Call for papers: Crypto Asset Lab Conference 2027 – Living in hybrid finance

The seventh annual Crypto Asset Lab Conference will take place on April 5–6, 2027, in Milan, Italy, with the option to participate remotely.

Under the theme “Living in Hybrid Finance,” CAL 2027 brings together academics and practitioners to examine the evolving convergence of traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi).

As banks issue deposit tokens, asset managers tokenize funds and DeFi protocols settle in regulated stablecoins, the conference explores the opportunities and risks of increasingly interconnected financial systems. Key questions concern asset tokenization, financial stability, governance, regulation and the role of artificial intelligence.

Topics of interest

CAL 2027 invites innovative theoretical and empirical research on the following topics:

• Asset tokenization, including real estate, funds, receivables and trade finance.
• AI and DeFi connections.
• Payment sovereignty.
• Emerging actors in DeFi, including decentralized exchanges, automated market makers, DeFi lending and crypto funds.
• Emerging actors in fintech, including neobanks and robo-advisors.
• Digital currencies and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
• Financial institutions, intermediaries and cryptocurrencies.
• Alternative investors and capital allocation in DeFi, including crypto venture capital, token-based crowdfunding and DAO-based investment models.
• Relationships between banks and fintech companies.
• Blockchain design and market impact.
• Stability, contagion and systemic risk in hybrid finance.
• Governance and accountability, including DeFi protocols, intermediaries operating on-chain and AI agents.
• Regulation, supervision and policy design.

Submission procedure

Submit your working paper or extended abstract to papers@cryptoassetlab.org by February 19, 2027.

Acceptance notifications will be communicated on March 5, 2027.

PhD students should indicate their student status when submitting their paper. Authors wishing to participate remotely should also indicate this during submission.

Venue

Bicocca Pavilion, Fondazione Bicocca–Innovation Hub
Piazza dell’Ateneo Nuovo, 1
20126 Milan, Italy

Registration and fees

The registration deadline is March 15, 2027.

Conference registration will be available through Eventbrite, with the ticket link to be published on the CAL 2027 website.

Registration fees:

• PhD students: €120.
• General admission, in person: €180.
• General admission, remote participation: €100.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

The CAL Conference has offered hybrid participation since 2020 to facilitate attendance by colleagues who face barriers to joining in person.

Contact

Paper submissions: papers@cryptoassetlab.org
General information: info@cryptoassetlab.org