2026 Speakers

Kira Yau is Marketing & Partnership Director at Finoverse, where she leads marketing and global partnerships for Hong Kong Fintech Week.

She previously served as Head of PR at Sinovation Ventures, one of China's leading venture capital firms, before founding fashion label Kira&Yanng and scaling it through three funding rounds to over RMB 10 million in annual sales.

She later founded Kira Kwan Capital, a global investment firm, where she created the finance media IPs Money Talk and Kira's Talk — reaching 100,000+ followers across Chinese platforms, with interviews of 30+ global investors and CEOs.

She is a seasoned business media professional who has sat on both sides of the table — as a founder and an investor.

"Kris is the Head of Finoverse Ventures, where she leads the firm’s strategic investment initiatives and cultivates global family office relationships with meaningful impact. With over a decade of experience at the intersection of FinTech, Web3, and AI, Kris is known for building exclusive networks, curating influential events, and advising top-tier companies on capital strategy and ecosystem growth.

In her current role, Kris focuses on fostering enduring partnerships with ultra-high-net-worth families and next-generation wealth leaders. She has been invited to speak at exclusive global gatherings and has hosted landmark events such as the Hong Kong Academy for Wealth Summit, a premier convening of family offices and institutional investors, as well as Next-Gen meetups that connect emerging leaders with co-investment opportunities and frontier technologies.

Kris also plays a key role in shaping Hong Kong FinTech Week, where her leadership helped attract over 45,000 attendees annually and brought global icons like Ray Dalio and Neil Shen to the stage.

Her career has been profoundly influenced by her parents and family, who have built businesses across diverse industries, including trading, wood, coal mining, investments, and real estate since her early years. This upbringing instilled in her a deep passion for creating meaningful impact alongside her peers and other entrepreneurial families.

Her thought leadership has also been featured in platforms such as HKTDC, and she was profiled in the bestselling book ""The Metaverse Economy: How Finance Professionals Can Make Sense of Web3."" Beyond her work, Kris is a dedicated mentor within female-focused communities that empower entrepreneurs and leaders."

Kunal Choudhary is a strategy lead at Worldpay, focused on Trading and Payment Facilitators. He leads go-to-market strategy across these verticals, identifying growth opportunities, shaping differentiated propositions, and helping translate market trends into commercial action. Kunal works across product, commercial and regional teams to develop strategies that strengthen Worldpay’s position in complex and rapidly evolving payments markets.

Kun is the founder of GGWP, the AI platform modernizing moderation and tackling toxicity in gaming and communities, and founder and CEO of Forge, the first of its kind loyalty and rewards platform for games.

Previously, he founded Crunchyroll, the world's largest destination for anime and manga, and served as CEO for over a decade. He brings 20 years of experience in consumer media, including founding social mapping service Frappr, product and engineering at Slide and HOTorNOT.

Kun graduated from UC Berkeley with honors B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and B.A. in Applied Mathematics in 2004, and was a PhD candidate in Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon.

Kyrie Luo is the Founder of Vision Carbon, a green fintech company focused on advancing a low-carbon economy through blockchain technology. Vision Carbon is a global voluntary carbon trading platform that integrates artificial intelligence, blockchain, and satellite remote sensing technologies. The company was included in the Green Fintech Map released by the Hong Kong Government and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), and has been featured in mainstream media such as the South China Morning Post, Ming Pao, and Ta Kung Pao.

Academically, he is pursuing a PhD in Energy and Environment at City University of Hong Kong. He also serves as an Executive Committee Member of the Hong Kong Digital Asset Association and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Entrepreneur Alliance. He has received numerous honors, including the 3rd Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Outstanding Young Entrepreneur Award, and holds the CFA Climate Finance Certificate and a Sustainable Finance Certificate from the University of Cambridge.

Zhao Lan serves as Hong Kong Bureau Chief of Sina Finance. She is a seasoned financial journalist and media executive focusing on Hong‑Kong‑Mainland cross‑border capital markets, global investment trends, and digital asset regulation.

In her role, she leads the Hong Kong editorial team to deliver in‑depth reporting on Hong Kong’s capital market, A‑H share listings, institutional investment flows, and emerging fintech and Web3 developments. She regularly conducts exclusive interviews with senior executives from global financial institutions, asset management firms and listed companies, and hosts high‑profile industry forums and panel discussions on financial innovation and regulatory updates.

Zhao Lan devotes herself to bridging mainland and global investors. Her work highlights Hong Kong’s role as China’s super‑connector in international finance, interpreting market policies, investment opportunities and risk dynamics for both domestic and overseas audiences.

Lapman Lee is a Professor of Practice at the HK Polytechnic University. He focuses on the intersection of finance, governance & risk management, sustainability, and (financial) technology with a focus on AI.

Lapman is a trusted advisor to Boards and C suite of financial institutions and listed companies whom he advises how to navigate the increasingly complex and interrelated global risk landscape.

Prior to his current role, Lapman was a financial services & FinTech Partner at Deloitte where he advised digital banks and insurers, and was a Board member of the HK FinTech Association responsible for AI.

He advises policymakers and regulators on Green FinTech and AI governance & risk management.

Lareina is a growth-focused senior business executive with over 20 years of experience across Asia and Europe. Known for her strategic vision and execution, she excels at navigating complex, matrixed organizations to deliver results.

As Head of SME Business for DBS Hong Kong, Lareina is an energetic, adaptable leader who builds low-ego, high-performing teams capable of achieving ambitious shared goals. Having completed three international relocations, she brings a global perspective and exceptional agility to dynamic environments.

A prominent figurehead in the financial ecosystem, Lareina previously served as Chair of the FinTech Association of Hong Kong (FTAHK) and continues to drive industry evolution as a Director on its Board.

Laura is a passionate advocate and practitioner of big data & AI with 20+ years of in leading financial services, energy, and technology companies. In her current capacity as Managing Director, Head of Data, Analytics and Customer Risk Management in Hang Seng Bank, Laura drives modernization of Hang Seng’s data & messaging platform to cloud-based solutions, embedding & commercializing data & AI into frontline, digital & customer experience for hyper-personalized Omni-channel interaction and revenue growth.  Laura has held several senior positions in global companies incl. Group Head of Insurance Data & Analytics, HSBC, Chief Analytics Officer, Manulife Asia, and Head of Analytics for Wealth Management in HSBC. She has extensive international exposure across Greater China, Asia Pacific, Europe and Americas  with focus on enterprise-level data & AI solutions and strategies.

Laurent Crouet is Chief Transformation & Operations Officer for Generali Asia, overseeing transformation, technology, operations and security across its Asian markets. He leads initiatives that connect digital capabilities with business strategy, operational excellence and sustainable growth.

With 20 years of experience across Asia and Europe, Laurent has built his career at the intersection of insurance, technology and transformation. Before joining Generali, he held several executive positions at AXA, including CEO of AXA Group Operations in the Philippines, as well as senior roles across digital, data and transformation.

At Generali, Laurent focuses on scaling technology and innovation into measurable business outcomes. He is particularly passionate about moving innovation beyond isolated pilots by building the governance, platforms and cross-market collaboration needed to deliver meaningful value for customers, agents, partners and employees.

Originally from France and now based in Kuala Lumpur, Laurent brings extensive cross-cultural leadership experience. His philosophy is simple: technology enables transformation, but alignment, talent and disciplined execution drive success.

Lavanya Chari is Head of Wealth and Premier Solutions at HSBC International Wealth and Premier Banking, responsible for the products, platforms and propositions that make up a digitally-empowered and internationally-connected client offering. Lavanya leads teams for Wealth Solutions across markets from Chief Investment Office, Managed Solutions, Capital Markets, Advisory, Discretionary and Sustainable Investments to Lending, Trust, and Insurance as well as Retail products such as unsecured lending, mortgages and transaction banking.

Based in Singapore and a member of the International Wealth and Premier Banking Executive Committee, Lavanya joined HSBC in July 2020 and created a unified global products function the following year, well positioned to serve the diverse needs of Personal Banking, Premier, High Net Worth and Ultra High Net Worth clients, in a scalable and efficient way.

Lavanya is passionate about sustainable investing, particularly in helping clients make investment decisions that bring about positive and impactful environmental and social change. She is the sponsor of Gender Equity under the Diversity and Inclusion Forum, an employee resource group where colleagues are empowered and inspired to develop and progress in their careers. Lavanya is also a non-executive director at HSBC Global Asset Management.

Lavanya started her career at Deutsche Bank in London, spending 14 years in Global Markets in various product leadership roles before joining the private bank in 2016 and relocating to Singapore, where she ran products and solutions for Asia Pacific before assuming global responsibility.

Lavanya holds a BA in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras, and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore.

Lawrence Li is the Head of Consumer Banking Products, Retail Banking and Wealth, Hong Kong of HSBC, covering Deposits, Mortgages, FX, and Payments. He is accountable for setting the business strategy and driving overall profitability across these products. This portfolio plays a critical role in generating both interest and fee income, while delivering market share growth in deposit and lending balances.

