The 7th Annual Cambridge Conference on Alternative Finance

CfP Deadline Date:
March 15, 2022

Conference Event:
July 18, 2022

Event Location:
Cambridge, UK

Keynote speaker(s):
Manju Puri (Fuqua School of Business, Duke University)

Organizer(s):
University of Cambridge

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance with the support of Invesco is hosting the 7th annual conference on alternative finance on 18 July 2022 at University of Cambridge Judge Business School (CJBS).

RESEARCH PAPERS: Alternative financial systems involve instruments, channels, or systems of finance that emerge outside of the regulated financial system. It makes use of technological innovations, such as alternative currencies, disintermediated business models and lending mechanisms to change the way finance has been carried out traditionally. Other terms that have been used to describe it include disruptive finance, distributed finance, fintech, or disintermediated finance. This new era of financial innovation with its characteristics of transparency, speed and convenience has changed the way people, businesses and institutions perform financial transactions, invest in assets, approach potential financing sources and operate. The evolution of this area has been widely covered in the media and is playing an increasingly important role in helping businesses and individuals access the funds they need.

This small boutique conference solicits papers from all areas of the social sciences that will shed light on this emerging area.

TOPICS: Topics include but are not limited to:
– Historical perspectives – Throughout history there have always been instruments and channels of finance operating outside of a formal, regulated banking and capital markets system, and this activity has often been a source of financial innovation. Are there parallels between historical and current forms of alternative finance?
– Business models – Different types of alternative finance models and how they solve asymmetric information problems in businesses, industries, or countries
– Governance models – How alternative finance institutions affect corporate governance or financial policy
– Trust and reputation – The evolution of trust and reputation for platforms
– Crowdfunding and capital formation for early stage firms
– Network and social effects affecting platform adoption
– Alternative analytics and new forms of data
– Privacy concerns, security, and risks with distributed financing
– Alternative currencies, Exchange tradeable digital assets, Collateralised coins, Digital cryptocurrencies or digital merchant tokens, Sovereign backed issuance
– Machine learning, AI, and other predictive technologies
– Blockchains, Distributed ledger technologies, Digital Autonomous Organisations, Smart contracting, Internet of things
– Regulatory implications of the spread of alternative technologies

Further Information:

FORMAT:
• If the Covid situation eases, the conference will open on Monday July 18 at the Cambridge Judge Business School, with morning refreshments followed by a full day of paper presentations (including lunch and afternoon refreshments). The day’s events will be followed by a cocktail reception and dinner at Pembroke College.
• If safety concerns prohibit an in person conference, the conference will take place in a virtual format over three days from 18 July – 20 July 2022. Sessions will take place daily at: 08:00-11:00 EDT (New York) / 13:00-16:00 GMT+1 (UK) / 14:00-17:00 CEST (Paris) / 20:00-23:00 CST (Beijing)

IMPORTANT DATES:
– Abstract and paper submission deadline 15 March 2022
– Notification of acceptance: early May 2022
– Final paper submission deadline: Early July 2022
– Academic Conference: 18 July 2022

PAPER SUBMISSION PROCEDURE:
Interested authors are kindly invited to submit their papers to ccafevents@jbs.cam.ac.uk by 15 March, 2022 using the subject heading – Conference on Alternative Finance submission. Complete papers will receive priority.

FURTHER INFORMATION: For further information about the conference and logistics, please contact ccafevents@jbs.cam.ac.uk

Link CfP & Conference: The 7th Annual Cambridge Conference on Alternative Finance