Where we dive deep into the dynamic world of Financial Services and Technology. Discover the innovative solutions driving the industry forward, exploring the latest trends, and uncovering the strategies that are reshaping the future of finance.
Join us as we unravel the WHY, WHAT and HOW of solution providers in the Financial Services industry. Stay tuned for insights that will revolutionize the way you think about money and technology.
Each guest will engage with our host Rutger van Faassen in Futures Thinking and provide their view of a possible future and how we can get ready for that future today.
Informationbanker curates news and insights at the intersection of Technology and Financial Services so you can keep up with key themes that provide input for your decision making. In this busy world if you don't want to get FOMO also subscribe to my newsletter "What'd I Miss" where I share the items that were noticed in my feed during the week. Subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/d5_KvWwu
Leading AI Safety, Security, and Compliance
Founder and CEO of Artificial Intelligence Risk, Inc.
Waters Rankings 2024 Winner for Cybersecurity
Waters Buy Side 2024 Winner for Regulatory Compliance for Gen AI
Independent Director at Dynex Capital and member of NACD
Executive Board Member at Global AI Ethics Institute
Advisory Board Member at Ecolumix, Inc.
Ben Colman is the CEO and co-founder of Reality Defender, the leading deepfake detection platform helping enterprises flag fraudulent users and content. Over the past 15 years, Ben has scaled multiple companies at the intersection of cybersecurity and data science. Prior to this, Ben led cybersecurity commercialization at Goldman Sachs, and worked at Google. He holds an MBA from NYU Stern and a bachelor's degree from Claremont McKenna College.
I am the bridge between legacy mortgage practices and the next generation of consumer-first, fintech-powered homeownership engagement.
I'm passionate about helping people achieve financial well-being and homeownership. With over 30 years in the mortgage industry, I've dedicated my career to creating innovative tools and solutions that empower consumers to take control of their financial futures. At FinLocker, we focus on developing secure, consumer-centric technology that helps people manage their financial lives and achieve key milestones, including buying a home.
Before joining FinLocker, I held leadership roles with some of the biggest names in the mortgage and lending sectors, including Flagstar Bank and CitiMortgage. These experiences taught me the value of customer-focused innovation and shaped my vision for what financial empowerment should look like.
🏦 Payments & Open Banking specialist
🏅 13+ years in financial services
🎙️ Speaker & advocate for data-driven insights
With over 13 years in financial services, Conor specialises in payments, open banking, and consumer insights. He is passionate about transforming real-time banking data into actionable solutions, he thrives at the intersection of payments, data analytics, and human behaviour.
Areas of expertise:
📊 Payments & open banking
🛍️ Consumer behaviour & insights
💡 Fintech innovation & transformation
Business executive with over 20 years of consulting and alliance experience across multiple industries and geographies. Deep expertise and proven track record of leveraging the ecosystem to drive growth and differentiation in the market.
Outstanding negotiation and communication skills, and ability to shape complex commercial models to bring innovation to partners and our clients
Heather Xiao is the founder and CEO of Horizon Zero, a research and advisory partner helping UK and international businesses to strategise and connect with open banking, open finance and smart data ecosystem, and create new business models, innovative products and partnerships to succeed.
She is passionate in the industry mission of unleashing data unification through open banking, open finance and smart data, which she believes will massively transform our personal and business lives. Over the past decade she had the exciting opportunities to champion and deliver open banking, smart data and related open "X" initiatives in the financial services, aviation and management consulting industries in the UK and Australia. This has helped her with her understanding of the open 'X' ecosystem, and the comparable opportunities and challenges across different business sectors and jurisdictions.
Author, keynote speaker, and banker – Igor Pejic is a leading expert on tech-driven shifts and banking. His books "Blockchain Babel" and "Big Tech in Finance" have won a number of accolades:
• Financial Times Book of the Month
• Winner Independent Press Award
• Finalist Bracken Bower Prize (awarded by McKinsey and the Financial Times)
• #1 New Release in Banking on Amazon US
• Top 10 WHSmith business chart UK
Igor's articles and interviews regularly appear in media such as The New York Times, the American Banker, Forbes, and Bloomberg. He is also the publisher of the "The New Frontier." He has worked as a business journalist and a management consultant advising Fortune 100 companies, before occupying different management positions in banking and payments.
