University of Utah announces fintech program, endowment

by James · January 30, 2023

University of Utah President Taylor Randall unveiled a $65 million donor initiative Monday to launch a new off-campus education center, business incubator and venture investment fund aimed at significantly increasing student opportunities in the emerging financial technology sector.

U., in collaboration with the Stena Foundation and founders Steve and Jana Smith, will create the Stena Center for Financial Technology. The foundation has orchestrated total funding of up to $65 million over the next 10 years to support the center, including industry-sponsored labs, a startup incubator, venture funds and fintech-focused degrees and certificates. Reinvestments from the venture funds are expected to ultimately fund the center in perpetuity.

For the uninitiated, fintech, a portmanteau combining financial and technology, refers to technology that aims to upgrade and automate the delivery of financial services. Innovations in the sector are changing consumer financial services, as well as a wide range of categories, including investment management, business-to-business transactions, digital payment platforms, cryptocurrencies and much more.

Randall said the new effort is driven by both industry needs and student interest in financial services technology innovation that is advancing rapidly in the $5 trillion global financial services market. University of Utah programming will provide real pathways to degree programs that reflect unmet demand and open new opportunities for student-led fintech startups.

“These are industry-driven degrees,” Randall said. “The Stena Center for Financial Technology provides the opportunity to accelerate and incubate important advances in financial technology innovation and businesses that will continue to drive the fintech industry forward and cement Utah as a center of excellence.”

University of Utah President Taylor Randall and Stena Foundation founder Steve Smith talk about the newly announced Stena Center that will supercharge the student entrepreneurial experience at a conference at Rice-Eccles Stadium, at the University of Utah, on Monday, Jan. 30 2023.

Randall said the new fintech center will collaborate across multiple academic units at the University of Utah, and the school recently began offering minors in financial technology. As the Stena center develops, these offers will be expanded to include full bachelor’s and master’s degrees in the field.

“We clearly see great value and demand from students for hybrid degrees that cross disciplines,” Randall said. “This effort involves a very targeted amalgamation of law, business and engineering. And that’s something that comes, frankly, directly from students in all three of those disciplines.”

Stena Foundation Co-Founder Steve Smith is a Utah entrepreneur and veteran of fintech disruption and is the co-founder and former CEO of Finicity. Finicity was acquired by Mastercard in a 2020 deal worth nearly $1 billion. Smith is also the current co-chair of the Financial Data Exchange, a non-profit organization working to establish industry standards for fintech.

Smith said current degree pathways do not align well with the unique needs of the fintech industry.

“We started having conversations with the U. about how we can deliver students with a degree that they can put to work right away,” Smith said. “It turned into ‘Well, let’s see if we can figure out program specifics for this. How about an incubator for student-based startups?’ The U. has been so progressive on this side of the equation with its entrepreneurial programs from Lassonde and the Master of Business Creation program.”

Smith also noted that Utah has built a superior presence in the realm of emerging fintech innovations and said he believes the state is “easily in the top five” in terms of regions developing and commercializing new fintech advances.

“What’s super exciting to me is that Utah has emerged as one of the real global hubs for fintech,” Smith said. “This progressive center, in alignment with its strategic partners, will build on the success of the fintech community in Utah and will become an important hub for ongoing financial technology innovation and real economic impact.”

According to the University of Utah, fintechXstudio will start with an annual cohort of 10 student entrepreneurs and businesses working on financial technology innovation. Students will have access to expert faculty, office space, industry mentors, technology solution partners, curated courses, prototyping tools and technology, venture capital, and the university’s global education programs. Each year, the venture fund will invest a total of at least USD 1 million in 10 or more student-led fintech companies. A large part of the operating income from these investments will be reinvested in the centre.

Stena Center CEO Ryan Christiansen said the new programming is set to push Utah to the front of the line when it comes to fintech innovation.

“The Stena Center will blend Utah’s broad experience of the fintech industry with the energy and creativity of American students,” Christiansen said in a press release. “This unique partnership will connect fintech leaders’ workforce skills and experience with students’ passion and ideas – accelerating innovation to place Utah at the forefront of global fintech excellence.”