Inside Oxford
INSIDE OXFORD
University Vice-Chancellor and Mr Bill Nie at the launch of the Oxford-Nie Financial Big Data Laboratory in Oxford
There is nothing more prevalent, more modern and more focused on the future than the revolution in big data. Oxford University’s commitment to the use and development of information analytics in cutting edge health research has already been demonstrated in the launch last year of the Li Ka Shing Big Data Centre for Health Information and Discovery. Now, the University has put on a strong focus on the role of big data in financial mathematics through the establishment of the Oxford-Nie Financial Big Data Laboratory.
The new Andrew Wiles Building, home of the Mathematics Institute. Credit: architecture.com
Located in the magnificent new Andrew Wiles Building, home of the Mathematics Institute, the Laboratory was officially opened on 29 October by University Vice-Chancellor Professor Andrew Hamilton in the presence of benefactor Mr Bill Nie, Founder and CEO of Financial Data Technologies Ltd Limited (FDT). The first research laboratory in this area at a major university, the centre will be at the front line of data science research applied to finance and will provide a platform for research collaboration between academics, practitioners and regulators. It will also generate research that informs how financial firms should manage big data and make the best use of it.
FDT is a global financial technology company based in Hong Kong. Since its founding, it has trained thousands of university graduates who have become seasoned investors and traders. Its mission is to discover trading talents and to give them the opportunity to invest, regardless of their socioeconomic background or academic discipline. To achieve this, the company has launched the FDT Investment Incubator, a professional investment trading system which will be available free of cost to university students worldwide. Besides its work in researching and analysing the behavioural data of the financial market, the Oxford-Nie Financial Big Data Laboratory will also be the first step in the wider international community promotion of the FDT Incubator.
The opening ceremony of the Laboratory also featured a seminar led by Professor Viktor Mayer-Schönberger of the Oxford Internet Institute and author of “Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think. ” Professor Mayer-Schönberger talked about Big Data’s impact on society and its economic applications, limits and ramifications. He argued that big data and all the opportunities it brings are to be welcomed, one should also approach them with humility and humanity.
Written in December 2014