Our approach

Our thematic areas

Leveraging the impact of our 3 foundational capabilities in research, digital tools and capacity building and education.

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) has established a reputation for identifying and responding to major areas of systemic risk and market opportunity. Expanding on our body of global and comparable research across multiple regions, and building on our 3 functional pillars (research, digital tools, capacity building and education), we have organised our focus according to 4 thematic areas, where we are uniquely placed to contribute. Those are:

Digital Assets programme
Regulatory Innovation Hub
The Cambridge SupTech Lab
Fintech Market Observatory

Digital Assets programme

Launched in March 2022, the Cambridge Digital Assets Programme (CDAP) is a research initiative examining the rapid digitisation of assets and value transfer systems. Sixteen leading public and private institutions from the financial sector work with us, providing directional input and guidance through joint working group sessions. This ensures meaningful and practically relevant research impact.

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Regulatory Innovation Hub

Developing regulation for digital financial services globally can be challenging. Unclear regulatory frameworks, capacity restrictions and a lack of knowledge sharing at national, regional and global levels, can cause roadblocks to deeper understanding. The Regulatory Innovation Hub (RegHub) builds regulatory knowledge and capacity in regulatory innovation, enabling the safe and inclusive digitalisation of financial services in the interests of consumers.

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The Cambridge SupTech Lab

How can we deliver sustainable innovations in the financial services industry and protect consumers? Through more effective digital supervision and regulation. The Cambridge SupTech Lab brings a community of innovation leaders together. Empowered by empirical research, digital tools and educational curricula, they understand, co-create and develop cutting-edge, scalable suptech applications.

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Fintech Market Observatory

Building on a decade of fintech market research expertise and excellence, the Cambridge Fintech Market Observatory (CFMO) is the CCAF’s flagship programme to research the development of alternative financing channels, instruments and systems from the industry perspective. The programme will encompass a set of research initiatives to produce digital tools and impactful research outputs to foster an environment of knowledge dissemination and exchange.

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