Fintech Innovation and Law

Catalog description

Innovation in financial services can broaden access to necessary services, enable new economic activity, and have meaningful societal benefits. It also presents risks to consumers, our financial regulatory system and, at scale, our economy. This course examines the interplay between tech innovation in financial services and the laws that seek to govern those services. It focuses on: -- how and why U.S. and non-U.S. legal frameworks distinguish between fintech and the traditional regulatory perimeter; -- the complex U.S. regulatory landscape for fintech firms in payments, lending, and investments; and -- the policy and regulatory push-and-pull between the law and new, fundamentally disruptive technologies--including stablecoins and open banking. In addition to lectures and discussion, the course will use two fintech case studies to explore current legal questions. These case studies will examine both policy considerations and how to craft legal advice for clients operating at the cutting edge. Elements used in grading: Attendance, class participation, final exam. Global Quarter (GQ).