Fintech has a vital role to play, providing a digital toolbox for companies in the BFSI sector to thrive. Most companies are migrating to these digital tools to make them more efficient and error-free. Let us consider the recent claims by finance companies like JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, who state that they are now technology firms. According to Goldman Sachs, until 2017, almost half of their job postings – 47% to be precise – were for tech talents.

JPMorgan has employed 40,000 people who specialise in technology, and 18,000 of them are involved in creating intellectual property. As the shift keeps happening, global agendas also cause an upheaval in the industry. For example, Brexit caused angular geopolitical changes in the finance sector, and to cope with it, most industries had to employ technology.

As the BFSI sector has evolved, it can be said with some certainty that technology has always played a role, however subtle with us. Think about credit cards and ATMs. They have existed since the 1950s. Fintech has come a long way from there, getting christened and riding across trading floors to the latest personal banking apps and websites.

Lucrative Roles in Fintech

The four cornerstones of fintech are data science, artificial intelligence, machine learning and blockchain. Coupled with these comes the internet revolution and the advent of the smartphone that helped the BFSI sector grow. Fintech today covers a host of financial activities. Starting from money transfers, applying for credit, and raising money for a business, it stretches to cheque deposits using a smartphone and managing investments. One out of every three people uses technology to avail themselves at least two of these technological services. Thus, career opportunities have also increased manifold. A person can look at the various roles related to the sector and tap their talent pool accordingly to excel in the industry.

Some roles that have a bright future in the sector are:

Product Manager:The job bridges partnerships between merchant banks and financial institutions. These tie-ups are generally strategic and primarily crop up to plan solutions viable in the fintech sector regarding the utility of the services.

Data Scientist:A data scientist is responsible for creating sensible patterns out of a massive stream of data that falls into their hands daily. Sifting through them and creating a concrete plan that will help better financial products or come up with new products, data scientists are the most valuable assets that a fintech company has. They help identify holes in the systems and help organisations serve the underserved.

Cloud Management: With mounds of data being generated, there’s an increasing demand for storage management. Since technology has made it easier for people to store documents and files on cloud, a strong team is needed to manage glitches in its running. A company can govern the whole system, intact with cybersecurity, on the cloud now.

Full-stack Developer: They are computer programmers who play an essential role in developing websites and applications and handle. Full-stack developers are responsible for building user interactions on various platforms and have a flair for coding. These tech professionals work on prototype designs for multiple products.

Sales: Like any merchandise, a financial product will need takers to prove its worth. Sales managers are responsible for coming up with market plans to sell fintech products to prospective clients. They are responsible for campaigning – electrical, visual, auditory and even door-to-door. The sales team targets the right segments and brings in new customers.

UI/UX and Graphic Designer:These are creative minds who visualise interactive interfaces, develop a workflow, primarily for mobile apps. They are hired to ensure that customers spend more time on apps.

Product Engineer: Fintech companies need an agile development approach and product engineers quickly come up with them with open-stack application developers.

Pursuing a Career in Fintech

If you are looking to pursue a career in fintech, you need to start preparing from the undergraduate level.Not many institutes offer an undergraduate degree in fintech, but one can always go for alternate programs that can help them hone up the required skill set to excel in fintech. One can choose finance, economics, management, engineering or commerce for an undergraduate degree. These courses will create the foundation for a successful career. Graphic designers can also start young to curate a lucrative career in this industry.

Once the undergraduate degree is out of the way, the postgraduate domain becomes a little more specific. Some leading universities across the world offer PG programs in the field of financial technology. Online courses are slowly coming up as a leading source of knowledge. Coding programs with live projects seem to be getting a lot of attention nowadays.

The world, as we know it now, is changing every day at a breakneck speed. Economies and industries are coming together on virtual platforms and trading at a massive scale. At such a pass, efficiency is the winner, and fintech is the answer. If you love challenges that come with lucrative pay, look no further than fintech.

The author is the Chief Business Officer for BFSI at Manipal Global Education Services.