A global keynote speaker, he covers a range of topics including technological trends, tech investing, corporate strategy, blockchain, innovation, fintech, and payments.
An accomplished and innovative Marketing expert with a strong background in financial services and global marketing. Expertise extends to managing and facilitating global teams, agencies and events, and collaborating with senior management, teams and clients to achieve business objectives. Proven track record in leading multi-million budget financial services campaigns, with a unique insight and skillset developed from working in both Banking & Capital Markets and Energy sectors. Demonstrates strategic thinking and problem-solving abilities, leading global marketing and communications projects across matrix organisations and regions. Holds sector leadership as Fellow and Chair of the Chartered Institute of Marketing’s (CIM) Financial Services sector interest group for over 5 years.
Managing Director of SIG Americas, skilled in IT due diligence, technical debt management, legacy modernization and software quality improvement. Over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. Started as an entrepreneur in a software company and moved from software development to software advisory. Leads the SIG Americas operations and closely works with the executive team to grow the company exponentially.
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Software Improvement Group (SIG) enables organizations to trust technology for themselves and their customers. Our mission is to get the software right for a healthier digital world. With our intelligent technology and expertise, we dig deep into any (enterprise) software and architectures. We deliver an objective, science-based view in support of your digital strategy.
Managing Partner & Global eCommerce Payments Consultant with a passion for helping online businesses scale from start-up to 8-figures in annual revenue.
For the last 15 years, Michael has dedicated his career leading teams who partner with businesses to streamline their payment acceptance methods, FX, and accounts receivable process; allowing them to expand into new markets while maximizing operational efficiency to enhance conversions & customer experience.
He has worked with and for some of the world's leading banks and financial service providers, including Wells Fargo, Coupa, Carta, FIS, and WEX to help them develop and implement 'white label' global payment products / solutions within their portfolio.
As the VP of Partnerships at GoodTrust, I’m fortunate to work alongside a team of experts committed to democratizing the estate planning process. I believe everyone deserves the right to decide how their affairs should be handled, and I’m passionate about making that process easy and accessible for all.
My journey shifted from medicine to tech after losing my dad in 2009, leading me to launch Securing Memories, a service that helps families document and preserve their stories for future generations. Working alongside my husband at Sechler Law Firm, specializing in estate planning and asset protection, I saw firsthand the power of planning for the future and protecting what matters most. The crossing of these paths ultimately brought me to GoodTrust, where I’m proud to have the opportunity to combine my personal experiences with my professional expertise to make estate planning easier and more approachable.
🔹 Co-founded Fiat Republic, a banking and payments platform aggregating local fiat rails for crypto platforms via a single API, EMI-regulated in the UK and The Netherlands and a MSB in the US & Canada, raising $10M+ from Tier 1 VCs.
🔹 Launched 10+ Digital Banking, BaaS & Embedded Finance propositions globally, with a focus on innovation and driving revenue growth.
🔹 Co-authored Embedded Finance (Wiley), exploring opportunities for tech platforms, banks, and brands to capitalize on emerging trends.
I advise fintech founders, executives, and boards on turning ideas into thriving businesses and lead strategic initiatives for scalable growth.
My expertise spans go-to-market strategies, pipeline building, deal-making (€500K–€10M+ contracts), and strategic advisory for high-growth fintech companies.
Zac is a versatile leader experienced in managing and scaling high-growth companies. He is a veteran of all facets of startup and tech operations, including strategic planning and execution, corporate management, and building high performance teams. His expertise in risk and compliance software continues to drive innovative and effective solutions for businesses operating worldwide.
Zac is currently the Chief Product Officer at Trulioo - a hyper-growth Vancouver startup solving global identity challenges associated with international regulatory compliance, fraud prevention, and trust and safety online.
Principal Strategist, Banking & Capital markets | Commercial Banking Industry Executive | Thought Leader | DBS Fight Club Co-Founder | Tiger Mom