Speakers

Barbara Gottardi

Founder & CEO Finbridge Global

Barbara Gottardi is a globally seasoned Chief Information & Operational Officer turned entrepreneur and non-executive leader with over two decades of experience driving digital and operational transformation at major financial institutions, including HSBC,Vanguard, Admiral Money. Over 20 years of experience in Finance technology leading high performing team globally across Investment Banking, Asset Management, Retail Banking and Wealth management.   

A trusted leader and strategic thinker with a record of successful deliveries across the globe.   

A real advocate for women in tech and true diversity in business.Outside work she is a mother of 2 teenager boys and a keen runner.

Bianca Zwart

Chief Strategy Officer bunq

As bunq’s Chief Strategy Officer, Bianca keeps the company laser-focused on its mission: building the first bank people actually love to use. She shapes bunq’s long-term strategy and steers the teams that keep the company centered on users’ wants and needs. 
 
From entry level employee to CSO in less than 10 years – and all before the age of 33 – Bianca’s journey at bunq started in 2016 on the frontlines of user support. After rising to Head of PR & Communications, she left to launch and scale two successful companies – Black & White Communications, and Pioneer Academy – before rejoining bunq as its first Chief of Staff in 2022. Now, as CSO, she drives the strategy that powers bunq’s global growth and leads the company’s largest division, focused on making life easy for users everywhere. 
 
Having lived an international lifestyle herself, Bianca brings the same borderless perspective as bunq’s users. That experience fuels her passion to redefine banking: so that people don’t have to slow down their international lifestyle to fit a bank, but have one that empowers it. 

Caroline Wahl

Co-founder and PR Strategist Berlin Finance Initiative

Chantal Swainston

Founder The Heard

Chantal has worked in fintech and financial services PR for over a decade including clients like American Express, Klarna, and tink. Her most recent role at Wise (formerly TransferWise) was working on a range of projects from product launches and crisis communications, to supporting the company’s rebrand and listing on the LSE. She is now an independent PR consultant working with fintech start-ups and scale ups, and currently runs The Heard, an award winning platform to get more women and non-binary people in fintech and financial services into public speaking.

Christian Wolf

Head of Strategic Partnerships and Ecosystems Raiffeisen Bank International

Christian Wolf is a senior banking executive and board advisor specializing in digital transformation and regulatory innovation at one of Central and Eastern Europe's leading financial institutions. As Head of Strategic Partnerships & Ecosystems at Raiffeisen Bank International (€204bn assets, 11 markets), he provides strategic advisory to the Group Board of Management on emerging technologies and new business models. Currently serving on the supervisory board of Qivalis, a European banking consortium developing EUR-denominated stablecoin infrastructure, Christian brings deep expertise in digital assets, blockchain technology, and AI governance. Christian manages ElevatorLab and RBI's Fintech Scouts initiative, CEE's largest fintech partnership ecosystem with 40+ strategic collaborations, translating emerging technologies into actionable business strategies. His focus areas include stablecoins, electronic identities, AI in banking, and European financial resilience. 

Christos Chamberlain

General Manager, UK & Europe Airwallex

Christos Chamberlain is General Manager of Airwallex for UK and Europe. Airwallex is a leading financial platform building the future of global banking for modern businesses. By combining proprietary infrastructure with software and AI, Airwallex is reimagining how businesses manage accounts, access capital, control spend, and embed financial services. Prior to Airwallex, Christos served as General Manager at Flexport, where he partnered with businesses to overcome the regulatory, financial and operational complexities of cross-border trade. Earlier in his career, he held senior operational roles in high-growth ecommerce companies, giving him first-hand experience of the financial bottlenecks that constrain global expansion. 

David McHenry

Head of Treasury and Trade Solutions HSBC UK Innovation Bank

As the Managing Director and Head of Treasury & Trade Solutions at HSBC Innovation Banking UK, David has over 20 years of experience in treasury management sales, with a focus on emerging payments in the fintech, public sector, and correspondent banking fields. 
In his current role, he is responsible for the development and deployment of HSBC Innovation Banking's Treasury & Trade Solutions (TTS) sales strategy, overseeing TTS sales team and the Implementation, Integration & Technical Delivery team. 

He supports the Commercial Office's key strategic priorities, working closely with internal and external partners across local, regional, and global levels, and incorporating feedback from clients. He also oversees the TTS team's mission to assess customer needs and recommend effective strategies, driving volume growth in transaction banking, trade, deposit, and card solutions. Additionally, he has led business development efforts around interactions with fintech clients and prospects, leveraging his unique sales, management, and product development experience in both a boutique technology and a regional bank atmosphere. 

