IIT Madras, CAMS expand FinTech innovation partnership
Chennai, Aug 12 (TNT): Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) and Computer Age Management Services (CAMS) have renewed and expanded their collaboration under the CAMS IIT Madras FinTech Innovation Lab (CIFIL) to promote research, startup development, industry collaboration and professional education in emerging financial technologies.
A new MoU towards the next phase of the partnership was signed at the IIT Madras campus on Wednesday in the presence of senior leadership from both organisations. CIFIL was established in 2022 through a collaboration between IIT Madras and CAMS as part of CAMS’ CSR initiatives.
Under the expanded mandate, CIFIL will focus on emerging areas including artificial intelligence in financial services, digital payments, blockchain and tokenisation, cybersecurity, regulatory technology, WealthTech, InsurTech, digital lending, data analytics and financial inclusion, the institute said in a release here.
The Lab will also expand its research portfolio, promote intellectual property creation, facilitate technology transfer and support commercialisation of research-led solutions.
The partnership will provide students opportunities to work directly with industry through research projects, internships, hackathons, expert interactions and startup mentoring, with the objective of strengthening their research, innovation and entrepreneurial capabilities.
CIFIL will also strengthen support for fintech startups and entrepreneurs by providing access to technical and faculty expertise, mentoring, industry networks, validation support, research collaborations and innovation challenges.
It will seek to connect promising startups with industry opportunities and help develop solutions to real-world financial services challenges.
The Lab is further expanding its talent development initiatives through professional education programmes, including a Professional Certificate Programme in FinTech and a Certificate Programme in Personal Financial Planning.
The programmes are aimed at working professionals, entrepreneurs, researchers, students and aspiring fintech leaders.
For industry partners, CIFIL will provide a platform to work with IIT Madras faculty and researchers on business and technology challenges, evaluate emerging technologies, develop proofs-of-concept and undertake applied research.
CIFIL has, since its inception, supported fintech research projects, conducted national hackathons with industry participation, mentored startups through incubation and pre-incubation initiatives, developed executive education programmes and collaborated with banks, regulators and industry partners.
CAMS Managing Director Anuj Kumar said the renewed partnership would provide an environment for researchers, students and innovators to develop ideas into solutions that create long-term value for the financial services ecosystem.
IIT Madras Director Prof V. Kamakoti said the collaboration could help accelerate the development of cutting-edge fintech solutions for India’s financial ecosystem by combining the institute’s research capabilities with CAMS’ industry expertise.
TNT KS
