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DELAWARE BETS BIG ON FINTECH
Adaptable coders ready for work
BY KATIE TABELING
The more things change, the more they stay the same
That’s the philosophy behind building up Delaware’s
base of coders and technologists as FinTech, or financial technology, services become more entrenched with revolutionary blockchain software. Technology can change every six months — or faster — so the idea behind tech-based workforce development programs is to teach the theory,
and not what’s trending.
Blockchain creates a single record of any data transaction that can be shared with multiple people without a system administrator: like a ledger used for book-keeping. By design, it’s more resistant to hacking and it’s faster because its data
is stored through shared infrastructure across a network instead of a central location.
“It’s really a computer science breakthrough and that’s why everyone talks about it as much as they do,” said John Collins, co-founder of First State FinTech Labs, a state nonprofit
that advocates for fintech growth. He added that financial institutions are primarily using blockchain to move securities digitally within minutes compared to days.
“Basically, any sort of back office function at a financial institution that requires a lot of paperwork and a lot of time, there are potential improvements that blockchain can allow,” Collins said.
While blockchain is a game-changer for financial institutions, Code Differently co-founder and Chief
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Information Officer Tariq Hook pointed out there’s plenty of applications in manufacturing, retail, health care and more.
“Say a data file is created when you’re born. When you go to a doctor or change doctors, that data follows in an encrypted setting that you give permission for the doctor to access. With logistics, you can track every stop a product makes along the way, and it’ll be harder for someone to steal it,” Hook said. “Fraud is impossible, because not only is every transaction recorded, it’s validated with every system in the network.”
As the financial industry evolves, so does the demand for coders willing to adapt to a new world. Delaware accounted for 75% of all fintech investment in the Philadelphia region in 2018 and that may not account for investments in fast-growing firms like online lender Marlette Funding.
In that same year, there were 2,500 tech jobs in software developers, computer systems engineers, information security analysts and more, according to the Delaware Propensity Partnership.
Blockchain may be on the verge of a breakthrough in financial services — JP Morgan Chase announced in October it would dedicate 100 employees to its digital currency efforts — and with it comes the potential of a whole new sector
for Delaware coders and the programs that train them.
Over the course of 10 years that Tech Impact, a nonprofit that trains teens and young adults for tech careers, has been in business, the jobs have changed from standard roles at IT Help Desk, to more active programming to manage the technology.