Dora Grant

Chief Risk Officer Griffin

Dora is Chief Risk Officer (CRO) at Griffin. An experienced risk professional with more than 20 years of experience in financial services, Dora honed her skills in companies like Lloyds, Barclays and Legal & General where she was the Head of Governance, Planning and MI for the life and GI businesses. 
Dora had been a CRO 3 times before joining Griffin and has sat as a Chairperson of the Endorsements Committee at the Institute of Operational Risk. Dora joined the financial services advisory team of the global accounting firm BDO in January 2020, before moving to Griffin in January 2023. 
Dora is a prominent and well-known industry voice, speaking about the intricacies of risk and compliance in financial services and often sitting in industry roundtables and expert panels. She is now a member of the advisory Board of the FT’s Banking Risk & Regulatory. 

Felipe Peñacoba

CEO, Payments Hub (Pagonxt) Pagonxt (Banco Santander)

Felipe Peñacoba is CEO of Payments Hub, within Getnet, Santander Group’s global payments platform. He leads the evolution of Santander’s account-to-account capabilities in the open market, building payment infrastructure designed to operate at scale across complex, multibank and highly regulated environments. 

With over 25 years of leadership experience across banking, payments and technology, Felipe has driven transformation in both global financial institutions and high-growth organisations. He previously served as CIO and Management Board Member at Revolut Bank (EU), and held senior leadership roles at Santander UK and Finastra. He began his career at Accenture, working on large-scale core banking and payments programmes across Europe and Latin America.

Hannah Duncan

Journalist HD Investment Content

Hannah Duncan is a multi-award-winning financial journalist, best known for covering sustainability, fintech and investment management. She’s reported for a range of outlets, including FT’s The Banker, The CISI and FFNews. 

Heidrun Luyt

Chief Growth Officer Qonto

Heidrun Luyt is the Chief Growth Officer at Qonto, the leading European business finance solution for SMEs and freelancers. Graduated from the University of Mannheim, Luyt has almost two decades of experience in driving growth in the international SaaS, fintech, and retail industries. She has a proven track record in brand development, go-to-market strategies and customer experience, having held leadership roles at IG Group, Pipedrive, David Lloyd Leisure, Le Creuset, and Peek & Cloppenburg. 

At Qonto, she leads a team of over 300 people spanning local and global Sales, Acquisition, Client Development, Brand & Communications, as well as Growth Projects & Operations teams. Her strategic vision and leadership will be instrumental in Qonto's mission to make day-to-day business finance management easier for SMEs and freelancers across Europe. 

Ian Rand

CEO Monument Bank

Ian is the CEO of Monument Bank, the first UK Digital Bank focused on the Mass Affluent, and the fastest growing FinTech in the UK in 2025.    Ian has led the business since its launch to the public in January 2022, prior to Monument Ian held leadership roles in Barclays and JPMorgan, including being CEO of the Barclays Business Bank. 

Iryna Agieieva

Head of Payments Mollie

Jeff Tijssen

Industry Expert

Jenni Himberg-Wild

Managing Director HSBC

Jenni is a Managing Director at HSBC and, since early 2026, has served as Head  

of Fintech for the Institutional Client Group (ICG). She is responsible for shaping  

strategy and fostering engagement with established fintech firms across Europe,  

and is a member of the ICG Europe leadership team.  

With two decades of experience in banking, Jenni has previously led Financial 

Institutions Europe and Fintech UK coverage teams at Barclays Corporate &  

Investment Bank. Her background also includes a range of leadership roles within  

the UK Corporate Bank, notably in the hospitality and leisure sectors, where she  

oversaw the development and governance of strategies for high-risk industries. 

Jenni is passionate about working with dynamic, diverse teams and is a  

committed advocate for diversity and inclusive leadership within banking  

and finance. 

Jenny Edwards

Head of Venture Banking NatWest

Jenny Edwards is the Head of NatWest Venture Banking, responsible for leading the bank’s strategy to accelerate support for the UK’s most innovative and fast‑scaling businesses. With over a decade of experience at J.P. Morgan, Jenny brings deep expertise in building and scaling sector‑focused banking propositions, particularly across healthcare, life sciences, and technology. 