Leandro is a partner in the actuarial and risk practice of KPMG Hong Kong. He works with life insurance and financial services clients across Asia Pacific on risk, capital, transactions, product governance, reinsurance, financial reporting, and regulatory matters. He is serving on the Life, Pension, and Innovation committees of the Actuarial Society of Hong Kong.

He graduated from the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, and holds actuarial qualifications in the US, Australia, and Hong Kong.

Mr. Wang Lei serves as the CFO and Head of the Capital Market at Horizon Robotics. Since joining Horizon Robotics, Mr. Wang Lei has successively led the investment project of Volkswagen Group in Horizon Robotics and the project of Horizon Robotics' listing on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Based on the capital market, he has contributed to the business growth of the company.

Mr. Wang Lei has rich experience in capital markets and engineering. Before joining Horizon Robotics, Mr. Wang Lei served as the Chief Analyst of the automotive sector at China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC), where he was named Best Automotive Analyst by Asiamoney in 2020. Prior to joining CICC, Mr. Wang Lei worked as a Senior Manager at Sensata Technologies, a global leader in sensors, where he was responsible for product development and applications, analytical laboratories, and business development.

Mr. Wang holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Rutgers University in the United States.

Leo is the Managing Director of Integrated Capital, a private investment firm with its roots in Hong Kong, specializing in strategic investments across mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, and the Middle East. He focuses on originating and executing cross-border opportunities, working with partners to support long-term value creation and sustainable economic outcomes.

A core part of Leo’s work centers on ESG-driven investing and the development of green energy and sustainability-related projects in Hong Kong and the Middle East. With an investment-led perspective and active project oversight, he supports initiatives that aim to accelerate the energy transition while maintaining commercial discipline, scalability, and measurable impact. His experience includes evaluating opportunities, structuring investments, and collaborating with diverse stakeholders to advance projects from development through execution.

Leo is also committed to driving economic growth and creating opportunities in the Middle East through impactful investments and partnerships. He supports collaborations that connect capital, expertise, and projects across regions, with a focus on delivering practical results for businesses and communities.

He has also served as the Honorable Chairman of the Hong Kong Chamber of Commerce in China.

Leon Ma is the Founder of Goldfin. He holds a bachelor's degree in Mathematics from Zhejiang University and a master's degree in Financial Mathematics from the University of Chicago. He previously served as a portfolio manager and Head of Investment Strategy at a quantitative hedge fund managing over RMB 10 billion in assets, with extensive experience in quantitative investing, financial derivatives, and asset management.

Drawing on his deep understanding of financial markets, physical gold trading, asset pricing, and capital efficiency, Leon founded Goldfin to bring financial engineering and digital innovation into the gold industry, building a new generation of financial infrastructure centered on gold.

Goldfin bridges traditional gold markets and the digital financial ecosystem, aiming to unlock the liquidity and financial potential of physical gold. Its vision is to transform gold from a traditional store of value into a more accessible, liquid, and productive asset within the global financial system.

Lewis Sun was appointed Global Head of Digital Currencies, Corporate and Institutional Banking (CIB), HSBC in May 2026. He provides strategic leadership for Digital Assets and Currencies initiatives within Global Payments Solutions (GPS), with end-to-end accountability for strategy, client proposition, technology and risk, partnering with teams across HSBC.

Mr Sun has held a range of payments and cash management roles in China and Hong Kong since joining HSBC in 2002, including Head of Sales for GPS in China and Head of GPS China.

In August 2017, Mr Sun was appointed Regional Head of Product for GPS, based in Hong Kong. Leveraging his technical expertise and deep understanding of market trends, he assumed the role of Global Head of Domestic and Emerging Payments for GPS in April 2022.

Mr Sun holds a Master’s degree in Electronics Engineering and an International MBA from Tsinghua University, as well as a Certificate in International Cash Management from the Association of Corporate Treasurers (UK).

Lily Guan has extensive experience in banking credit risk management. Currently, as the Director of Product Sales & Solution, she actively drives the pilot upgrade of the Commercial Credit Reference Agency (CCRA) to empower Hong Kong financial institutions in advancing digital credit decision-making. She has also pioneered cross-boundary business credit reports, successfully enabling Hong Kong banks to utilize cross-boundary enterprise information for clearer insights into the credit status and financial performance of related mainland enterprises. This facilitates SME credit assessments and completes the southbound pilot initiative for cross-boundary credit information exchange in the Greater Bay Area.

Ludmilla Raconnat Le Goff is a senior Monegasque government official with nearly thirty years of public service experience. Throughout her career, she has held senior positions spanning social affairs and healthcare, public finance, economic development and the transformation of public policy.

Since September 2025, she has served as Delegate for Strategic Development to the Minister of State. She is also Secretary General of Monaco’s Strategic Council for Attractiveness and CEO of Invest Monaco.

In these roles, she defines and leads the Principality’s attractiveness strategy. Her mandate is to strengthen Monaco’s international positioning, attract investors, entrepreneurs, talent and new residents, while supporting those who already contribute to the Principality’s economic vitality and global influence.

Mr. Luke Wang is President of Huawei’s Insurance Business Unit and a seasoned technology leader with more than 26 years of experience driving innovation across telecommunications, digital ecosystems, and financial services. Throughout his career at Huawei, he has led the development and global deployment of mission-critical software platforms, including intelligent networks, billing systems, and value-added service solutions that have supported large-scale digital operations worldwide.

A recognized expert in ecosystem building, Mr. Wang has played a pivotal role in several of Huawei’s most strategic initiatives. He led a 3,000-member R&D task force to establish the HMS Core ecosystem, creating a comprehensive global mobile services platform. As President of Huawei’s App Ecosystem Business Unit, he drove the worldwide expansion of HUAWEI AppGallery, fostering collaboration with developers, enterprises, and ecosystem partners. He also spearheaded the growth of the HarmonyOS NEXT ecosystem, enabling the onboarding of tens of thousands of enterprise applications and accelerating digital innovation across industries.

Today, Mr. Wang focuses on empowering the financial services sector, particularly insurance institutions, through digital and intelligent transformation. By leveraging Huawei’s full-stack ICT, cloud, and AI capabilities, he works closely with leading insurers to modernize core operations, enhance customer experience, strengthen risk management, and unlock new business value. His deep expertise in platform innovation, ecosystem development, and industry transformation positions him as a leading voice in the future of fintech and insurance technology.

Mahesh is a dynamic entrepreneur with a proven track record of building and developing companies across diverse industries, including NewSpace Economy for Hong Kong, Education, renewable energy infrastructure & Investments, general trading, and brand development. As an advisor to his family investments, he specializes in guiding startups through to B-round funding, leveraging his expertise in strategic growth and investment.

Mahesh also plays a pivotal role as Family Council Convenor in developing family governance, where he focuses on succession planning and sustaining family legacies through structured governance frameworks, ensuring the seamless transition of wealth and values across generations.

Mankila Hung is Head of Innovation and Payment at Ele Bank Limited, where she leads the bank's digital payment strategy and product innovation. She has successfully launched consumer card products and cross-border remittance solutions, expanding the bank's payment capabilities across multiple channels.

With over 20 years of experience in the payments and financial services industry, Mankila has held key positions at Visa and American Express, where she led commercial and money movement solutions, managed strategic client relationships, and drove product development across the Asia Pacific region. Her expertise spans digital payments, cross-border money movement, product solutioning, and business development.

Manouk Termaaten is founder and CEO of Vertical Labs and Protocol Lead at vAPI Network. He has spent over a decade in crypto, taught himself to code before AI tools existed, and was fine-tuning language models before most people had heard of OpenAI. He studied industrial engineering (University of Amsterdam) and finance (Erasmus University Rotterdam), founded two companies, then built Vertical into six AI products with 80,000 users and over $4.5M in protocol fees.

He has operated AI infrastructure at scale across AWS, OpenRouter and fal.ai, and ran the $VERTAI token on Ethereum, Base and Avalanche through a full market cycle with 12,000 holders. With vAPI, the onchain task market where AI agents and humans do business, he is focused on letting agents safely buy real work from real people through non-custodial escrow, onchain disputes and earned reputation.

At Hong Kong FinTech Week, Manouk speaks on agentic payments and machine payment rails (x402, MPP), token economics that reward usage over speculation, and the regulatory architecture (MiCA, VASP) that decides which builders can compete in onchain finance. Outside of work he has crossed two Himalayan passes, including Everest Base Camp, and run the New York City Marathon.

Manson is a seasoned technology builder with experience across multiple waves of digital transformation—from early digitisation and mobile platforms to cloud computing, big data, and today’s AI-agent era. His career spans technology, academia, financial services, and the F&B technology sector, including OpenRice, a leading Hong Kong dining platform.

At the moment, he is particularly interested in agentic commerce: enabling AI systems to securely discover services, coordinate workflows, and support trusted interactions across business platforms. He brings a hands-on perspective shaped by building systems through successive technology eras, while remaining focused on real-world adoption rather than experimentation alone.

He earned his doctorate from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). His research interests focus on applying cutting-edge AI and digital technologies to scientific and commercial challenges.

