Featured Press
How Gen AI could trigger the next CrowdStrike catastrophe
Sarah Hammer, executive director at the Wharton School, penned this op-ed on MarketWatch, that dives into the intricacies of generative AI and cybersecurity in the finance sector.
Featured Podcast
WHARTON CYPHER ACCELERATOR PODCAST
Executive Director and Wharton Cypher Accelerator CEO Sarah Hammer sits down with Jayee Koffe, global head of enterprise execution and chief corporate affairs officer at BNY Mellon.
Recent Articles
Philly high schoolers created an app to help classmates understand student loans and plan how to pay for college
Finiverse, an online tool made by Philadelphia high schoolers working with the Wharton School, helps their peers weigh the financial risks of a college education against the potential rewards.
Sarah Hammer Included in Corporate Council Business Journal’s 50 Women to Watch
Sarah Hammer, executive director at Wharton, was featured on a list of 50 influential women who demonstrate exceptional leadership qualities, business acumen, and a commitment to mentorship in their respective communities, chosen from a pool of nearly 500 nominees.
Finiverse Co-Creators Win Rad Award for Technologist of the Year
Sindi Banaj and Maryem Bouatlaoui, co-creators of the Finiverse app, were nominated for – and won – the 2024 Philadelphia Citizen Rad Award for Technologist of the Year.
‘Finiverse’: App created by Philly students aims to help navigate student loans
David Musto, Robert King and Alhaji Bah join Good Day Philadelphia to discuss the ‘Finiverse’ app, which aims to help students navigate the confusing student loans process.
Philly high schoolers develop easy app to help predict the true cost of college
Technical.Ly promotes the launch of Finiverse, a project out of Wharton’s Stevens Center, supplements what students said was a lack of resources in Philadelphia public schools.
How Digital Payment Systems Can Promote Adoption
Digital currencies are reshaping cross-border payment processing, offering advantages such as lower transaction fees and elimination of intermediaries. Despite such advancements, the global landscape regarding the adoption of digital transactions is markedly varied, according to panelists at a roundtable discussion titled “The Future of Digital Payments,” which was hosted by Wharton’s Future of Finance Forum in October 2023.
A First Visit to the Wharton School: ‘Put Their Feet Where You Want Them to Go’
Nearly 150 students and a handful of teachers from eight public high schools in New York City experienced that feeling on Friday, November, 3, 2023, as they boarded buses in Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens to travel to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania for a day. Read full article ⇒
Wharton’s Cypher Accelerator is at the Forefront of FinTech
The Cypher Accelerator is a financial technology accelerator launched through the Stevens Center at Wharton. A remote, non-dilutive program dedicated to startups building their companies in a technology-based future, it is led by Professor Sarah Hammer, Esq. and David Erickson. Read full article ⇒
How NFTs Can Move Beyond Arts and Entertainment
NFTs are all the rage. These digital tokens—often associated with digital art and collectibles, songs, videos and designs—are everywhere, but they are more than novel art. In fact, NFTs may offer solutions, at least in part, to some of society’s challenges. Read full article ⇒
Wharton cryptocurrency and blockchain support program unveils inaugural cohort
The Cypher Accelerator — which launches blockchain and cryptocurrency companies through Wharton’s Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance — announced its first cohort of companies that it will support. Read full article ⇒
What are non-fungible tokens?
Sarah Hammer of the Wharton School breaks down the basics of the new digital assets, which are growing in popularity. Read full article ⇒
Who will build for the builders?
Crypto startups raised $30B in 2021 and (it’s no surprise that) their largest spend bucket is talent. Transitioning to web3 is however a high friction journey in learning the ropes, finding a suitable role, proving credentials, and working in decentralized settings. Sudarshan Sarathy lays out the current enabler landscape and dives into opportunities to build for the builders. Read full article ⇒
A beginner’s guide to cryptocurrency
Wharton expert Sarah Hammer breaks down the basics of digital currency, which has exploded in popularity in recent years. Read full article ⇒
Conversation and Crypto with Entrepreneur Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban recently joined a virtual fireside chat with Sarah Hammer, Managing Director of the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance, to discuss entrepreneurship, cryptocurrency, NFTs, and superheroes. Read full article ⇒
Taking a Closer Look at Cryptocurrency
Penn Today asked experts across the University to share their thoughts on what the future cryptocurrency landscape looks like, from business and banking, laws and regulation, to environmental impact. Read full article ⇒
Sarah Hammer & Sameer Gupta — Introducing Cypher, Penn’s New Blockchain Accelerator
The Cypher Accelerator is a blockchain accelerator launched through the Stevens Center at Wharton. The name and the logo were designed by students at the University of Pennsylvania. The board of advisors for the program includes Mark Cuban, Tim Draper, former CFTC Chair J. Christopher Giancarlo, and partners from Andreessen Horowitz, Bessemer Venture Partners, Bain Capital, QED Investors, Union Square Ventures, Point72, and Pantera Capital. Read full article ⇒
Penn will launch a blockchain startup accelerator in spring 2022
Penn’s Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance will launch a blockchain-specific accelerator program, the Cypher Accelerator, starting in spring 2022. The program will accept a cohort of 10-15 projects every semester to complete a three-month program that prepares them to launch a blockchain or cryptocurrency company. Read full article ⇒
New Frontiers in Finance and Philanthropy
The Wharton School has long been synonymous with an educational experience at the leading edge of global business and finance. The School has solidified this reputation during the More Than Ever campaign, thanks in part to the newly established Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance. Read full article ⇒
Fintech Charters: What Does the Future Hold?
Financial technology firms, or fintechs, are facing a crucial time with regulators questioning plans to give them charters that would enable them to offer products similar to those of banks, but with relatively fewer regulatory requirements. Read full article ⇒
Why Regulation Won’t Harm Cryptocurrencies
The confirmation on April 14 of Gary Gensler as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission has fueled worries that increased regulation of cryptocurrencies would hurt trading volumes and prices and stifle innovation in the nascent segment, and prompt industry participants to flee to less stringent jurisdictions. Read full article ⇒
How Can Financial Institutions Prepare for AI Risks?
Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies hold big promise for the financial services industry, but they also bring risks that must be addressed with the right governance approaches, according to a white paper by a group of academics and executives from the financial services and technology industries, published by Wharton AI for Business. Read full article ⇒
Explore More Podcasts that Feature the Stevens Center
Wharton FinTech Podcast
CONNECTING YOU WITH THE PEOPLE, COMPANIES, AND IDEAS REVOLUTIONIZING FINANCE
The Wharton Fintech Club aims to promote fintech and foster innovation through a podcast series that features leaders from a vast range of fintech companies and fintech investors around the world.