Bendigo Bank backs Swinburne Uni’s fintech masters degree

Financial technology startups are generally seen as the nimble rivals to lumbering traditional banks, but nevertheless Bendigo Bank has decided to throw its weight behind a new Master of FinTech at Swinburne University.

The three-year part-time degree, which launched at the start of semester one this year, was co-developed with the bank so students have the opportunity to learn from industry experts.

Delivered through Swinburne’s Australian Graduate School of Entrepreneurship (AGSE), the degree was designed to meet current and future market demands for skills and qualifications in fields like distributed ledger technology and artificial intelligence.

The degree’s director, Dr Dimitrios Salampasis, said rapid growth in the fintech industry influenced course design so that it centres on real-world case studies and immersive learning.

“Our approach to FinTech education encompasses the applied study of data-oriented, smart technologies and provides our students with comprehensive knowledge and specific, functional skills,” he said.

“Partnering with Bendigo Bank allows us to move beyond the hype and develop a cutting-edge FinTech curriculum. Guest speakers, real-life case studies, on-site events, access to data, work-integrated learning and applied projects are just a few of the opportunities to arise from this co-creation model.”

The degree’s information page suggests those skills will be as readily applied in legacy banks as fintech startups, despite the name implying skills will be more applicable to the former.

Bendigo Bank’s head of university partnerships, David Tudor, said support for the degree along is part of the bank’s efforts to lead fintech development to deliver better outcomes for its customers.

“The advent of this new, hands-on Master of FinTech course will equip Swinburne students with practical skills and real-world experiences which they can draw on to accelerate their learning and career development,” he said

“The co-designed and co-delivered course will also help us build on our own knowledge base and internal capability, improve productivity and customer experience, and assist in accelerating our vision to be Australia’s bank of choice.”