Brandon Dulisse, Chivon H. Fitch, Nathan T. Connealy
This study explores two communityâuniversity collaborations at the University of Tampaâthe Industry Advisory Board (IAB, est. 2021) and the Criminology Institute for Research and Training (CIRT, est. 2023). Grounded in translational criminology, these initiatives bridge researcherâpractitioner divides through collaborative, evidence-based policy and practice. The IAB, with 25+ agencies, enhances curriculum, research, and student preparedness, while CIRT disseminates evidence-based practices via trainings, symposia, and grant-funded studies on issues like cryptocurrency fraud. Findings reveal that translational criminology thrivesâdefined as growth to 25+ agency partners, 20+ annual student internships/jobs, annual training and certification events, and four publicationsâthrough inclusive stakeholder engagement, clear agenda-setting, and continuous evaluation. These partnerships evolve despite challenges like agency turnover, offering a replicable model for sustainable academicâpractitionerâstudent collaborations. Future directions include expanding to 50+ agencies and aligning curricula with practitioner needs to drive impactful reform.
In the rapidly evolving landscape of financial technology (FinTech), the intersection of digital innovation capabilities (DICs) and Islamic social finance presents a fertile ground for enhancing sustainability in financial practices. This study employs a qualitative approach, specifically content analysis of existing literature sourced from journal databases. This theoretical review explores how DICs encompassing digitalization and digital transformation can influence the sustainability of Islamic social finance initiatives. Islamic social finance, rooted in principles of social justice and equitable distribution, aims to address socio-economic challenges while adhering to Shariah compliance. By synthesizing current literature and theoretical frameworks, this review elucidates the potential strategies in optimizing Islamic social finance mechanisms, improving transparency, efficiency, and reach. The analysis highlights key digital innovations, such as blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud computing (CC). The review also proposes a conceptual model for integrating DICs with Islamic social finance to foster greater sustainability. This theoretical examination offers insights into how digital advancements can support the long-term goals of Islamic social finance, contributing to both economic development and social welfare.
This chapter explores the transformative role of Financial Technology (FinTech) in advancing green finance, a crucial component in addressing global sustainability challenges. By integrating technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), big data analytics, and smart contracts, FinTech facilitates the efficient allocation of capital towards sustainable projects. The chapter examines how these innovations enhance transparency, optimize risk assessment, and enable decentralized financing models like peer-to-peer energy trading and tokenization. Additionally, it addresses the challenges posed by greenwashing, market volatility, and regulatory uncertainty, while highlighting the future opportunities for growth in green finance. Ultimately, the chapter underscores the potential of FinTech to drive systemic change and promote a low-carbon, sustainable economy.
Abstract This article analyses the European Unionâs regulatory evolution regarding Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) in financial markets, tracing the journey from the inception of Regulation (EU) 2022/858 to the transformative Market Integration and Supervision Package (MISP). It explores the foundational value proposition of tokenisation, namely atomic settlement and fractionalisation, while contrasting institutional successes like Project Guardian with systemic failures such as the ASX CHESS replacement. The study identifies the âceiling on successâ inherent in the initial DLT Pilot Regime (DLTR), characterised by restrictive capitalisation thresholds and a lack of native cash leg integration. The analysis further evaluates the 2025 ESMA recommendations and the Commissionâs subsequent MISP proposal, which seeks to establish a permanent, scalable architecture through unbundled CSD services introducing DLT Notaries and Account Keepers, and significantly elevated aggregate thresholds of âŹ100 billion. The article concludes by arguing that the frameworkâs ultimate success depends on securing European technological sovereignty and maintaining an agile, national-level supervisory model rather than succumbing to premature centralisation.
