On 14 September, as part of its master’s degrees and programmes in finance, Centro de Estudios Garrigues hosted the first day of a series of conferences entitled ‘Financial and banking challenges for the 2022/23 academic year’.

The round table was attended by Lola Conde Ruano, academic director of the Master in Financial Markets & Investment Banking; Jaime Albella, director for education at CFA Society Spain; and Fernando Moroy Hueto, director of the Executive Programme in Fintech & Digital Banking at Centro de Estudios Garrigues. The participants discussed issues related to the main challenges facing the financial sector, the fundamental role played by ethics and sustainability in this environment, and the importance of academic excellence in the education of financial professionals.

One of the challenges discussed was globalisation. Today, financial markets and investment banking are an essential sector of society and the economy. We are experiencing unstoppable globalisation: the economy has become borderless, it has become global, even if it is sometimes referred to in regional or localised terms. In this global environment, it is essential that financial market operators face inevitable change with a sense of natural optimism. This requires, above all, excellent technical training. Lola Conde Ruano highlighted the need to incorporate highly qualified profiles in all financial institutions and indicated that ‘Our Master in Financial Markets is a demanding programme that prepares students to join the financial world, and by offering it in conjunction with the CFA certificate, we are providing students with nationally and internationally accredited training. Being a CFA is something that everyone in the financial world recognises.’

Financial knowledge is a global language, spoken the same way wherever you are. That is why a CFA is so important, providing this knowledge through societies. Jaime Albella highlighted the two main advantages of the CFA: (i) the holistic knowledge that includes corporate, derivatives, financial ethics, etc.; and (ii) the fact that it is a global financial qualification. Completing the CFA can boost a professional’s career in the financial field in terms of knowledge, networking, and, of course, recognition in society. The CFA has a very high and valuable return in terms of employability in the financial sector.

The technological revolution was also discussed as a fundamental challenge for the financial sector. Fernando Moroy Hueto pointed out that ‘We cannot understand the financial industry without understanding a third vector that has to do with technology. If there is one industry that has been impacted by technology, it is the financial sector and industry. Today, financial professionals need to embrace elements related to that vector. Today, a financier cannot fail to understand big data, artificial intelligence, analytics, etc. Technology, along with a solid understanding of the legal and financial sector, is a critical ingredient in financial management.’

The Master in Financial Markets has also been expanded to include a Fintech module. This module highlights the Fintech ecosystem along three dimensions: from a legal perspective, explaining the significance of these new tools and the possible directions they could lead to; from a legal perspective, providing insight into the legal mechanisms being developed to modernise the financial system (especially the Spanish National Securities Market Commission); and from a technological perspective, focusing on the financial sector.

During the round table, the speakers placed special emphasis on the ethical dimension of financial management. Today’s challenge is no longer only to respond to society’s demands; the way things are done has also become particularly relevant. Lola Conde Ruano noted that ‘It has to be done well and in accordance with the sustainable development goals. Society no longer wants us to work only for the present. It has shown that it wants us to work for the benefit of the present generation, but always keeping the future generations in mind. Everyone in the financial world today needs to be aware of the SDGs or concepts such as responsible banking or ESG. We must do things in a way that has a positive impact on communities, going beyond the concept of corporate social responsibility. That means doing things according to criteria related to ethics, personal and business sustainability, and the sustainability of our financial and economic systems, bearing in mind the future generations.’

In this regard, the CFA attaches the utmost importance to values and ethics. Jaime Albella shared his personal experience, noting that there are situations in finance that may seem very obvious, but there are many more that raise a lot of doubts as to how to resolve them. That is why the CFA regulates all global codes of conduct and, each year, revises the code of ethics used to guide professionals on how to act in complicated and conflicting situations.

The session concluded with a discussion on the challenge of financial education of society. Financial literacy is currently a commitment of most of the world’s financial institutions. Lola Conde Ruano warned that ‘No professional should be unaware of the general principles of how the market works.’ According to the director of the Master in Financial Markets & Investment Banking, we must apply the ‘right to understand’ of consumers and investors in financial services, because everything that is done in terms of governance, ethics, and financial literacy is key to the protection of the market and to the protection of the global transactional system between issuers and investors in securities. Ultimately, the market and the economy at the highest level are driven by trust. We are all objects and subjects of that market, and we all need to understand how it works. Finance professionals must be prepared to work to build a safe, secure, and ethical financial system that benefits society today and in the future.

We at Centro de Estudios Garrigues are grateful to all the speakers and congratulate them for their brilliant contributions to this debate.