Open Data and Intelligent Finance

Saïd Business School via Coursera

Go to class Write review

Overview

Coursera Flash Sale

40% Off Coursera Plus for 3 Months!

Grab it

Financial services are changing, from how they’re designed to how they’re delivered. Increasingly, the tools we use to bank, borrow, save, and invest are powered by artificial intelligence, delivered through platforms, and built on open data infrastructure. But what happens when finance becomes invisible? When decisions are automated? When users don’t realise they’re engaging with a financial product? This course explores the rise of intelligent, data-driven finance and how to design systems that are not only efficient but also ethical and inclusive. You’ll learn how Open Data and Open Finance enable cross-sector innovation, and how AI transforms static products into real-time, personalised services. You’ll explore embedded finance models and platform architectures, and examine real-world case studies from global leaders like the UK, India, and Brazil. Along the way, you’ll investigate risks, from consent fragmentation and data inequality to black-box decision-making and regulatory blind spots. Through hands-on activities and a final design project, you’ll apply your learning to propose responsible, user-centred innovations for the future of finance. By the end of the course, you will be able to: • Define the principles and evolution of Open Data and its relationship to Open Banking and Open Finance. • Analyse the key technical, legal, and ethical components that support intelligent, data-driven financial ecosystems. • Evaluate how AI and blended data sources can improve personalisation, credit access, and service delivery. • Interpret global Smart Data initiatives and policy frameworks in countries like the UK, India, Brazil, and Australia. • Identify risks and governance challenges associated with AI, privacy, consent, and data inequality in finance. • Design responsible, inclusive data-sharing strategies that align with transparency, fairness, and innovation goals. This is the third course in the 'AI in Financial Services: Foundations through Future Trends' specialization. We recommend completing 'AI Fundamentals in Financial Services' and 'Designing the Future of Finance' courses first for a strong foundation before exploring open data and intelligent finance.

Syllabus

The evolution of Open Data in finance

This course examines how Open Data, platform ecosystems, and AI are reshaping financial services. You will explore how intelligent systems use open infrastructure to deliver more personalised, embedded, and data-driven experiences. Through global case studies and critical reflection, you will build the tools to engage with the future of ethical and intelligent finance.

Smarter financial ecosystems

This module explores how AI and real-time data are transforming traditional financial services into intelligent, personalised, and adaptive systems. From budgeting tools that adjust to income shifts to AI-powered lending platforms that assess risk in milliseconds, you'll examine how smart technologies are reshaping credit, savings, and investment. You’ll also learn to critically assess the design, benefits, and risks of these systems, including the role of automation, personalisation, and decision speed in building financial resilience or exclusion.

Embedded Finance and Platformisation

Finance is no longer limited to banks or dedicated apps, it’s becoming embedded into the digital platforms we use every day. This module unpacks how financial services are delivered through platforms, super apps, and modular ecosystems using open APIs and real-time data. You'll explore how payments, lending, and insurance are becoming invisible, and the new roles of infrastructure providers, BaaS partners, and API aggregators. The module also surfaces the regulatory, ethical, and competitive risks as financial access becomes platform-mediated.

Disruption, design, and real-world impact

AI-driven finance has the power to expand inclusion, or deepen inequality. This module focuses on the human impact of intelligent financial systems, exploring case studies where design intent shaped user outcomes. You'll examine how incentives, algorithms, and interface design can empower or exploit users. By comparing inclusive innovations with harmful missteps, you’ll learn how to design for fairness, transparency, and long-term wellbeing. The module also introduces practical governance tools and ethical design strategies to guide responsible financial innovation.

Review, reflect, and demonstrate your learning

In the final module, you’ll consolidate your learning and apply key concepts in a capstone assessment. You’ll revisit your reflections, explore the real-world implications of AI and data-driven finance, and design a fictional but plausible intelligent financial product. This final project invites you to connect data, design, and impact, demonstrating how Open Data, AI, and embedded delivery can be aligned with ethical, inclusive, and transparent financial innovation.