Dr. Marcus Leiwe is a Founding Partner at Leiwe & Partners (L&P), an elite data and AI consultancy that combines cutting-edge academic rigour with industrial expertise. With over a decade of hands-on experience in machine learning, complex analytics, and distributed data systems, he advises organisations on engineering robust, production-grade data and AI platforms.

Marcus frequently helps emerging ventures by defining technical roadmaps, automated data pipelines, and human-in-the-loop AI ontologies. His recent work includes building digital twins, designing ontologies, and architecting business intelligence platforms. Across his commercial engagements, he has engineered proprietary clustering algorithms, directed high-performance AI strike teams, and delivered advanced predictive modelling and fraud-mitigation solutions.

Prior to founding L&P, Marcus served as a tenured Assistant Professor at Kyushu University and a Researcher at the RIKEN Centre for Brain Development in Japan. His work involved developing computational models, new algorithms, and computer vision techniques to help understand brain connectivity. His research earned features in publications such as Forbes, alongside multiple peer-reviewed publications.

He holds a PhD and a First-Class Honours degree in Neuroscience from King's College London.

I’ve spend 15 years in the tech industry as an exec helping shaping the future: expedia, circle, mettle (natwest) and near.

today i serve on boards (ig group, qivalis, n26), i advise investors and companies and share my thoughts at currency of power to help others understand these shifts and what they reveal about leadership, trust, and decision-making in a permanent state of uncertainty.

Mariette van Niekerk is Deloitte New Zealand’s Trustworthy AI Lead, leading AI engagements across both the Risk and Technology teams. An experienced lead data scientist, she has delivered AI solutions across multiple industries for more than 15 years in South Africa, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand.

Her work spans both sides of AI: using it to detect risk and improve decision-making, while also helping organisations manage the risks AI introduces. Since beginning her Responsible AI journey in 2017, Mariette has specialised in AI risk management, governance, testing, evaluation, monitoring, and the design of practical AI guardrails.

After helping Deloitte UK develop a cross-industry library of AI risks and controls, she relocated to New Zealand to establish and lead the local Trustworthy AI capability. Today, she advises organisations on AI governance frameworks, risk metrics, testing approaches, and operating models aligned to leading standards and international best practice. She is also passionate about helping technical teams, executives, and boards translate Trustworthy AI principles into practical action.

Mario Shamtani brings more than 30 years of experience in financial services technology, with a career spanning senior leadership roles at some of the world’s leading institutions. He is widely recognized for his ability to build scalable, modern platforms that deliver value to customers, clients, and regulators globally.​

Before joining HSBC, Mario served as Chief Information Officer for Markets, Investment Banking, and Regions at JP Morgan, where he was responsible for strategy, product, and engineering teams across multiple business lines. In this role, he successfully led large-scale technology initiatives that supported global growth and innovation.​

Earlier in his career, Mario spent eight years at Citibank, where he held key leadership roles including Global Head of Fixed Income and Currencies Technology, and Head of the Citi Innovations Centres in London and Israel. These positions highlighted his expertise in driving transformation and fostering innovation within complex financial ecosystems.​

At HSBC, Mario leads the Chief Technology Office, overseeing Infrastructure, Data Strategy, AI in Tech, Platforms and Architecture, and the Technology Centres. His deep industry knowledge, leadership experience, and forward-looking approach are instrumental in shaping the company’s technology strategy and future growth.​

As Founder and CEO of Lise, Mark Kepeneghian is dedicated to modernizing market infrastructures in Europe.

Through Lise, he is developing a unified infrastructure integrating both trading (MTF) and settlement (CSD) functions. This project aims to create the first natively tokenized stock exchange, operating 24/7, with the goal of simplifying access to financing for SMEs and mid-caps through instant settlement.

Mark also leads Kriptown, the technology company designing the technical architecture (trading and post-trade) required to operate these tokenized financial instruments.

Alongside his operational roles, he actively participates in industry initiatives regarding financial regulation:

- AMF (French Financial Markets Authority): Member of the "Market Organisation and Functioning" Consultative Commission.

- ADAN: Vice-President and Chair of the Tokenization Committee, contributing to the definition of the regulatory framework for digital assets.

- France FinTech: Board Member, focusing on topics related to tokenization and capital markets.

He also sits on the boards of startups in the MedTech and LegalTech sectors.

Mars/Zizhao Xue serves as Executive Vice President at MiniMax. Before joining the company, he developed his career in primary-market technology investment at Hillhouse Investment and Silver Lake, where he spearheaded multi-stage investments in leading technology companies, including MiniMax’s early financing rounds.

Mārtiņš Beņķītis is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Gravity Team, a dominant, long-standing emerging-market crypto liquidity provider he founded in 2017 with childhood friend Edgars Laimīte.

Under his leadership, Gravity has grown into a leading emerging market crypto market maker and liquidity provider, handling more than US$500 billion in cumulative spot trading volume. The firm accounts for approximately one per cent of global crypto spot today with connectivity to over 40 exchanges and settlement networks spanning more than 45 key markets.

Mārtiņš’s leadership and strategic vision have been instrumental in cementing the firm’s position as a trusted institutional counterparty across both emerging and developed markets, having built deep partnerships with major global & local exchanges, along with top-tier digital assets. Today, Gravity Team maintains leading liquidity provider status across key emerging markets in Southeast Asia and Latin America, remaining one of very few liquidity providers in the world with the scale, networks, and track record to move and settle value across key emerging and developed markets.

Mārtiņš is an authoritative voice on the institutional pivot reshaping crypto OTC, the structural decline of correspondent banking, and what stablecoin-anchored settlement infrastructure means for institutions moving capital across global markets now and into the future of finance, regularly providing thought leadership to tier-1 media and at the industry’s most consequential gatherings.

Maryann is the Chief Strategy Officer and Vice President at Phancy Group (6682.HK), a leading full-stack AI cloud services platform listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and ranked No. 1 in China’s machine learning platform market for eight consecutive years.

With over two decades of experience in equity capital markets, global institutional investors, cross assets and AI business strategy, Maryann previously served as Senior Managing Director and Head of Capital Markets at SenseTime (0020.HK). Her career spans top-tier global institutions including Morgan Stanley and CLSA.

A passionate advocate for bridging industry and academia, Maryann serves as Adjunct Associate Professor at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and as a Corporate Advisory Board Member for HKUST’s MSc in Business Analytics programme. She holds executive certificates from Harvard Business School and Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Matti Lievonen is a distinguished leader in the renewable fuels industry, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of EcoCeres, a global innovator in sustainable biofuels. Appointed CEO in January 2025, Matti brings decades of executive experience, a strong track record in scaling renewable energy businesses, and a deep commitment to combatting climate change through cutting-edge decarbonization solutions.

Matti is renowned for his transformative leadership in the energy sector, particularly during his tenure as CEO and President of Neste Corporation, where he spearheaded the company’s rise as a world leader in renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). His expertise in biomass-based biofuels and bioproducts has been instrumental in driving the adoption of renewable fuels across industries. Prior to Neste, he held senior executive roles at UPM Biofore Corporation and served on the boards of Fortum, SSAB, Solvay, and the Confederation of Finnish Industries, cementing his reputation as a strategic visionary in sustainable industrial development.

Maximilian Plank is Managing Partner of Tenity Hong Kong. Tenity is a VC-led innovation platform built exclusively for financial services, with 200+ early-stage investments and corporate innovation services for 65+ institutions worldwide.

Through Tenity's GoGlobal initiative he builds bridges in both directions: helping scale-ups from China/HK expand into Europe and the Middle East via Hong Kong, and bringing international scale-ups into Asia. He is an honorary global ambassador and mentor at Cyberport and co-authored Tenity's KSA Fintech Opportunity Report 2025.

A serial entrepreneur with ventures across software, consumer products and services, he holds board and advsior roles at Keragenix Biotech, KGH Group and Stabelton, and sits on the Excom of the INSEAD Alumni Association Saudi Arabia.

Medhy Souidi is a recognized leader in fintech, bringing a practical, forward-thinking approach to his role as Senior Vice President and Transformation Lead at DBS Bank, one of Asia’s most innovative financial institutions. Medhy drives the adoption of emerging technologies like generative AI and blockchain, ensuring DBS stays ahead in a fast-changing financial landscape.

In his work, Medhy collaborates with diverse teams to create and implement fintech solutions that improve customer experiences and support business growth. His strategic insight and hands-on leadership have been key to DBS’s success in digital finance, helping the bank navigate new challenges and opportunities with confidence.

Medhy is a well-regarded voice in fintech, AI, and the Metaverse, frequently sharing his insights at global conferences and industry events. Known for making complex ideas accessible, he contributes valuable perspectives that help shape the future of finance.

Outside of his role at DBS, Medhy is the founder and host of "What the FinTech," a podcast and newsletter that has become a go-to resource for fintech professionals. Launched in 2019, the platform offers in-depth analysis, interviews with industry leaders, and coverage of the latest trends, fostering a community of innovation and collaboration.