Joining NatWest after successfully developing and leading J.P. Morgan’s healthcare and life sciences business across the Western United States, Jenny supported clients ranging from early‑stage start-ups to IPO‑ready companies, providing comprehensive cash management and funding solutions tailored to their growth trajectories. 

At NatWest, Jenny plays a central role in advancing the bank’s commitment to the UK’s Innovation Economy, a strategic focus area comprising sectors such as fintech, life sciences, and other technology‑driven fields. She leads a future‑focused team dedicated to supporting businesses that have raised institutional investment, offering tailored banking solutions for companies and venture capital firms while strengthening NatWest’s ecosystem-wide support. 

Jenny works closely with NatWest’s Accelerators, Innovation & Partnerships teams, and Coutts to ensure founders and high-growth firms receive fully integrated support throughout their journey, from ideation and investment to scaling and exit planning 

Jessica Holzbach

Partner & CEO Germany 0TO9 - Bank of Entrepreneurship

Jessica Holzbach is a German serial fintech entrepreneur, investor, and supervisory board member, driving Europe’s next wave of financial innovation. As Partner & CEO Germany at Swedish venture builder 0TO9, she is building the Bank of Entrepreneurship—combining a venture lab and licensed financial institution to empower founders to launch faster, scale smarter, and build financial services that last. 

Previously, she co-founded Penta, leading it to Germany’s largest fintech exit through its acquisition by Qonto, and founded and exited Pile Capital, a treasury platform for digital businesses. Across her ventures, she raised over €85 million and built financial infrastructure used by thousands of companies across Europe. 

Jessica also serves as the youngest female member of the Supervisory Board of Fürstlich Castell’sche Bank and has been widely recognized by Forbes' "30 under 30," Capital’s "Top 40 under 40," and the German Startup Awards. 

In her current role, Jessica channels all her experience and energy into one mission: giving back by building the infrastructure, networks, and support founders need to succeed. 

Jim Marous

Industry Specialist The Financial Brand

Keith Grose

UK CEO Coinbase

Keith is the UK CEO at Coinbase, based in London, leading product and business strategy in one of the world’s most dynamic fintech markets. A seasoned executive with a passion for building financial infrastructure, prior to joining Coinbase Keith led the establishment of Plaid’s UK and European operations, driving its growth as one of the largest private fintech companies globally, and served as COO of SequenceHQ, focusing on B2B payments. Keith began his career in Silicon Valley as a consultant at Bain & Company before spending many years at Google, where he played a key role in scaling the payments and mobile hardware divisions. As an investor, Keith supports ambitious founders driving financial freedom through technology with a focus on fintech & crypto startups.

Luca Bocchio

Partner Accel

Luca joined Accel in 2018 and focuses on fintech, marketplaces, consumer, commerce infrastructure, and workflow automation, with a particular interest in next-gen product-first businesses. Since joining Accel, Luca has led investments in companies such as Born, BRYTER, Charles, Fuse Energy, Insify, Lydia, Nory, Swan, Sythflow AI, Tines, Trade Republic and Vinted. He also works closely with sennder and Soldo. 

Prior to Accel, he was with H14, where he helped build the early-stage practice after starting his career at Bain & Co. Luca is from Italy and graduated from LIUC University 

Manuel Costescu

Managing Director JP Morgan

Mr. Costescu is based in London and leads the global JPMorgan Fintech franchise for the corporate bank. Until recently, he led the New Economy team, helping EMEA’s fastest growing Fintechs, SAAS, and e-commerce companies scale internationally. 

Previously, Mr. Costescu served as Member of the Romanian Parliament and State Secretary for Trade and Investment. During his tenure, he reformed Romania’s Investment Agency and acted as investment and economic advisor to the Prime Minister during international diplomatic missions. 

Throughout his career, Mr. Costescu served in various corporate and financial leadership positions managing an investment portfolio in Emerging Markets, running an equity raising platform for start-ups in London, and setting the European expansion strategy for a UK based Credit fund. 

Mr. Costescu started his career spending more than a decade as a strategy consultant for McKinsey and Company in NY and a banker for JPMorgan, covering European Public Sector clients. 

Mr. Costescu is a trustee of the 5Rights Foundation which safeguards child online safety. 

Merve Ferrero

Chief Strategy Officer Zopa Bank

Merve oversees Zopa’s Savings, Investment and Current Account Product as well as strategy, including corporate development. Merve joined Zopa in 2015 and has since led multiple new product builds and launches. Her work to secure the company’s banking licence and launch the bank has allowed Zopa to grow, become profitable and make its first acquisition. Prior to joining Zopa, Merve has worked in investment banking in EMEA and early stage incubators in China. 

