Cryptocurrency is a digital form of money that uses state-of-the-art encryption, known as cryptography, to secure transactions and protect ownership. Unlike government-issued traditional currencies such as the U.S. dollar, most cryptocurrencies are not backed or controlled by a government or central bank. Instead, they operate on a blockchain, which is a secure, shared digital ledger that records every transaction across a network of computers.
This decentralized system allows people to send and receive money directly without relying on a bank or other financial institution to process the transaction. Popular cryptocurrencies include Bitcoin, which is often viewed as a digital store of value; Ethereum, which powers decentralized applications and smart contracts; and stablecoins like USD Coin (USDC), which are intended to maintain a value close to one U.S. dollar.
While financial technologies (fintech) like cryptocurrency offer benefits such as fast global transactions, around-the-clock accessibility and greater control over one's own assets, they also come with price volatility risks, scams and the responsibility of securely managing digital wallets and private keys.
As fintech continues to change how traditional finance works, Stevens Institute of Technology understands the importance of providing students with a technology-infused business education.
Quantitative Finance and Financial Technology Programs
The Quantitative Finance undergraduate program at the Stevens School of Business is a fantastic choice for high school students interested in a career managing financial assets and risk for firms on Wall Street and beyond, ranging from risk management to investment banking to financial modeling. The curriculum emphasizes business, math, finance and computer science, preparing students to understand and seize new opportunities across industry categories. Since the program’s inception, virtually 100 percent of its graduates have secured high-paying jobs on and off Wall Street within six months of commencement.
Stevens also has two graduate programs for professionals looking to accelerate their fintech career. The Master’s in Financing Engineering program teaches students to become experts in computer science, statistics, economics and mathematics to develop solutions to increasingly complex problems, such as how to value an asset, how to assess risk and the smartest ways to manage a portfolio. These experts, also known as “Quants,” are some of the most sought-after professionals on Wall Street for their coding versatility and ability to model financial data to drive better decision-making. The Financial Engineering program at the School of Business ranked #19 in QuantNet's 2026 Best Financial Engineering Master's programs in the United States. QuantNet is the most authoritative and comprehensive ranking of best Financial Engineering programs in the United States.
The Master’s in Financial Technology and Analytics is a great option for those looking to become financial analysts. Students will learn how to combine programming, data analysis and statistics to design innovative solutions to financial problems. Graduates will be able to build advanced analytical models, make enterprise data analytics decisions and orchestrate advanced financial systems technology resources in a cloud-based data-driven distributed environment.
Hanlon Financial Systems Center
Students have access to the Hanlon Financial Systems Center, equipped with the latest technologies used by Wall Street firms and global financial institutions, providing them with a competitive edge in the job market. This state-of-the-art facility integrates leading-edge hardware and software technologies, providing access to both real-time and historical financial data. It catalyzes pioneering research into prevalent and pressing issues within modern finance, driving innovation and exploration in the field.
Center for Research toward Advancing Financial Technologies (CRAFT)
Stevens, together with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, founded CRAFT, the Center for Research toward Advancing Financial Technologies, in 2021. It is the first fintech-focused Industry-University Cooperative Research Center funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). CRAFT will collaborate with academic and industry partners to create innovative solutions such as decentralized finance, AI-enabled finance and quantum finance to ensure financial system stability for all.
Hao Fu is a Stevens financial engineering Ph.D. student and part of the “DeFi” research team led by professors Zach Feinstein and Ionut Florescu. Decentralized finance emerged in 2009, with the introduction of Bitcoin and blockchain technology. The concept is built on the idea of a financial system that is free from central authorities, governed instead by transparent, consensus-based networks.
“If you want to buy an ETF (exchange-traded fund) like the S&P 500, you normally pay annual management fees,” Hao explained. “But for the blockchain version we can use code to automatically manage the ETF. That's one line of research we are exploring. The traditional ETF has a firm that actively maintains their portfolio to matching some benchmark. On blockchain, there are no middlemen. It's just a one code running to automatically match the buyer and seller. That's why it cuts a lot of the transaction costs. You don't need to pay anyone to maintain that portfolio.”
Lowering transaction costs and in turn, the barrier to entry, isn’t the only way DeFi can help democratize investing. It also addresses privacy and timing concerns that can keep people out of the market.
“Some people focus on their privacy,” he said, “You don't need to have a Social Security number to use blockchain. You don't have a lot of requirements or limitations to buy the stocks. In the U.S., foreigners have to pay for an international money wire. It can cost $100 and take five days for every simple transaction, but on blockchain, you just need maybe a couple of cents, and it’s done almost immediately.”
New Jersey Fintech Accelerator at Stevens Institute of Technology (NJ FAST)
Stevens is a partner in the NJ Fintech Accelerator at Stevens Institute of Technology (NJ FAST), the fourth Strategic Innovation Center (SIC) in New Jersey. This initiative is a collaboration between Stevens Institute of Technology, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA), Prudential Financial and Plug and Play. NJ FAST aims to deliver significant economic impact by supporting startups with innovative, world-class ideas and position New Jersey as a leader in the research, development, innovation, and entrepreneurship of the financial and insurance technology sectors.
The Future of Finance
As cryptocurrency adoption increases with regulatory clarity and fintech integrates with AI and machine learning, it is imperative to understand how this is reshaping finance. The Stevens quantitative finance and financial technology and analytics degrees combine traditional business education with financial technology expertise to prepare students for careers in this rapidly evolving sector.
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