Medhy also plays an active role in the fintech community as a board member of the Fintech Association of Hong Kong, where he supports the sector’s growth in the region. His work has earned him recognition, including the "Fintech Changemaker of the Year" award by Asian Private Banker and a spot on Tatler’s Gen T list.

Melissa Gecolea has over 25 years’ experience as a broadcast journalist working in the Philippines, London and Hong Kong covering politics, defense, technology, and business. She worked at Hong Kong’s TVB Pearl network (Television Broadcasts Ltd) for 10 years as the main anchor for the English language evening news and hosted the weekly show ‘Pearl Magazine’ as well as ‘Money Matters’ where she was also Senior Supervising Producer. She currently works at Radio Television Hong Kong as the main anchor for the Evening News and teaches journalism at the University of Hong Kong.

Melody He currently serves as the Deputy CEO/ Chief Business Officer at CSOP Asset Management Ltd. In her role, Melody oversees the Trading, Capital Markets, Sales and Marketing, and IT departments, aligning her strategic vision with the firm's objectives and client needs.

Beyond her primary role, Melody also serves as the Vice Chair and Product Development Committee Chair for the Chinese Asset Management Association of Hong Kong. Her responsibilities primarily involve chairing and guiding the Product Development Committee. Leveraging her industry experience, she contributes thoughtfully to discussions that shape the evolution of asset management within the region.

Before her tenure at CSOP, Melody was at Goldman Sachs covering Greater China Institutions in the FICC division. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s dual-degree in Economics and Psychology.

Michael Lau is Chairman of Consensus, one of the world's largest and longest-running digital asset conference franchises, and Senior Vice President, Group Head of Business Development at Bullish (NYSE: BLSH).

At Bullish, Michael has been part of the journey since inception — joining in early 2020 to help launch the crypto exchange product that would grow into one of the leading digital asset exchanges globally by volume, now regulated across Hong Kong, the European Union, Gibraltar, and the United States. He oversees global business development across the entire Bullish group, including the regulated Bullish Exchange, CoinDesk, and CoinDesk Indices businesses.

As Chairman of Consensus since 2025, Michael oversees the Consensus conference franchise — running for over a decade — across both the Americas and Asia. He most recently led the return of Consensus to the United States with Consensus Miami in May 2026, which drew over 15,000 attendees and featured 500+ speakers, alongside continued growth of Consensus Hong Kong to over 11,000 attendees from 122 countries and close to HK$300 million in economic impact.

Prior to digital assets, Michael spent over a decade in traditional capital markets at CLSA and J.P. Morgan. He holds an engineering degree from the University of Toronto, a Postgraduate Diploma in Strategy & Innovation from Oxford Saïd, and completed the Chief Marketing Officer Program at Kellogg, Northwestern University.

Michael Wu is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Amber International Holding Limited (Nasdaq: AMBR), operating under the brand name AMBR. He co-founded Amber AI in 2017, which later became Amber Group. Today, he leads AMBR, a company dedicated to building specialized AI agents for finance, enterprise, and growth, on the belief that the next generation of financial and business services will be built around AI agents that do more than answer: they act.

Michael brings nearly a decade of experience at the intersection of technology and financial markets. Deeply technical and hands-on with programming and AI, he has also built and operated businesses across some of the world’s most demanding financial markets.

Under his leadership, AMBR combines AI-native technology with domain expertise, real data, and real-world workflows to develop a portfolio of AI agents specialized for high-stakes use cases spanning personal finance, marketing, trading, institutional financial services, enterprise security, and organizational management.

Before founding Amber AI, Michael was a portfolio manager at a billion-dollar macro hedge fund and an FX and rates trader at Morgan Stanley. He graduated summa cum laude in Economics from Dartmouth College.

Michael is the Managing Director and General Manager of Google Hong Kong, overseeing strategy and market operations in Hong Kong.

Since joining Google in 2011, Michael has held key leadership roles in sales and strategic partnerships. Notably, he spearheaded the launch of Google Pay across the Asia Pacific region and has been instrumental in driving digital transformation for partners across diverse sectors. In 2018, he was appointed Google's global head of sales strategy and enablement, tasked with developing and growing the advertising sales force.

Michael serves on the boards of the American and Canadian Chambers of Commerce in Hong Kong and the Advisory Board for Information Systems Programs at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Business School, drawing on over two decades of experience in the technology field.

Michael holds an Executive MBA from the Kellogg-HKUST EMBA program and an Honours Business Administration (HBA) from Ivey Business School in Canada.

Michael is currently a Strategic Advisor in Google Cloud Greater China Region, where he provides technology advice and guidance to clients on their long-term strategy. He has 40 years of experience in IT, with a particular focus on AI, Internet, eCommerce, and TravelTech. He is also an expert in web usability, computer security, and blockchain technologies.

Before joining Google, Michael held senior roles at a number of leading organizations and projects in the APAC region, including Asia Miles, Caltex, Cathay Pacific Airways, the HKSAR Government, Hutchison eCommerce, HKICPA, Priceline, SingTel, and Tradelink. In these roles, he was responsible for developing and managing systems, as well as providing strategic advice and guidance.

Michael holds an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management. He is also a founding member and past chairman of the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) Hong Kong and Macau Chapter, and a past president of ISACA China Hong Kong Chapter.

Michael is passionate about using technology to solve real-world problems. He is also a strong advocate for security and privacy. He is committed to helping organizations adopt the latest technologies in a secure and responsible way.

Michele Fung is Head of APAC at Unlimit, where she leads the company’s regional expansion strategy, and Chairperson of the FinTech Association of Hong Kong (FTAHK). In her role at Unlimit, she leverages an extensive global network to identify high-potential markets, provide deep insight into local and competitive landscapes, and build strategic partnerships with local and international stakeholders to accelerate growth and strengthen market credibility.

She brings more than a decade of experience in global market entry, business development, and strategic partnerships. Prior to joining Unlimit, Ms Fung held senior leadership roles at leading firms, including Lianlian Global, where she drove client acquisition and retention and delivered tailored solutions to meet diverse market needs.

Beyond her corporate leadership, Ms Fung plays an active role in advancing Hong Kong’s fintech ecosystem through her position as Chairman of FTAHK, fostering industry collaboration and engagement across the financial services and technology communities.

A trusted industry representative and brand ambassador, Ms Fung has represented organisations at international conferences, trade shows, and industry events, significantly enhancing their global visibility and reputation. Her ability to build trust-based relationships and navigate complex market dynamics has consistently contributed to sustained business success.

Michele Soavi is Chief Sustainability Officer and COO of ImpactScope, and Chair of the Sustainability Working Group at the Crypto Valley Association. He works at the intersection of AI, finance and sustainability, with a particular focus on one problem: how to verify that a green claim is actually true.

That focus runs through his whole career. He began as an external auditor at PwC and EY, where he learned what makes a number trustworthy and auditable. He holds a PhD in Computer Science, specialising in AI and blockchain, and an MBA in Sustainable Business. At ImpactScope he led the development of GWI, an award-winning AI and blockchain tool that detects greenwashing and verifies sustainability claims, recognised in the IRCAI Global Top 100.

As Sustainability Chair at the Crypto Valley Association, he leads the association's work connecting digital assets, AI and green finance, and builds partnerships across research, industry and public institutions internationally. He also sits on the board of the Green Fintech Network and supervises doctoral research in sustainable business and technology.

His perspective bridges two worlds that rarely meet: the rigour of financial audit and the frontier of AI and blockchain.

Michelle is the Global Managing Director & Partner of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). She focuses on insurance sector and leads the insurance practice of BCG Greater China as well as Corporate Finance & Strategy (CFS) in Greater China. She’s also one of BCG’s global topic leader on ecosystem strategy and distribution excellence.

Michelle worked for 27 years in consulting/insurance sectors, with experience across multiple markets including US, Japan, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. She supported leading players in these markets on various topics from digital transformation, distribution upgrade or innovation, operations transformation, to corporate governance, people and organization. She also spearheaded the development of thought leadership for overall industry. Her main publications include digital innovation in insurance, digital insurance in China, digital transformation of insurers, ecosystem strategy, insurance consumer insights etc.

Michelle has an MBA from the University of Illinois (finance and marketing) and holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) certificate. She is also a member of New York Society of Security Analysts.

Mikaal is the CEO of Boom, Asia’s first online brokerage. Boom provides individual and institutional investors in 90 countries with access to more than 50,000 global equities across 18 markets and 10 currencies through a single account.

Previously, he co-founded 8 Securities, Asia’s first mobile-only brokerage. Over the course of building the company, the team raised $40 million in venture capital and introduced several first-to-market innovations in Asia, including robo-advisory, social trading, fractional shares, subscription pricing, and the first end-to-end cloud deployment of a regulated brokerage.

The company was a finalist at TechCrunch Disrupt and was selected by Amazon as one of the Top 5 Startups in Asia. In 2020, 8 Securities was acquired by SoFi, where it went on to deliver more than 500% growth across revenue, customers, and AUM.

Earlier, he spent a decade at E*TRADE, leading business and product expansion across 14 markets in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and India. During that period, the business scaled to $11 billion in AUM, $200 million in annual revenue, and $60 million in annual profit.