Michael Cherepnin

Partner EJF Ventures

Michael is based in London, where he co-leads the EJF Ventures team and is responsible for identifying, structuring and executing early-stage investment opportunities in the financial technology sector. Prior to joining EJF, he was a Vice President at Evercore, having worked in both their London and New York offices, where he advised financial technology and software clients on M&A and capital markets transactions. He started his career in 2011 as an Investment Banker covering the Central and European regions first at Renaissance Capital and later at Altius Capital. Michael holds a BSc. in Economic Cybernetics from the National Technical University of Ukraine and an MBA from Cornell University. 

EJF Ventures is a venture capital firm backing fintech innovators modernizing the legacy financial system. We invest in early-stage B2B fintech with a focus on bank technology, wealth technology, blockchain infrastructure, and other mission-critical enterprise-grade financial services software. As financial institutions undergo rapid transformation, we partner with founders rethinking the workflows, infrastructure, and operating models that will define the future of modern finance. EJF Ventures operates within EJF Capital, a global alternative asset manager focused on financial services with over $5.4B in AUM. Founded in 2005, EJF has spent more than two decades building relationships with thousands of banks and financial institutions, giving our portfolio companies access to an unmatched strategic network. EJF Ventures' investors include community and regional banks that share our commitment to advancing innovation across financial services. 

Michael Hurup Andersen

Founder & CEO kompasbank

Michael Hurup Andersen is the Founder & CEO of kompasbank, a cloud-native financial operating platform for the European SME sector. Combining a full EU banking license with state-of-the-art technology, Michael has pioneered a new model for business banking that replaces fragmented point solutions with an integrated suite of credit, payment, and data-driven operating tools. 

Michael has more than 20 years of experience from the financial industry. He has previously worked at Saxo Bank in Denmark, before moving to London in 2013 where he joined Deloitte, and later switched to the international consulting company Alvarez & Marsal as Senior Director of Financial Industry Advisory Services. 

Recognizing how data and technology would change the future of business banking, Michael returned to Denmark in 2017 and founded kompasbank as the first true end-to-end cloud-based banking platform in Denmark. Today, the company serves SMEs across Denmark, Germany, and Spain, focusing on empowering the real economy through scalable financial infrastructure. 

Miguel Angel Alcala

Managing Director, Head of Europe BBVA Spark

With over 25 years of experience in financial services, Miguel Alcalá has developed his professional career in the areas of equity and debt investments, strategy, and operations. Since 2025, he has been Head of BBVA Spark in Europe. His career at BBVA began in 2006 and has spanned various positions, including his role as Head of the Financial Sector in the Equity Research team at Global Markets, Deputy Director in the Office of the Chairman (2011-2017), and Executive Director in Client Solutions (2017-2022). Before joining BBVA, Miguel worked in Corporate Finance, M&A, and Audit. His experience also includes more than a decade as a member of the board of directors in companies within the technology sector as well as the real economy. 

Philippe Teixera Da Mota

Co-founder Shapers

Phil Teixeira da Mota is the co-founder of Shapers, a $75m fintech focused fund which he co-runs with his brother Thomas. Before that, Phil spent over a decade immersed in fintech at Hedosophia, where he sat on the board of companies like Qonto, N26, Raisin, Bitpanda, Viva Wallet and Scalable Capital. Phil is also a founding board member of Endeavor Portugal, where he is helping develop the local tech ecosystem. 

Richard Davies

CEO Allica Bank

Richard is CEO of Allica, a digital bank focused on established SMEs that has lent over £4bn since launching in 2020, and named by Deloitte in 2023 and 2024 as the fastest growing technology company in the UK, and by the FT in 2025 as the second fastest growing company in Europe. 

Previously he was COO at Revolut, as it scaled from 5 million to 15 million customers and launched in various new geos, and he was the inaugural CEO at OakNorth.

Rob Moffat

Partner Balderton Capital

Rob joined Balderton Capital in 2009 and was promoted to partner in 2015. Rob’s focus sectors are fintech, mobile consumer and vertical AI. Rob works closely with companies including Cleo, Stream, Primer, Zego, Premialab, PlayPlay, Agave, Lassie, Qargo, Lawhive, Light, Taktile and Carwow. Prior investments include Dream Games (acquired by CVC), Wooga (acquired by Playtika) and Numeral (acquired by Mambu). Rob previously worked for Google as a Manager in the EMEA Strategy & Ops team, and as a senior consultant at Bain. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and an MMath from Cambridge.

