Systematic Review on the Influence of Classical and Quantum Machine Learning in the Financial Sector

In the financial sector, machine learning (ML) has emerged as a transformative technology that provides sophisticated solutions to critical challenges, such as in fraud detection, anti-money laundering, algorithmic trading, credit scoring, and financial forecasting. ML significantly improves the accuracy, speed, and efficacy of decision-making processes by using sophisticated algorithms and large datasets. Nevertheless, its integration into financial systems presents significant obstacles such as cybersecurity threats, regulatory compliance, and data quality concerns. Building on these developments, this review examines the emergence of quantum machine learning (QML), an approach that integrates quantum-computation principles with intelligent financial systems. QML exploits quantum phenomena, including superposition, entanglement, and parallelism, to overcome the computational constraints encountered in classical ML. Applications such as quantum support vector machines (QSVMs), quantum neural networks (QNNs), and quantum clustering are examined in the context of fraud detection, portfolio optimization, and market forecasting. In contrast to previous reviews, this study provides a comparative and integrative analysis of ML and QML in the financial domain. It highlights the current technical limitations and emergent hybrid quantum classical models, emphasizing strategic directions for future research. In addition, we suggest a new framework for assessing the suitability of QML in practical financial applications, thereby bridging the gap between theoretical potential and real-world deployment. This review not only consolidates recent advancements but also establishes the foundation for the next iteration of intelligent financial systems powered by quantum-enhanced technologies. • Quantum Machine Learning (QML) leverages unique quantum properties like superposition, entanglement, and parallelism to overcome the computational limitations of traditional ML approaches. • Techniques such as Quantum Support Vector Machines (QSVM), Quantum Neural Networks (QNN), and quantum clustering demonstrate significant advancements in efficiency and accuracy for financial applications. • QML showcases transformative potential in solving complex financial problems, including fraud detection, portfolio optimization, and market forecasting, with greater accuracy and computational efficiency. • The potential for hybrid quantum-classical models to stabilize hardware and advance quantum algorithms offers a pathway to overcome current limitations, paving the way for scalable and robust financial systems.