Mikaal launched his career at Deloitte during the dot-com boom as a management consultant in the technology practice. In an era of rapid digital transformation, he led project teams for pioneers of the modern internet, including America’s first digital bank, its first online brokerage, and one of the largest e-commerce platforms.

Mikaal has lived in Silicon Valley, New York, London, Dubai, Tokyo, Singapore, Bangkok, and Hong Kong. He holds a joint MBA from Columbia University and London Business School, and a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University.

Dr. Miles Wen is CEO and Co-Founder of Fano, a spin-off company from the University of Hong Kong (HKU) that has closed multiple rounds of fundings from renowned investors such as Horizons Ventures, Gobi Partners and Openspace Ventures.

Dr. Wen specializes in information and communication technologies, optimisation algorithms, big data, and machine learning and has numerous academic publications and patents. Since 2016, he was appointed as Adjunct Assistant Professor (Electrical and Electronic Engineering) at HKU, where he takes active role in guest lecturing in topics related with technology transfer, startups, and artificial intelligence applications.

Dr. Wen also actively contributes to the technology ecosystem. He is a member of Innovation Advisory Board of HKU and an active mentor at the iDendron Incubation Program at HKU, Founding Vice President of HKSTP Startups Alumni Association, EEE Industry Advisory Committee Member, School of Engineering, RMIT University, Member of Hong Kong Trade Development Council Electronics / Electrical Appliances Industries Advisory Committee, and Member of the Expert Review Panel of Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre.

Mohamed Keraine is the Global Head of Digital, Wealth and Retail Banking (WRB) and Enterprise Co-Head of AI at Standard Chartered, where he leads the digital transformation agenda. Mohamed is responsible for driving innovation and delivering a differentiated customer experience across the Bank’s affluent, private banking and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) segments. In his role as Enterprise Co-Head of AI, he leads the Bank’s business-led AI agenda, aligning strategy, adoption and delivery to scale AI capabilities across the enterprise in a safe, responsible and impactful way.

Beyond his core responsibilities, Mohamed is also actively engaged in the Bank's Diversity and Inclusion efforts. He serves as the Council Chair of WRB Diversity and Inclusion Council, and is the Global Sponsor of the Generations Colleague Community, championing initiatives that foster an inclusive and equitable workplace.

Mohamed began his career with ING Direct France in 2006 before taking on several positions at ING’s head office in Amsterdam for retail markets in Europe, Australia and Asia from 2011 to 2017. In 2018, he was appointed Head of Retail Development Asia where he launched the first digital bank in the Philippines and led several strategic initiatives in Southeast Asia and China.

Mohamed holds a Master of Science in Strategic Marketing Leadership from the Henley Business School and a Master’s degree in social sciences from Paris la Sorbonne University.

Moran Levinovitz serves as the Group Head of HSBC Ventures for HSBC.

Moran leads HSBC’s corporate ventures arm which makes strategic investments across AI, Digital Assets, Fintech, Enterprise Software, Cyber Security and Capital Markets. The team is spread across the UK, US, HK, India and Israel.

He is a board / board observer of various companies as well as on the LPAC of a number of venture capital firms. Previously he was an Investment Banker for a decade advising clients on Mergers and Acquisitions, equity and debt transactions across multiple geographies and sectors. He holds a Business Administration degree from the Interdisciplinary Centre (IDC) with a focus on Entrepreneurship

Mostafa Abdel Aziz is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Act Financial and Wilzy, with more than 28 years of experience across Egypt and the Middle East’s investment banking and financial services industry.

Throughout his career, Mostafa has held senior roles at leading regional investment banks, building extensive experience across investment banking, capital markets, investments, and corporate finance.

In 2015, he co-founded Act Financial, an activist investment company focused on identifying and unlocking value in publicly listed and privately held businesses. Under his leadership, Act Financial evolved into a prominent investment platform and successfully listed on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) in 2024.

Mostafa is also the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Wilzy, a new-generation wealth management platform designed to transform how individuals learn about, plan, and manage their wealth. Wilzy aims to make investing and wealth management more accessible, engaging, and intuitive, bringing together financial education, planning, and investment solutions within a single digital ecosystem.

Mostafa holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Cairo University and an Executive MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Mohamad Masri is a fintech entrepreneur, operator, and technology leader dedicated to simplifying how money moves across borders. With a career built at the intersection of financial services, payments, stablecoins, banking infrastructure, and regulation, he has spent the last decade helping startups and growth-stage companies transform complex financial challenges into scalable, customer-focused products.

As CEO of Pyypl, Mohamad is leading the company's transformation into a modern financial platform focused on enabling global collections, payments, stablecoin settlement, and accessible financial services for businesses and individuals across emerging markets. His work spans strategic partnerships, regulatory engagement, fundraising, product development, and operational execution, bridging the gap between innovation and compliance in highly regulated environments.

Prior to his executive leadership roles, Mohamad built his foundation as an engineering leader, designing and delivering large-scale fintech products, payment systems, card programs, digital wallets, remittance solutions, and banking integrations. This technical background continues to shape his practical, execution-driven approach to leadership and company building.

Beyond fintech, Mohamad has founded and contributed to ventures across logistics, SaaS, e-commerce, and developer tooling, reflecting a strong entrepreneurial mindset and a passion for solving real-world problems through technology. He is particularly interested in the convergence of traditional finance and digital assets, and how emerging technologies can create more efficient, transparent, and inclusive financial ecosystems.

Known for his hands-on leadership style, Mohamad enjoys working closely with teams, regulators, partners, and investors to build businesses from the ground up. His mission remains simple: make financial services more accessible and enable money to move as seamlessly as information does today.

Li Na is a seasoned financial sector executive with over 23 years of expertise in compliance and enterprise risk management. At PalmPay Group, she holds multiple senior roles including Chief Compliance Officer, Global Head of Legal  and Chairman of the Group Corporate Governance Committee, overseeing global regulatory compliance and corporate integrity.

She excels at navigating complex cross-border regulatory regimes. Her core areas include compliance governance, financial crime compliance (AML and anti-bribery), due diligence and audit. She advises foreign entities operating in China and helps Chinese companies build international-standard compliance frameworks for overseas expansion.

Her career includes senior positions at international banks, domestic payment firms and a global consulting firm. Selected by the PBoC, she joined FATF’s first evaluation of China and supported its fourth review. She won national AML excellence awards repeatedly from 2008 to 2015, and led an AI-powered due diligence solution that earned a UK trade fintech award in 2018.

Outside corporate work, she acts as a compliance expert for trade and cross-border e-commerce bodies and a part-time graduate tutor. She also supports social initiatives covering autistic children’s rehabilitation, child online protection and wildlife smuggling prevention.

Naman Tekriwal is a Hong Kong-based founder, operator and investor working at the intersection of sustainability, consumer brands and venture building. Originally from India, he started building businesses in high school, founding a student micro-investing platform that he later sold, as well as Rural Invest and the Young Tycoons Business Challenge (YTBC).

At 18, during his first year at HKUST and in the middle of COVID, Naman co-founded Breer, a sustainability-first craft beverage brand that upcycles surplus bread and F&B waste into beer and non-alcoholic drinks. As Co-Founder and COO, he leads the company’s operations and has helped turn a circular-economy idea into a brand that shows how waste can become something people genuinely enjoy.

Beyond Breer, Naman is a Partner at Orange Juice Ventures, a venture studio, and the founder of WYB (What You Building), Hong Kong’s largest founder community with more than 500 members. Through WYB, he brings together founders, operators and investors to exchange ideas, build meaningful relationships and support one another through the highs and lows of building. He is also an active angel investor, backing early-stage founders with both capital and hands-on operating experience.

Naman was recognised on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in 2023. Across every role, his work reflects a consistent belief that ambitious, commercially sound businesses can also create lasting positive impact. He is passionate about community, entrepreneurship and helping the next generation of founders in Asia get started.

Ms. Karen Zheng, the founder of Superlink Consulting and the curator of the influencer account "The Greater Bay Area Headhunting Queen", is a highly respected and seasoned expert in the field of human resources. Ms. Zheng is a seasoned expert in human resources, with experience at globally renowned companies such as IBM, Tencent, and Baidu. Since 2020, she has served as a Partner at CGL, focusing on HR services for hard-tech and internationally expanding enterprises. Over her nearly twenty-year career, she has participated in and witnessed the successful IPOs of two startups, and has played a key role in supporting technology companies like Pudu Robotics and Narwal Robotics in building talent and organizational systems from the early startup phase to structured growth. Her firm provides comprehensive HR solutions for innovative and entrepreneurial companies, covering organizational development, leadership cultivation, and talent strategy consulting. In early 2025, she published her professional book, *Practical Human Resource Management for Innovative Startups*.

As a prominent HR thought leader, Ms. Zheng’s self-media account "Greater Bay Area Headhunting Queen" has attracted nearly 150,000 entrepreneurs and professionals across platforms, influencing a new generation of entrepreneurs and workplace professionals through her clear professional insights and in-depth case analyses. She is also a certified lecturer at Tencent Academy, a contracted instructor with the GHR Global HR Think Tank, a mentor on the program "Hi, City Hunter", and an expert guest on the talk show "Renjun Teacher". She has provided executive talent identification and management training for companies including Mango TV, Meitu, SenseTime, and iFLYTEK.

