, Monetary Policy, and Macroeconomics. Crypto-assets and financial markets. Decentralized finance, financial institutions and services. Blockchain and society.

Among the research initiatives, the one that best embodies the desire to separate scientific knowledge and marketing narratives is a collaborative wiki project, on the lab’s website. Given that knowledge, in a rapidly evolving field, is often conveyed informally through social media, websites and research, not always published, from different disciplines, the lab’s community will take charge of filtering that information, identifying and establishing the highest quality information. Students and junior researchers will be in charge of monitoring the flow, supplementing if necessary the most interesting information with bibliographies and contextual news, while more experienced researchers will play the role of validators, making that work available to the public.

“We need to be able to filter a rapid and incessant flow of information, settling verified and useful knowledge.”

Claudio Tebaldi, the director of the lab, explains.

“Financial innovation is not just engineering or IT innovation, but also social innovation, an area where widespread knowledge, reliable policies and trust are central. If we build a well-made bridge, it will hold up regardless of what the people using it think, but a financial system needs the trust of the participants.”

 “Blockchain will soon form the cornerstone of the infrastructure of the new finance and will bring momentous changes to the markets.”

Silvio Micali, founder of Algorand, emphasizes. 

“Collaboration between the private sector, academia and the regulator is crucial,” Micali adds, “so that the utility generated by this new technological dimension is maximized and brings tangible benefit to society at large.”