On Thursday and Friday, October 27-28, 2016, the Office of Financial Research and the University of Michigan’s Center on Finance, Law and Policy will host a joint conference, “Big Data in Finance” in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The conference will bring together a wide range of scholars, regulators, policymakers, and practitioners to explore how big data can be used to enhance financial stability and address other challenges in financial markets.

The Big Data in finance conference, which is held in collaboration with the Michigan Institute for Data Science (MIDAS), the Michigan Ross School of Business, the Michigan College of Engineering and Michigan Law School will explore ways to make financial data more accessible and more secure, as well as more useful to regulators, market participants, and the public. As new data sets are created, opportunities emerge. Vast quantities of financial data may help identify emerging risks, enable market participants and regulators to see and better understand financial networks and interconnections, enhance financial stability, bolster consumer protection, and increase access to the underserved. Financial data can also increase transparency in the financial system for market participants, regulators and the public.

However, these vast data sets can raise significant questions about protecting security and privacy; ensuring data quality; protecting against discrimination or privacy intrusions; managing and analyzing enormous data sets; synthesizing and presenting data in usable form; and sharing data among regulators, researchers, and the public. Moreover, any conflicts among regulators and financial firms over such data could create opportunities for regulatory arbitrage and gaps in understanding risk in the financial system.

How should all of that data be aggregated, protected, analyzed, and shared? We have recruited experts domestically and internationally who have considered these questions and published research on these topics, or who have dealt with these issues in their professional roles and can ground the policy initiatives with real-world experience.

Please register at http://financelawpolicy.umich.edu/big-data-conference/.

*Please note: registration to the Big Data conference is free and open to the public, but space is limited. Registration will close when we reach capacity.