Hasni Dyah Kurniawati, Saefudin Saefudin, fernando julio parera, Nurlyana Puspitasari ¡ 7 authors
<ns3:p> Research background In recent decades, venture capital (VC) has increasingly incorporated sustainability principles, reflecting the global shift toward environmentally and socially responsible investment. The alignment of VC with sustainability goals responds to the climate crisis, technological transformation, and social expectations for ethical finance. However, research on the VCâsustainability nexus remains fragmented across disciplines, requiring systematic mapping to clarify key trends and research gaps. This study aims to map the global evolution of VC research within the context of sustainability. It identifies publication trends, collaboration patterns, main thematic clusters, and emerging research areas to provide an integrated understanding of this growing field. Methods A mixed-methods bibliometric analysis was conducted using data retrieved from the Scopus database for the period 2002â2025. Analytical tools including <ns3:italic>RStudio and VOSviewer</ns3:italic> were applied to examine publication dynamics, co-authorship networks, and conceptual structures. The SPAR-4-SLR protocol was adopted to ensure methodological transparency and rigor. Discussion Results show that international collaborationâparticularly among China, the United States, and the United Kingdomâdrives sustainable innovation in the VC ecosystem. Three main clusters were identified: the theoretical evolution of VC, long-term policy and economic frameworks, and VCâs role in green entrepreneurship and sustainable technology. Research on emerging themes such as decentralized finance (DeFi), machine learning, and risk modeling remains limited. This study adds value by offering a systematic overview of the intellectual landscape and highlighting future research directions to strengthen VCâs contribution to global sustainability. </ns3:p>
Pierluigi Martino, Christian Fisch, Cristiano Bellavitis
The emergence of new and powerful technologies has introduced novel players and innovative methods for financing entrepreneurial ventures. Blockchain technology is one example of a transformative technology that has significantly affected entrepreneurial finance in recent years, paving the way for a variety of alternative financial channels centered on digital technology, decentralization, and disintermediation. This chapter provides an overview of the current landscape of blockchain-based funding mechanisms by describing (1) initial coin offerings (ICOs), (2) initial exchange offerings (IEOs), (3) security token offerings (STOs), (4) non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and (5) decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). Initial DEX offerings (IDOs), airdrops, and cryptocurrency loans are also explored briefly. This overview aims to expand the academic understanding of the evolving blockchain-based financing landscape, helping researchers and practitioners gain insights into emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities.
Shahinaz Hanem Abdellatif, Marwan Kobtan, Mostafa Zeinelabdein, Ramina Pashaee
The study examines the role of development finance theory, stakeholdersâ theory, creating shared value (CSV), and the triple bottom line (TBL) framework to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Most studies focus on sustainable Business Models (SBMs) from the perspective of developed countries and often overlook the interdisciplinary nature and peculiarities of emerging economies, in terms of technology opportunities, financing constraints, and governance challenges, in the Global South. This study proposes a multi-layered framework to advance economic sustainability in emerging economies by integrating blended green finance, public-private partnerships (PPP), and fintech-enabled SBMs. The multi-layered framework redefines traditional PPP as a collaborative delivery and governance mechanism involving public, private, and development multilateral organizations to implement Economic, Social, Governance (ESG), and climate-aligned infrastructure. It also reshapes the role of blended finance strategies and emphasizes the often-overlooked role of non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs); particularly leasing companies, small and microfinance institutions, alongside banks in enabling inclusive green finance, and incorporates financial technology (FinTech) innovations, including decentralized finance (DeFi), blockchain, and digital crowdfunding, to improve access to capital, and financial inclusion. Tailored to the context of MENA economies, like Egypt's Vision 2030, the framework offers policy insights and a smooth transition toward sustainable development. Keywords: Economic Sustainability, Green Finance, Blended Finance, Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), Fintech-Enabled Sustainable Business Models, Economic, Social, Governance (ESG), Egypt Vision 2030
Abstract The relationship between Fintech and Financial inclusion has emerged dramatically in the last five years as this study presents detailed bibliometric research on the interactions between Fintech and financial inclusion. The major goal of this study was to map the intellectual trends, influential work, and current research topics in this fast-developing field. Based on the data obtained from the Scopus database (2020â2025) and processed using VOSviewer, this study elaborates on descriptive, keyword co-occurrence, and bibliographic coupling analyses. The most important findings are that there has been immense growth in Fintech-FI research since 2020, and the research is mainly concentrated in China, India, and the USA, where most research and articles have been published. This study identified nine thematic clusters such as decentralized finance and AI in banking and the significance of financial literacy. The fast increase in publication but a gap appears between the number of publications and the number of publications that are impacted, which means that there is still a necessity to make some significant, long-lasting contributions. It would be curious to explore the use of behavioral finance, regional comparisons of the regulatory environment, EFT application in empowering SMEs and embracing ESG, and the significance of ethics in the context of digital finance in improving fair and sound financial systems in the world in future.
