FinTech

Course Objective and Summary

After completing this course, you should understand how fintech (financial technology) disruptors are capturing revenue pools of incumbent financial services firms in the following fields: payments, consumer & small business lending, wealth management & advisory services.

Course audience will be Class ‘A’ Banks Chairpersons, Directors, and Chief Executive Officers and other invited distinguished persons. Rice University Certificate will be granted after completing the course. Class participation will be mandatory.

Course Details

  • Financial services value chain baseline and players Value chain by products and customer segment
  • Map of incumbents and disruptors/innovators
  • Market dynamics
  • Disruption in payments and other transactional services
  • Bank infrastructure and capabilities - Disruption using credit card and debit cards switches - Payments embedded in social media and messaging
  • Non-US domestic and International payments
  • Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies
  • Merchant processing
  • Payment processing platforms for the new economy
  • Other transactional services: FX, supply chain and trade finance.
  • Disruption in lending
  • Market place lenders for retail investors
  • Digital lending for consumers
  • Digital lending for small business
  • Upcoming disruption in lending: residential mortgages, auto and commercial loans.
  • Disruption in wealth management
  • Advisory platforms: robo advisers
  • Low-cost trading
  • Emerging technologies
  • Advanced analytics/big data, real time
  • Cloud computing
  • Distributed ledger technologies (Blockchain, bitcoin, cryptocurrencies)
  • National Treasury responses to emerging technologies
  • Artificial intelligence and robotics
  • Biometrics
  • Improving financial literacy through digital solutions

Award Winning Rice Faculty

Manolo Sánchez is currently a director at Fannie Mae (FNM), OnDeck Capital (ONDK), Stewart Information Systems (STC) and BanCoppel (Mexico’s largest in-store bank) after having served as chairman & CEO of BBVA Compass for 10 years. At Rice University’s Jones School of Business, he teaches disruption in financial services with a focus on crypto currencies and blockchain. Manolo is an advisor to several fintech and blockchain start-ups, including SpringLabs (blockchain-based credit and identity data), Aura (CDFI lender), Affordify Solutions (healthcare payments), Topl (supply blockchain focused on ethical and sustainable practices) and Chipper (student loan management). 

His banking career at BBVA, spanned over 27 years, with positions in the US, Mexico, France and Spain, and executive roles in risk management, real estate, correspondent, corporate and investment banking. As a member of BBVA’s global executive committee, Sánchez has represented the bank on national and international fora and has been a frequent speaker at major industry events. 

During his tenure at BBVA’s subsidiary, the bank grew from 2k to 10k employees, and from $3bn to $100bn in assets through the integration of six banks and $40bn of organic lending. With a 7% market share, the bank became the fourth bank in Texas, and new household name in the second largest economy in the US. Manolo spearheaded the development of award-winning mobile apps and a new core banking system, which earned BBVA Compass the recognition of the 2013 Model Bank of the Year by Celent. In the midst of the financial crisis, Sánchez and his team mobilized their volunteers to become a model of community involvement, and landed the #1 spot in American Banker’s Reputation Survey in 2011. 

Manolo has served as a director of the American Bankers Association, the Institute of International Bankers, the Greater Houston Partnership, the Financial Services Roundtable and BITS (the technology policy division of FSR). He is currently a trustee at the Center for Houston’s Future. 

Sánchez has volunteered extensively in the communities where he has worked, with a focus on education, health and the arts. He is emeritus director and past Chair of the Post Oak Montessori School board, as well as a trustee of Good Reason Houston, KIPP Houston charter schools, Brighter Bites, Texas Children’s Hospital, the Houston Grand Opera and the Houston Symphony. He is a past trustee of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston and currently volunteers in the Latin American Art committee. 

A graduate of Yale University, Sánchez earned master’s degrees in international relations from the London School of Economics and in advanced European economics from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium.

Sánchez has been recognized with Spain’s Order of Civil Merit, the 2017 Arrival Award for immigrant achievement from the University of Houston, the 2015 Hispanic Executive of the Year by the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Laredo Gateway Rotary Club’s 2014 Paul Harris Fellow award and was named 2011 Alabama Citizen of the Year.

A native of Murcia, Spain, Sánchez first came to the U.S. as high school exchange student. In addition to English and Spanish, he speaks French, German and Arabic. A naturalized US citizen, he lives in Houston with his wife and three children.