The Dawn of the Mega-Platform
Disruption of the financial sector is just on the horizon, says Haydn Shaughnessy, author and innovation specialist. He presented a webinar on “The Rise of Mega-Platforms and the Risks to Banking” to the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) on May 25, 2016. His books include The Elastic Enterprise, Shift, and (most recently) Platform Disruption Wave. “What are the consequences of the disintegration of industry structures?” Shaughnessy asked. Most people see innovation as trying to get more of something that’s desirable, he said, but they might not understand clearly where they are headed. In short, what is the “big picture” […]
Fast Turnaround of Complex Math
Imagine you are driving your brand-new mini-van, the latest Drake album cranked on high, the windshield wipers at top tempo, and the heater keeping things toasty. You go to switch the headlights to high-beam—and you are suddenly hit by the unmistakable odour of melting circuits…. Not a happy situation. It’s one that automotive designers the world over try to avoid by extensive testing of many different usage scenarios. Problem-solving tools have dramatically changed the way engineers advance their knowledge, for financial, automotive, chemical, and other sectors. Many products and technologies we take for granted—such as the electronic circuitry in a […]
Worst Case Analysis Made Easy
Can symbolic computing improve real-world design? Definitely yes, according to the product development team at the automotive firm Delphi. “Each time the circuits were changed, the electrical equations changed. We turned to symbolic computing so that we could quickly deal with design changes,” said Michael G. McDermott, Senior Development Engineer at Delphi. He was the second speaker in a webinar on May 25, 2016, titled “How Far Can Your Math Knowledge Go?” Lights, heating, movies for kids in the back to watch… Over time, vehicles have come to have more and more elaborate electronics. These can lead to unpredictable stresses […]
The Case for Symbolic Computing
Should you care about symbolic computing? If your work involves concepts that are expressed in math, and if you want to reduce errors and routine work, then Samir Khan says, yes, you should. Khan, Product Manager at Maplesoft, was the first speaker in a webinar on May 25, 2016, titled “How Far Can Your Math Knowledge Go?” “Symbolic computing allows you to automatically derive system equations using well-defined rules,” said Khan. “It allows you to mechanize your work with equations, such as the routine manipulations that are done in algebra.” The traditional design process means the designer (or engineer or […]
“Worse Than Silverfish”
Some authors go to great lengths to make their monographs up-to-the-moment. In this excerpt, the authors refer to a popular and critically acclaimed TV series. It’s a calculated risk. They use an obsession of the (fictional) characters—the money they are amassing—to tie into the very real phenomenon of hyperinflation. Today’s excerpt comes from page 103 of the book The Evolution of Money by David Orrell and Roman Chlupaty (Columbia University Press, 2016). “To visualize how hyperinflation can affect one’s personal savings, fans of the TV show Breaking Bad will recall the episode in season 5 in which it is shown […]
War, Kidnapping, Data Theft
War, kidnapping, and data theft: Is it some fiction pot-boiler that’s come over the transom? No, it’s the chapter on how the gross domestic product (GDP) came into being in Germany. Today’s excerpt comes from pages 117-8 of the book The Power of a Single Number: A Political History of GDP by Philipp Lepenies, translated by Jeremy Gaines (Columbia University Press, 2016). “[John Kenneth] Galbraith was surprised by the results of his calculations and surveys because they, for the first time, provided a clear picture of the Nazi economy. Because no set of tools comparable to gross national product calculation existed on […]
Platform of the Future
What will be the ideal modelling platform of future bankers? It will need to contain key functionalities in model execution, scenario management, and a “risk engine” that will deliver answers for multiple horizons at the loan level. Furthermore, it should implement the most advanced modelling suites, reduce the quants’ time to develop models, and contain simulation capabilities for stress testing and beyond. This bold vision of the future was presented by Martim Rocha, Advisory Business Solution Manager at SAS. He was the second of two presenters at the February 25, 2016, webinar offered by the Global Association of Risk Professionals […]
Integrated Data and Modelling
How can today’s bankers prepare for tomorrow’s challenges? Consider the financial models built using available data. Data collection and financial modelling used to be conducted in each different silos of the bank, with credit separate from market, which was separate from treasury and other groups). Then data became “managed” and modelling was moved to “platforms” which did not mix well between the various silos. A few brave souls began to integrate the data management for different groups of the bank. Other brave souls tried to integrate the modelling. This was the phase of integration achieved through batch calculations. Now, the […]
The Latest & Greatest
Although the next round of changes to accounting standards will not come into effect until 2018, alert financial analysts should already be asking companies about how they plan to address them, according to Canada’s top accountant. “Pay attention now, because companies do have the option to adopt” and some, such as Canadian banks, are adopting IFRS 9 early, said Linda Mezon, Chair of the Accounting Standards Board (AcSB). She was speaking at a webinar on January 21, 2016, to members of CFA Society Toronto and CPA Canada on the recent developments in accounting standards and emerging trends impacting financial statements. […]
“Feedback Difficult to Obtain”
In the financial world, change is a constant. Regulators can barely keep up. Who decides what regulatory changes need to be made? And who can apply the brakes, if a certain type of change is having unintended consequences? Canada’s top accountant briefed the members of the CFA Society Toronto jointly with CPA Canada at a webinar on January 21, 2016. “Feedback is important but difficult to obtain,” said Linda Mezon, FCPA, FCA, who is the Chair of the Accounting Standards Board (AcSB). She summarized how Canadians and the AcSB influence the development of International Financial Reporting Standards. “The Accounting Standards […]