This study examines the role of impact investing and climate finance in generating measurable social value through renewable energy projects by applying the Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework. Growing global investment in renewable energy has emphasized financial performance and emission reduction outcomes, while systematic measurement of social impacts remains limited. The purpose of this research is to assess how SROI can be used to quantify the social and environmental value created by renewable energy investments and to demonstrate its relevance for impact-oriented decision-making. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining secondary project data analysis, stakeholder engagement, outcome mapping, and monetization of social and environmental benefits to calculate SROI ratios. The findings reveal that renewable energy projects consistently produce social returns exceeding the initial investment, with SROI ratios varying according to project type, scale, stakeholder involvement, and socio-economic context. Community-based and decentralized projects tend to generate higher relative social returns, driven by employment creation, improved energy access, health improvements, and environmental benefits. The study concludes that integrating SROI into climate finance evaluation enhances transparency, accountability, and alignment between financial objectives and sustainable development goals.
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) offers open and permissionless financial services, but its core infrastructure remains exposed to serious security failures. Representative infrastructure classes such as decentralized exchanges (DEXs), protocols for loanable funds (PLFs), and cross-chain bridges matter because failures can propagate widely. This work presents a layered and empirically grounded framework for DeFi vulnerability prioritization. We analyze 558 exploit incidents from 2021â2025 and trace their mechanisms, vulnerabilities, and threat vectors across representative DeFi infrastructure classes. We introduce three complementary components: (1) a Risk Priority Number (RPN) used as an interpretable FMEA-style baseline for attack ranking, (2) an Adversarial Feasibility Score (AFS) that captures exploit feasibility from mapped adversarial-trait prevalence and accessibility, and (3) a Vulnerability-Centric Risk Score (VRS) defined as a structured priority ranking combining empirical likelihood, absolute economic severity, and attacker feasibility. The main validated model uses median per-incident USD loss as a consistent severity signal across the full incident dataset. Temporal validation shows that the structured vulnerability-priority model outperforms the multiplicative baseline and improves on the empirical base rank across both temporal holdouts and both future targets. The resulting framework provides an auditable remediation ordering for protocol developers, auditors, and risk managers.
Open access
Public-Private Partnership Projects
Infrastructure Resilience and Vulnerability Analysis
The enhanced future path of responsible investment will be marked with a strong but wise symbiosis of artificial intelligence, automation, and long-term human judgment. AI and automation are expected to take over data-heavy aspects of ESG and impact investing, machine-learning algorithms will continuously run satellite imagery, IoT stream of feeds, social-media sentiment, regulatory filings and social scandals, in order to calculate dynamic carbon footprints, detect greenwashing, predict climate-risks and assess social scandals, with amazing speed and sensitivity. Portfolio construction will also be made easier through automation, enabling hyper-personalised responsible investment products, e.g. green bonds with internal carbon-pricing logic, actively ESG-tilted ETFs or impact-linked loans, whose rates change according to measured sustainability KPIs. Distributed ledgers and blockchain will provide the unalterable traceability of green claims, carbon credits and sustainable supply chain and thereby reduce fraud and boost investor confidence.
Limited financing for decentralised renewable energy (DRE) projects has driven interest in impact labels like Distributed Renewable Energy Certificates (D-RECs). This working paper examines their role in India, exploring market processes, stakeholder perspectives, and how such instruments can support scaling DRE systems.