As a "New Hong Kong Resident", Ms. Zheng moved to Hong Kong in April 2023, choosing to settle, purchase property, and embark on a new entrepreneurial journey. She actively engages in the Greater Bay Area’s innovation ecosystem, helping hard-tech and science & technology enterprises establish a presence in Hong Kong, connect with capital and talent resources, and support mainland Chinese companies in using Hong Kong as a platform for global expansion.

In terms of public affairs and social influence, Ms. Zheng has been invited to participate in major events such as the Hong Kong Talent Summit and the Global Talent Forum, where she shared insights on talent mobility and innovation development in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, appearing alongside Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary Mr. Paul Chan Mo-po. As a representative of Hong Kong’s talent introduction program, she actively promotes talent exchange and enterprise establishment in the Greater Bay Area, assisting the government in attracting high-quality companies and professionals to Hong Kong. She has also been interviewed by leading media outlets, including the Xinhua News Agency Hong Kong Bureau, providing in-depth perspectives on innovation, entrepreneurship, and talent development.

Guided by the philosophy of "enabling mutual success between enterprises and talent", Ms. Zheng continues to provide strategic HR support for innovative and cross-border enterprises, helping Chinese companies achieve high-quality growth in the era of globalization.

Neil leads XTransfer’s overall corporate development and capital market activities. He also heads XTransfer's Hong Kong business and oversees financial institution partnerships globally.

Prior to joining XTransfer, Neil worked in the Greater China M&A Department of Standard Chartered Bank and at Antin Infrastructure Partners, a private equity fund of BNP Paribas, in both Paris and Hong Kong.

Neil has accumulated 10+ years of extensive experience in cross-border buyout investments and M&A advisory, focusing on sectors such as consumer goods, TMT, and renewable energy.

Nick Trudgen is the founder and CEO of Space Markets, a company building financial infrastructure for the space economy, backed by Coinbase Ventures.

Nick started Space Markets around a simple gap. More satellites, spectrum, power and computing capacity are reaching orbit every year, but there's still no clear way to price any of it or trade it. Deals happen privately, prices aren't public, and investors outside the industry have few ways to take a view. Space Markets is building the markets, price data and settlement tools to change that.

The company's first product is SMX, a venue where people and AI agents can trade on space-economy events, alongside the Space Markets Index, which tracks the sector with a source for every number. Nick is building SMX for software as much as for people: its data feeds and agent tools come first, and the app sits on top of the same system. The company runs much of its day-to-day work through AI agents, with a small human team setting direction.

Nicole is the Chief Ecosystem Officer at Ubyx.  She is an award-winning digital policy expert driving stakeholder engagement, business development and shaping financial regulation in FinTech, AI, and digital assets across UK, EU, MENA, US and APAC; formerly Head of Digital Policy at Barclays.

Nicole is on the European Commission’s (EC) Expert Group on Regulatory Obstacles to Financial Innovation. In addition, she participated in the Crypto-asset and Blockchain roundtables at the European Parliament and presented on AI to the Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN).  She also led a UK Department of Trade Fintech Mission to New Zealand and Australia in 2026.

She regularly speaks on panels, presents at conferences and universities, has published articles (including a series on agentic commerce alongside Amazon, Standard Chartered and the GFIN) and focuses on upskilling and diversity initiatives.  Further, she was named in the Financial News ‘Top 20 Most Influential Women in Digital Assets' and awarded the Freedom of the City of London for her work in FinTech.

Niki Ariyasinghe is Vice President of Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, leading Chainlink's engagement with commercial banks, central banks, asset managers and FMIs across the region. He has 20 years of financial services and consulting experience, including 10 years leading projects applying blockchain technology with large enterprises. This includes pioneering CBDC projects Project Ubin in Singapore and Project LionRock in Hong Kong; live blockchain deployments with leading financial institutions such as UBS; and a cross-border sandbox program with Swift and ANZ Bank under MAS' Project Guardian to enhance the liquidity and efficiency of financial markets through asset tokenisation. Most recently, this includes Project Pangea, a collaboration with Korean and European banking consortia to advance real-time, stablecoin-based cross-border FX settlement.

Prior to Chainlink, Niki worked at blockchain companies R3 and Abra. He also has extensive experience in banking and management consulting, having worked at ING Bank and Accenture Strategy, respectively. He holds an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.

Nikolay Seleznev, Сo-founder, Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer

Nikolay Seleznev joined Uzum as a co-founder and has been leading the strategy and business development effort since early 2022.

Mr. Seleznev has extensive experience in Strategy, M&A and Special Situations. Prior to joining Uzum, he worked at ERG, leading diversified natural resources group, and covered projects in Kazakhstan, Africa and Latin America. Before ERG Seleznev worked in management consulting and investment banking in London and Moscow. Mr. Seleznev received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in economics and finance from the Higher School of Economics.

Professor Ning Xi received D.Sc. degree in Systems Science and Mathematics from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, USA in December 1993.

Currently he is the Chair Professor of Robotics and Automation in the Department of Data and Systems Engineering, and the Director of Advanced Technologies Institute of the University of Hong Kong.

Before joining The University of Hong Kong, he was a University Distinguished Professor, the John D. Ryder Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Director of Robotics and Automation Laboratory at Michigan State University in United States.

Prof. Xi is a fellow of IEEE. He also served as the President of IEEE Nanotechnology Council (2010-2011), a member of Administrative Committee of IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (2013-2015). He has been elected as the President of IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (2018).

His research interests include robotics, manufacturing automation, micro/nano manufacturing, nano sensors and devices, and intelligent control and systems.

Ms. Nopnuanparn Pavasant currently serves as Assistant Secretary-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Thailand, where she leads the strategic direction of financial innovation and Digital Technology. She is responsible for overseeing the Digital Asset Policy Department, Digital Asset Supervision Department and the Capital Market Infrastructure Center.

Since joining the SEC in May 2005, Ms. Pavasant has played a pivotal role in modernizing Thailand’s capital market regulatory framework. She was instrumental in the sixth amendment to the Securities and Exchange Act B.E. 2535 (1992), enacted in 2019, which laid the foundation for the development of FinTech in Thailand. She also contributed to the promulgation of the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018), the key legislation governing digital asset fundraising and business operations in the country.

Ms. Pavasant holds LL.M. degrees from Chulalongkorn University and the University of Cambridge, and a Doctor of Legal Science (SJD) from the University of Hong Kong. As Thai Barrister-at-Law since 2003, she previously practiced law at PricewaterhouseCoopers Legal & Tax Consultants (Thailand) Ltd. Her distinguished career reflects a deep commitment to fostering innovation while upholding market integrity and investor protection.

Norasyikin joined Bank Negara Malaysia in 2011 and currently serves as Deputy Director in Payment Services Policy Department. She leads the Bank’s regulatory and developmental agenda on central bank digital currencies (CBDC), digital assets and asset tokenisation, including strategic initiatives under the Digital Currency Hub.

Prior to this, she also held leadership roles overseeing strategic initiatives related to large value payment infrastructure and cross-border payments. Her portfolio included the modernisation of RENTAS, Malaysia’s large value payment system, the ISO 20022 migration as well as the development of bilateral and multilateral cross-border payment linkages.

Norasyikin brings over seven years of supervisory experience, having overseen a wide range of financial institutions in Malaysia, including Islamic banks, and development financial institutions.

Norasyikin holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Michigan State University, USA and holds a Certificate of Islamic Finance from INCEIF.

Ole Matthiessen joined Standard Chartered in August 2026 as Global Head of Transaction Services & Digital Assets within Corporate & Investment Banking. Based in Singapore, he leads the bank’s integrated Transaction Services business, overseeing payments, liquidity, financing, securities services and will steer the group’s digital assets agenda to deliver innovative solutions for its client segments.

With more than 20 years of international banking experience, Ole held senior leadership roles across Europe and Asia, leading large-scale business transformation and innovation initiatives. Before joining Standard Chartered, Ole spent nearly 18 years at Deutsche Bank, where he most recently served as Co-Head of the Corporate Bank division and a member of the Group Management Committee. Previously, he was the Head of Corporate Bank Asia Pacific & Middle East and Global Head of Cash Management, where he led the continued growth and strategic evolution of the bank’s global transaction banking franchise.

Earlier in his career, Ole held leadership roles across Fixed Income & Currencies, across trading, structuring and sales, building deep expertise across different capital markets, derivatives, structured finance for a broad range of corporate and institutional client segments. Ole holds a Master of Science in Finance from the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management and a Bachelor’s degree from AKAD Privathochschulen. From 2021 to 2026, he served as a Non-Executive Director on the Board of SWIFT, reflecting his commitment to shaping the future of global financial infrastructure.

Recognised for building high-performing international teams, Ole is passionate about shaping the future of transaction banking through client-centric innovation, digitalisation and the convergence of traditional finance and digital assets.

