Introduction

The Centre for Research in Accounting, Finance and Technology (CRAFT) was established in 2022 at the FAST School of Management, National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (FAST-NUCES), Islamabad, with the vision of becoming a leading interdisciplinary research centre dedicated to advancing knowledge in accounting, finance, financial technology (FinTech), artificial intelligence (AI), and quantitative analytics. The Centre promotes excellence in research through the development and dissemination of innovative, evidence-based knowledge that addresses contemporary financial, managerial, and technological challenges. CRAFT aims to enhance understanding of accounting systems, corporate finance, financial markets, asset management, asset pricing, security analysis, financial inclusion, and digital finance through the application of advanced econometric techniques, statistical modelling, machine learning, deep learning, and data analytics. The centre provides an intellectual platform for faculty members, postgraduate researchers, industry experts, and policymakers to collaborate on solving real-world problems using rigorous empirical research. It actively encourages interdisciplinary collaboration between academia, government agencies, financial institutions, technology firms, and international researchers to generate practical solutions that support sustainable economic development and responsible innovation. CRAFT is committed to bridging the gap between academia and industry, particularly within emerging economies, by promoting applied research, external funding, consultancy, postgraduate supervision, policy dialogue, capacity building, and technology transfer. Through high-quality publications, seminars, conferences, workshops, and collaborative projects, the Centre seeks to establish itself as a nationally and internationally recognized center of excellence in accounting, finance, financial technology, and intelligent financial systems.

Core Research Areas/Research Foster

CRAFT undertakes interdisciplinary research spanning Accounting, Corporate Finance, Financial Markets, Financial Technology (FinTech), Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Data Science, Business Analytics, Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI), Blockchain Technology, Digital Finance, Financial Inclusion, Corporate Governance, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), Sustainable Finance, Climate Finance, Green Technology, Risk Management, Banking, Investment Analysis, Asset Pricing, Portfolio Management, Financial Forecasting, Cryptocurrency Analytics, Behavioural Finance, and Applied Econometrics. The Centre specializes in advanced quantitative methodologies including panel econometrics, time-series analysis, predictive analytics, optimization techniques, deep neural networks, explainable machine learning, and statistical computing. Research focuses on solving practical problems such as credit risk prediction, default forecasting, liquidity management, fraud detection, stock market prediction, foreign exchange forecasting, digital banking, SME financing, sustainable investment, ESG performance evaluation, financial resilience, and intelligent decision-support systems. CRAFT also investigates the impact of emerging technologies on accounting, auditing, corporate reporting, financial regulation, and governance. Through its Special Interest Groups (SIGs), the Centre has expanded its expertise in climate finance, green innovation, AI-enabled accounting systems, intelligent financial services, and sustainable development. These research activities support evidence-based policymaking, industry innovation, and capacity building while contributing to national priorities and international research excellence.

Major Achievements

Since its establishment, CRAFT has emerged as an active research centre in accounting, finance, and financial technology. A major achievement of the Centre is the successful completion of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) National Research Program for Universities (NRPU) funded project titled "Microcredit and Poverty Alleviation: An Impact Analysis of Prime Minister's Kamyab Jawan – Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (YES)." The Centre has successfully completed several high-quality research projects integrating finance with artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, and advanced econometric modelling. These projects include predictive modelling of foreign exchange markets, non-performing loans, SME liquidity risk, corporate default risk, cryptocurrency prices, and ESG-driven corporate performance. CRAFT has also established two specialized research groups focusing on Climate Finance and Green Technology Innovations and FinTech and AI Transformation in Accounting and Finance, significantly expanding its research portfolio into sustainable finance and intelligent financial systems. Faculty members affiliated with the Centre have produced research published in reputable journals, supervised postgraduate research, presented findings at national and international conferences, and developed collaborations with academia and industry. These achievements have strengthened the Centre's research capacity while enhancing the visibility of FAST School of Management as a growing contributor to high-impact research in accounting, finance, and emerging technologies.

