UCL Professor of Applied Economics and Finance, Francesca Medda, is founding Director of the Institute of Finance and Technology. Her key research areas are digital finance, impact & sustainable finance, and urban & infrastructure investments.

We sat down with Professor Francesca Medda to discuss her career, the Institute and its vision.

Q. What does being Director of the Institute of Finance and Technology involve?

It is difficult to pin down exactly what I do on a day-to-day basis – thus far, my role varies and every day is different! I developed this programme expressly to provide students with courses that combine industry with academia – that idea became the overarching umbrella for the entire programme and everything sits underneath it. As these are early days for the programme, I’m working with the department to ensure that the courses meet the highest UCL standards. I’m also speaking with students interested in taking part, as well as liaising with the lecturers. Each day offers new opportunities and – at times – new challenges to overcome. Setting up a new programme is never easy, but I’m very satisfied with the depth and scope of the courses and the interest is overwhelming! My own research comprises another part of my role. Three key emphases: digital finance, impact and sustainable finance, and urban and infrastructure investments means that my research dovetails nicely with the themes of the programme.

Q. Tell us a little bit about yourself – what is your professional and educational background?

My studies have taken me across Europe. My undergraduate degree is in Engineering at a university in Italy. I then moved to London and studied Economics at the London School of Economics (LSE), and from there I went to Amsterdam to continue my studies in Economics at the Tinbergen Institute. I was already working in finance when I started my career in academia. My first position was at LSE, with a move to UCL a few years later. I am also an economic adviser to the UK Ministry of Environment and Agriculture (Defra) and the Ministry of Finance (HM Treasury).

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