He is married and father of four sons.

Oskar Thorén is a co-founder of EthSystems, which builds confidential systems for institutional Ethereum. EthSystems helps institutions use public blockchains for tokenised assets and payments while keeping positions, counterparties and flows private.

Before EthSystems, Oskar kickstarted and led the Institutional Privacy Task Force (IPTF) at the Ethereum Foundation, working hands-on with institutions to meet their privacy and compliance requirements.

He has spent close to a decade in Ethereum, mostly on zero-knowledge proofs and programmable cryptography. He created mopro and zkintro, was Head of Engineering at Status, and founded Vac (now Logos Research), an R&D organisation building public-good protocols for the decentralised web.

Paco Chan is a serial entrepreneur with extensive experience in building and scaling technology-driven businesses across Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia. Prior to founding Farmio, he founded Pickupp, a Series B logistics company that raised over US$53 million from leading global investors, including Alibaba, Swire Group, Jardine Matheson, etc. Under his leadership, the company expanded across multiple Southeast Asian markets and became one of the largest region's leading last-mile logistics platforms, serving over 10,000 businesses and empowering the idle time of the working class of over 150,000 delivery agents.

Drawing on years of experience in logistics and supply chain innovation, Paco founded Farmio to reimagine the agricultural value chain - building a smarter, more efficient, and more sustainable future for food distribution in Asia. Farmio is backed by global venture capital, private equity, family offices, listed companies and government investors, we deliver scalable, efficient, and profitable operations while modernizing a traditionally manual industry.

Patricia is the General Manager for Hong Kong at Circle Internet Group (NYSE: CRCL), a global financial platform and the issuer of USDC through its regulated entities.

Her background spans technology platforms ranging from startups to publicly traded companies. Over the past eight years, she has held executive roles at Galaxy Digital, OKX and WeLab, with responsibilities covering corporate development, strategy and operations, legal, and compliance. Prior to that, she spent 14 years at HSBC and Linklaters as a capital markets and regulatory lawyer.

She has deep expertise in managing business and regulatory risk, driving market expansion and leading complex high-stake projects. Selected projects include obtaining a Hong Kong virtual bank licence for WeLab in 2019, completing the largest digital banking M&A in Asia in 2022, leading a token launch for a Web3 blockchain infrastructure project in 2024 and obtaining SFC Type 1 and Type 2 licences for Galaxy Digital in 2026.

Her professional focus includes the commercialization of emerging technologies and the analysis of global trends, business models and regulatory developments.

Mr Paul Chow is Group General Counsel and Group Chief Sustainability Officer at HKEX and is a member of its Management Committee.

Based in Hong Kong, he heads up the Group’s Legal & Secretariat functions, overseeing the Legal and Secretarial Services teams globally. He also provides strategic legal counsel to the HKEX Board and Senior Management team. In addition, Mr Chow oversees the Sustainability function at HKEX, encompassing the Corporate Responsibility & Foundation team and the Carbon & ESG Product team. In this role, he is responsible for driving the Group's sustainability strategies that align with HKEX’s purpose and long-term goals.

Prior to joining HKEX in 2021, Mr Chow worked at Cathay Pacific Airways where he was Group General Counsel and Company Secretary. Before working in-house, he was a partner at Davis Polk Wardwell LLP, Linklaters and Slaughter and May, bringing broad experience from both private practice and as in-house counsel, along with specific expertise in corporate finance and capital markets. Outside of HKEX, he is a member of the Supervisory Committee of Tracker Fund of Hong Kong, Funds Management Sub- Committee of the Hong Kong Housing Authority, Resolvability Review Tribunal, Standing Committee on Compliance of the Law Society of Hong Kong and Green Technology and Finance Development Committee, and the Working Group on “Co-Prosper Hong Kong” – Welfare Projects Matching Platform under the Commission on Targeted Poverty Alleviation.

Mr Chow holds a Bachelor of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Master of Science in Global Business from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Paulina Leong is General Manager for Visa Hong Kong and Macau with more than 20 years of experience in the payments industry shaping Visa’s growth strategies across the two territories, managing global client partnerships and driving ecosystem innovations.

Paulina is dedicated to harnessing innovation to solve real-world commerce challenges at scale. She believes the future of payments lies in combining Visa’s trusted network with emerging technologies to create meaningful value for consumers, businesses, and the broader economy. Her work spans the full spectrum of payments innovation, from helping partners create more seamless, secure, and engaging consumer payment experiences, to modernising business-to-business payment flows and enabling more efficient global commerce.

Paul Keely is the Chief Financial Officer of Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ), overseeing the financial strategy across Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai Airport Freezone, and Dubai CommerCity. He also serves on the Boards of Oraseya Capital and Tradeling, and the Audit Committee of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise. With over 25 years of international experience at firms such as KPMG and Glencore, combined with CFO/FD roles at private equity portfolio companies, Paul brings deep expertise in finance, M&A, and strategic growth. He is a Chartered Accountant, holds a Bachelors degree in Business Law, a Masters degree in Blockchain and Digital Currency and is currently pursuing advanced studies in Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation.

Mr. Peerapong Thonnagith is currently a Deputy Director of FinTech and Innovation Office under Payment Systems and Financial Technology Policy Development at the Bank of Thailand. He is responsible for the technical development on CBDC- and tokenization-related initiatives e.g., cross-border wholesale CBDC, domestic retail CBDC pilot, interoperability for tokenization, etc.

Before joining the Bank of Thailand, Peerapong was an assistant director of the Securities and Exchange Commission Thailand's FinTech Department, he was responsible for the process of approving ICO portals and giving advice to potential neat-to-come ICOs especially in blockchain/DLT-related topics. Moreover, he experienced in monitoring and prosecuting process on criminal cases that involve the use of cryptocurrencies and digital tokens under jurisdiction of the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561.

In 2016, Mr. Peilung Li founded LUN Partners Group, an Asia-based global investment firm that focuses on fintech and innovative technology companies from around the world. LUN Partners aims to create long-term value for investors, portfolio companies, and society by promoting collaborative partnerships within its industry ecosystem.Today, the LUN Partners portfolio brings together industry pioneers in cross-border payments, digital trading platforms, digital wealth management, insurance technology, and AI & big data analytics, spanning the US, China, Japan, Singapore, South Africa, and Brazil.Mr. Li has lived, studied, and worked in the US, Japan, and China, where he accumulated over 25 years of extensive experience in business building, cross-border M&A and investment management.

Peter is the Leader of PwC Hong Kong and APAC’s digital assets practice and is also a partner in PwC Hong Kong’s financial services tax practice from which he coordinates PwC’s tax efforts globally with respect to digital asset taxation. He has been working in digital assets and Web3 since 2017 and in financial services since 2004.

He is a keen believer that blockchain technology will remake the internet and open up game-changing value for participants and that with the right policy developments, Hong Kong has the potential to be world leader in this sector.   By leveraging his experience of advising Web3 native start ups over the last 8 years, he hopes to transfer this knowledge to help traditional financial services players make the transition to the Web3 economy and explore the promise of tokenising real world assets.

He has advised clients across the financial services sector on taxation matters, as well as advising digital asset exchanges, custodians and funds and financial institutions on how to develop their digital assets strategy.  More recently he has advised companies on real world asset tokenisation, and has worked with overseas governments and regulators on the development of digital asset policies and regimes to incentivise the adoption of Web3.

Peter is a founding member of the board of Web3 Harbour, an industry association focused on supporting the growth and development of the Web3 industry in Hong Kong.  He also a participant on the AIMA digital assets working group, the ASIFMA fintech working group and a member of the Fintech Association of Hong Kong.

He is the author of the PwC Global Crypto Tax Report and the Global Crypto Hedgefund Report which is prepared by PwC in conjunction with the Alternative Investment Management Association.
He has spoken at a number of events including Hong Kong Fintech Week and at the 2023 IOSCO Global Conference in Bangkok and was also a contributor to the IOSCO Asia Pacific Regional Committee and FSB Asia Group annual meeting on Crypto Assets in 2024.

Peter Deans is CEO and Co-Founder of Shelf Labs, a technology company focused on developing innovative governance, risk and compliance solutions.

Shelf Labs’ launch product is ShelfGRC, an AI-assisted governance, risk and compliance platform launched in September 2026. ShelfGRC is designed to help organisations manage risk, compliance and governance more effectively by bringing risk frameworks, registers, controls, compliance obligations and reporting together in a single platform.

Peter is a former Chief Risk Officer and today is an industry-leading risk management authority, strategy advisor and author. He was awarded Australian Banking & Finance magazine’s Chief Risk Officer of the Year award in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018.

Peter also created the 52 Risks® management framework more than a decade ago to help board directors, executives and managers identify and manage business risks.

Today, the framework is used across industries around the world.

Peter released the book, Startup Toolkit: A Step-by-Step Guide for Founders in December 2024. The book was written to inspire and support the next generation of entrepreneurs. Peter is also an advisory board member for several technology and start-up companies.

In 2026, Peter was a judge and mentor for Hult University’s global startup competition, the Hult Prize, and a mentor for Pegasus Ventures’ Startup World Cup, supporting founders and emerging entrepreneurs competing on the global stage.