Industrial Partner/Collaborators

CRAFT actively promotes collaboration between academia, industry, financial institutions, regulatory authorities, government agencies, development organizations, and technology companies to enhance the practical relevance and societal impact of its research. Although the Centre is relatively young, it has established a strong foundation for strategic partnerships that support collaborative research, consultancy, policy development, executive training, knowledge transfer, and innovation. The Centre seeks collaborations with commercial banks, microfinance institutions, fintech companies, stock exchanges, insurance companies, technology firms, SMEs, regulatory bodies, and international development organizations. Through its Special Interest Groups, CRAFT also collaborates with stakeholders involved in climate finance, ESG reporting, sustainable investment, green technologies, and artificial intelligence applications in finance. These partnerships facilitate the identification of emerging business challenges, access to industry data, joint funding opportunities, and commercialization of research outcomes. The Centre intends to further strengthen national and international collaborations through externally funded research projects, memoranda of understanding (MoUs), faculty exchange programs, joint conferences, and industry-sponsored research initiatives. By integrating academic expertise with industrial experience, CRAFT contributes to innovation, policy formulation, digital transformation, and sustainable economic development.

Application/Impact of Research

Research conducted at CRAFT contributes directly to solving contemporary challenges faced by businesses, financial institutions, governments, regulators, and society. By integrating advanced econometric modelling, artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, and financial analytics, the Centre develops practical solutions for credit risk management, investment analysis, financial inclusion, poverty alleviation, fraud detection, liquidity management, stock market forecasting, digital banking, and intelligent decision-making. The Centre's research supports policymakers by generating evidence for financial sector reforms, sustainable development initiatives, climate finance strategies, and inclusive economic policies. Its work on FinTech and AI provides valuable insights into digital transformation, automated financial reporting, intelligent auditing, blockchain-enabled financial services, and AI-assisted governance. Research undertaken within the Climate Finance and Green Technology Innovations SIG contributes to the development of climate-resilient financial systems, ESG integration, green investment strategies, and environmentally sustainable business models. Through publications, consultancy, executive training, workshops, conferences, postgraduate supervision, and collaborative projects, CRAFT bridges the gap between academic research and industry practice while contributing to technological innovation, sustainable finance, financial stability, and national socio-economic development.

Projects Currently in Progress

CRAFT is currently engaged in several interdisciplinary research projects that integrate finance, economics, artificial intelligence, and sustainability. The first project, "IMF Structural Reforms and their Asymmetric Impacts on the Poverty Alleviation of Countries under Different Political Regimes," examines how structural adjustment programs influence poverty alleviation under varying institutional and political environments using advanced econometric techniques. The second project, "Personalized Stock Trading Bot for the Pakistan Stock Exchange Using Autonomous AI Agents," focuses on developing an intelligent trading system capable of supporting personalized investment decisions through autonomous artificial intelligence agents, reinforcement learning, and real-time financial analytics. The third project, "Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Uncertainties for Real-Time Sustainability Assessment in Pakistan," aims to combine AI techniques with uncertainty modelling to develop dynamic sustainability assessment frameworks capable of supporting evidence-based policy decisions. In addition to these flagship projects, CRAFT continues to pursue externally funded research opportunities in financial technology, ESG, sustainable finance, explainable artificial intelligence, risk analytics, digital transformation, and intelligent accounting systems through collaborative initiatives involving faculty members, postgraduate researchers, and industrial partners.

Projects Completed

CRAFT has successfully completed several research projects that demonstrate its expertise in accounting, finance, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and financial technology. Major completed projects include:

• Microcredit and Poverty Alleviation: An Impact Analysis of Prime Minister's Kamyab Jawan – Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (YES) (HEC NRPU Funded Project), which evaluated the effectiveness of Pakistan's youth entrepreneurship financing program in promoting financial inclusion and poverty reduction.
• Deep Learning-Based Predictive Models for Forex Market Trends: Practical Implementation and Profit Performance Evaluation.
• Predicting Non-Performing Loans Using Machine and Deep Learning Approaches: Comparative Evidence from Pakistan, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
• Predicting Liquidity Risk in SMEs through Machine Learning to Improve Financial Stability.
• Default Risk Prediction: An ML-Based Estimation for Listed Companies in Asia.
• Prediction of Cryptocurrency Prices Using Machine Learning and Neural Networks.
• ESG and Sustainable Investment: The Moderating Role of Internal Corporate Governance in BRICKS and Non-BRICKS Economies.
• ESG–Financial Performance Nexus: Integrating Explainable Machine Learning and Panel Econometrics for Multi-Regional Analysis of ESG-Driven Corporate Financial Outcomes across Asia, US, and EU Markets.

These projects collectively demonstrate CRAFT's expertise in integrating finance with artificial intelligence, sustainability, and advanced quantitative methods to solve contemporary financial and business problems.