This paper analyzes the reconfiguration of business models in the Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ecosystem under the aegis of informational capitalism 4.0.It investigates the paradigmatic transition from restricted innovation to models of open innovation and algorithm-mediated co-creation, based on a new regime of mathematical trust.From a socio-technological perspective, it discusses the tensions between protocol autonomy and state regulation, identifying the challenges that algorithmic governance and social datafication pose to monetary sovereignty and ethics in the technology sector.It is concluded that the success of DeFi depends on the balance between radical decentralization and governance mechanisms that prevent the concentration of power, especially in the context of Latin American development.
Energy Communities (ECs) have emerged as central legal instruments for decentralized renewable energy deployment across Europe; however, their long-term viability depends critically on financial sustainability mechanisms that remain inadequately understood. This study examines the economic foundations of ECs through a narrative literature review of revenue generation, cost allocation, and the capital mobilization pathways in three representative European markets (Germany, Spain, and Italy). A structured Scopus database search identified 280 peer-reviewed studies published between 2019 and 2025. Following systematic screening, 89 articles were selected for analysis through bibliometric mapping in R (Biblioshiny) and qualitative synthesis in NVivo. The analysis reveals that stable feed-in tariffs, tax incentives, and self-consumption remuneration schemes form the primary revenue mechanisms, while cost management effectiveness varies substantially across countries due to differing grid-charge structures and administrative frameworks. Capital access remains constrained for smaller communities despite hybrid financing innovations combining public grants, cooperative equity, and emerging crowdfunding mechanisms. Regulatory heterogeneity, high upfront investment requirements, and limited institutional credit availability continue to impede scalability. The findings emphasize that achieving widespread EC adoption requires harmonized policy frameworks, transparent cost-sharing arrangements, and diversified investment instruments that align local participation with national decarbonization objectives while ensuring equitable access across diverse socio-economic contexts.
Abstract Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) use blockchain-based smart contracts to pool capital and execute votes without intermediaries, dramatically lowering costs and widening access to early-stage investment. Unlike traditional venture capital or even regulated crowdfunding portals, anyone with a compatible wallet can buy governance tokens, propose projects, and share upsideâcreating a global, retail-friendly investor commons that may surface ideas conventional funds ignore. Yet that very openness runs head-long into legal gray zones: Are DAO tokens unregistered securities? Who is liable when code malfunctions or a majority votes to break a rule? Lacking the corporate personhood, disclosure duties, and Know Your Customer checks that anchor crowdfunding platforms, DAOs drift between patchwork state LLC statutes and sporadic enforcement actions. Clear statutory definitions, retrofit governance standards, and tailored investor protection rules are now essential if policymakers hope to harness DAOsâ democratizing promise while containing systemic, consumer, and cyber-fraud risks.
Climate resilience activities in vulnerable regions often confront problems relating to the financial opacity, corruption, and the unreliable verification of outcomes. The paper proposes a blockchain system to strengthen transparency and traceability in climate adaptation funding, particularly for green infrastructure. Using smart contracts and Internet of Things (IoT)- verified geospatial data, the system assures the real-time monitoring of performance metrics and releases funds securely upon assessed performance. A hybrid PoW/PoS consensus mechanism is suggested to enable scalability while remaining energy friendly toward resource-constrained geographies. Pilot implementation among small countries is scheduled to assess the adoption and governance. The goal is for this model to restore public faith and speed climate resilience activities in places where the traditional setup fails.
The article is devoted to analyzing the conceptual and methodological challenges that Decentralized Financial Assets (DFAs) pose to modern economic theory and financial analysis. The author argues that DFAs, possessing properties such as programmability, autonomy, and the network nature of value, do not fit into traditional asset classifications or existing theoretical valuation models. The ontological gap between DFAs as âprogrammable economic interfacesâ and classical financial instruments is emphasized. The paper examines specific DFA risks and mechanisms, such as automated market makers, staking, and Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs), for which standard analytical methods are inapplicable. The author highlights the necessity of developing new hybrid valuation approaches that combine tokenomics and onchain metrics analysis, as well as adapting portfolio analysis and risk models. In conclusion, the main global regulatory approaches to DFAs are reviewed, with the final argument that their sustainable integration into the financial system requires, first and foremost, a profound rethinking of fundamental economic categories.