Peter Lee, Distinguished Engineer & Chief Technology Officer, IBM China/Hong Kong Limited. Mr. Lee has over 25 years of IT experience leading technical sales and architect to develop solution addressing customers pain points and to promote IBM Technology Group offerings, covering Infrastructure, Cognitive and Cloud Software, Security Software for Hong Kong and Macau region.

Mr. Lee is a veteran in IBM Systems who led technical communities and made outstanding contributions to business and industry via number of large scale project implemented, e.g. Banking Card Infrastructure at China Union Pay; Banking solutions deployment at countrywide Banks & RCCB in PRC; AI solution deployment in GCG region; ERP Infrastructure deployment at Fortune 500 companies; TOP 500 High Performance Computing projects at China Meteorological Administration & Taiwan Central Weather Bureau etc.

Mr. Lee has recently played Technical Advisor role to IBM China Standards Council, helping IBM China to monitor, feedback and comply with many evolving China Regulations and facilitate clients to better understand China Regulations and to land their business in China with IBM as their Trusted Technology Partner.

With that, Peter Lee has been appointed to be the first Distinguished Engineer of IBM Systems in IBM Greater China Group since 2014.

Peter Panas is a co-founder of Honest. Prior to Honest, Peter built two successful credit cards as Vice President of Product Management:

Apple Card by Goldman Sachs: fastest growing credit card in the United States

Mission Lane Card: first credit card fintech to reach unicorn status in the United States

Peter received his Master of Business Administration from UCLA and his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Minnesota State University.

Outside of work, Peter enjoys meditation and playing soccer.

Philip is a Founding Member and Managing Director of Primavera Capital. He serves on the Leadership Committee, Investment Committees, Strategic Partnerships Committee, Portfolio Management Committee, Sustainability Committee, Operations Committee, Risk Committee, among others. His board experience spans both for-profit and non-profit organizations.

Prior to Primavera, he held positions in investment banking based in Hong Kong and in a hedge fund based in San Francisco.

He holds a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University.

Primavera Capital is a global investment firm managing USD20 billion in assets, with 100 portfolio companies and 100 professionals across private equity, venture capital, and credit strategies.

With over 35 years of experience at Euroclear, Philippe Laurensy most recently held the position of Head of Product, Strategy & Innovation for the Euroclear group. His extensive knowledge of Euroclear's portfolio, strategy and client base will be key benefit in his new responsibilities. Previously, he led Euroclear's Commercial division, overseeing sales, marketing and relationships with customers across the group.

Mr Laurensy took up an MC position in Euroclear UK and Ireland and Board from 2013 until 2016, as well as in the Risk and Audit Committee of ESES from 2013 until 2018.

Previously, Mr. Laurensy headed a team of product managers responsible for managing and developing Euroclear's range of products and services. Mr. Laurensy' s responsibilities included research, pricing and service quality across products.

Earlier, Mr. Laurensy was head of the Custody and New Issues Operations departments at Euroclear Bank from 1997 to 2000, with responsibility for managing Euroclear's operational activities in those domains.

From 1994 to 1997, Mr. Laurensy was Senior Relationship Manager for investment banks within Euroclear's Commercial division. Before this, he was Network Manager for Asia, Central Europe and North America from 1992 to 1994. And prior to this, he was Relationship Manager for France from 1991 to 1992. Mr. Laurensy joined Euroclear in 1987, holding various positions in operations until 1991.

Mr. Laurensy holds a Bachelor's degree in Applied Economics from the University of Liege (Belgium) {1984) and a Master's degree in Accountancy and Finance from the International Institute of Commerce and the European University, San Francisco, USA (1986).

Phoenix Peng is the Founder and CEO of Gestala, China’s first ultrasound BCI company. Since its official founding on January 1, 2026, Gestala has rapidly advanced its “Chengdu + Shanghai” dual-headquarters strategy, building out its R&D system, industrial capabilities, and global talent pipeline. The company has now raised a total of RMB 570 million ($84 million) to date, making it one of the fastest-growing early-stage companies in China’s BCI sector in terms of capital raised.

Peng holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) and a Master’s degree from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He earned his Ph.D. from the Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence (ISTBI) at Fudan University. A seasoned serial entrepreneur, Peng founded Keruyun in 2012, which was acquired by Alibaba Local Services in 2019 for RMB 1 billion. In 2021, he co-founded NeuroXess. As a tech entrepreneur with a background in Internet and AI, he successfully pivoted into life sciences, leading NeuroXess to become China’s premier invasive BCI company in under four years. He is widely regarded in the industry as one of the "entrepreneurs who best understands science."

Polakit Teekakirikul is a physician-scientist, cardiologist, and healthcare executive specializing in precision medicine, longevity science, and AI-driven healthcare innovation. He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of VitalLife Scientific Wellness Center and Chief Science Officer of Bumrungrad International Hospital, where he leads strategic initiatives in genomics, preventive medicine, digital health, and next-generation wellness ecosystems.

With expertise in cardiovascular genetics and genomic medicine, Dr. Polakit focuses on integrating multi-omics, AI, and predictive analytics into clinical practice to enable more personalized and proactive healthcare. His work centers on shifting healthcare from reactive disease management toward precision prevention and healthspan optimization.

Beyond medicine, Dr. Polakit is actively involved in the convergence of healthcare, finance, insurance, and technology. He is particularly interested in how AI, digital biomarkers, wearable technologies, and genomic risk profiling can reshape the future of health financing, underwriting, and preventive insurance models. He frequently explores collaborations between healthcare systems, fintech platforms, insurers, and technology companies to create scalable wellness and longevity ecosystems.

At VitalLife, he has led the expansion of scientific wellness programs that combine advanced diagnostics, genomics, regenerative medicine, and personalized lifestyle interventions. In parallel, at Bumrungrad, he plays a key role in driving innovation partnerships in biotechnology, AI-enabled healthcare systems, and translational medicine.

Dr. Polakit is a strong advocate for the future integration of longevity medicine, digital health infrastructure, and financial technology to create sustainable healthcare models focused on prevention, resilience, and long-term human performance.

Pratyush Prasanna is the Group CEO of Flip, Indonesia's leading fintech company. With a proven track record in payments, he previously spearheaded merchant solutions at GoTo Financial and held key leadership positions at Poynt and Paytm. In his free time, Pratyush enjoys hitting the open road on his motorcycle.

Pravesh Rijal is the Chief AI Officer at Cross River, where he leads the bank’s enterprise-wide strategy across data platforms, artificial intelligence, global banking and onchain finance. As Cross River’s Chief Data & AI Officer, he is responsible for the intelligence infrastructure powering investment, risk, and decision-making across the business.

Prior to this role, Pravesh led Cross River’s Quantitative Strategies organization, delivering high-impact modeling and analytics capabilities. Earlier in his career, he served as Senior Vice President in Citigroup’s Global Modeling function and has led key modeling organizations across other Wall Street firms. With deep expertise in financial engineering and applied AI, Pravesh holds a Master’s in Financial Engineering from New York University (NYU) and is currently pursuing a PhD in Finance at EDHEC Business School, France.

He is passionate about building globally competitive intelligence systems that combine data, human judgment, and machine learning — responsibly and at scale. He speaks regularly on quant innovation, and the future of decision-making in finance.

Priscilla Adams is the founder of Adams Advisory, a boutique firm specializing in compliance advisory for digital assets, technology integration, and public sector engagement. As a board director of the Fintech Association of Hong Kong, she founded and chairs the Digital Asset Integrity Forum, a pubic-private partnership that brings together law enforcement, regulators, traditional finance, and digital asset firms to solve real-world financial crime challenges. She also leads the Association's policy advocacy on regulatory initiatives related to digital assets on behalf of the Association's 1000+ members.

Priscilla began her career at HSBC, where she led a team of 90 to embed AML/CFT programmes across 19 Asian markets, and went on to spend four years at Bullish immediately following the launch of the exchange, building its compliance and licensing programmes across Hong Kong, Germany, the Cayman Islands and the United States. She continues to advise Bullish as an independent consultant.

As a recognized expert in financial crime compliance,  she has spoken at the World Economic Forum, the UNODC, Consensus, Interpol, and the Wolfsberg Forum, amongst others.

Co-founder of NeuricsTech. She spearheads the buildout of the company’s operational framework, overseeing business delivery, capital fundraising, as well as government and corporate external affairs. A serial entrepreneur, she is the recipient of the Transformation & Breakthrough Award at the 4th China Finance Women Leadership Summit and serves as Career Mentor at the China MBA Center, Dolan School of Business, Fairfield University, USA.

A former overseas correspondent with China Central Television (CCTV), she covered major diplomatic state visits, international affairs and financial news. Upon returning to China, she participated in establishing and maintaining CGTN’s global relations with governments, corporations, research institutes and universities. She founded a cultural and media firm in 2017, bringing nearly a decade of hands-on expertise in corporate management, brand strategy, digital marketing and media operations. She has forged deep partnerships with leading brands and commands broad influence across the industry.