Sahra Abdille

Director of Digital Assets Coutts

Sandra Flavia Fenstereifer

Cluster Lead & Managing Director CommerzBank

Sandra Flavia Fensterseifer is Managing Director of the Innovation Lab at Commerzbank AG, where she leads the development of strategic innovation topics with a strong focus on emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Distributed-Ledger Technologies. 

Her career at Commerzbank is defined by the intersection of technology, product development, and tangible customer value. She has driven the creation of digital banking products and successfully launched an AI-powered banking avatar, demonstrating how cutting‑edge technology can become real, scalable solutions. 

In her role, she transforms ideas into impactful products, and shapes the future of digital banking through pragmatic execution and technological vision. 

Steve Naudé

Managing Director Wise

Steve Naudé is the Global Managing Director of Wise Platform, Wise’s global payments 

infrastructure for banks, financial institutions and enterprises around the world. Wise Platform 

provides these organisations with the capabilities, technology and network to enable fast, 

secure and cost-effective international payments for their customers. Previously, Steve has 

worked on payments international expansion, as well as direct connections to payment 

schemes such as UK Faster Payments and Swift 

Tim Chong

Founder & CEO Yonder

Tim is the co-founder and CEO of Yonder. After working in management consulting and as Head of Product at ClearScore, Tim spotted a gap in the UK credit-card market. 

Frustrated by the “old and stuffy” card offers and being held back by lack of UK credit history, he set out in 2021 (launched 2022) to build a modern rewards credit card experience for young professionals and city explorers. 

Under his leadership, Yonder has grown rapidly, raising major funding, expanding across the UK, and gearing up for European expansion. 

Tim’s passion is building products that combine smart fintech, seamless UX, and real-world experiences that pay off, not just in points, but in life. 

An Aussie expat who swapped surf breaks for city escapes, Tim’s happiest exploring new corners of the world with his family, whether that’s hiking, trying new local eats, or chasing a bit of sun and mountains wherever he goes. 

Tom Easterby

Head of Fintech HSBC UK Innovation Bank

Tom is Head of FinTech at HSBC Innovation Banking. As the partner to the innovation economy, HSBC Innovation Banking offer more than commercial banking services. They have the expertise, agility and connections that high-growth FinTech businesses need to accelerate growth. Tom leads a team of experienced bankers providing banking and funding to VC backed companies across the FinTech sector from Seed through to pre-IPO, with deep sector expertise across the full scope of FinTech. 

Prior to HSBC, Tom was part of the Banking team at Silicon Valley Bank UK supporting high growth businesses with venture debt funding and banking. Earlier in his career Tom spent a number of years at Barclays, enjoying a variety of debt finance related roles including establishing the growth of the Barclays high growth lending proposition in partnership with the European Investment Fund. 

Ugne Buraciene

CEO payabl

Ugne Buraciene is Group CEO of payabl., a European financial technology provider helping businesses take control of their money flow. Since joining in 2020, Ugnė has led the company through a period of rapid growth, expanding its reach across Europe and broadening its product suite with payabl.one, the unified financial platform that brings acquiring, business accounts, and card issuing together in one connected view. 
 
With almost 20 years of leadership experience in fintech and banking, Ugnė has built her career on navigating complex regulatory environments and scaling cross-border operations. 
 
Beyond payabl., Ugne actively champions the growth and innovation of the payments industry. She serves as a board member of TechIsland and CYENS Centre of Excellence, an advisor to Bivial AG, the Cyprus Country Ambassador for the European Women Payments Network, and a Money20/20 Europe RiseUp mentor. 

Valerie Kontor

Founder Black in Fintech

Valerie Kontor is an ecosystem builder and product specialist, and the Founder of Black in Fintech, a network championing inclusion and innovation for Black and underrepresented communities across the global fintech ecosystem. 

She brings experience across banking, fintech scale-ups, and startup advisory, with a career rooted in product management and lending innovation. Valerie has worked on building and scaling credit products designed to improve access, usability, and financial outcomes for underserved customers. 

Her work sits at the intersection of product and inclusion, driven by a core belief that meaningful innovation happens when inclusion is embedded at the foundation, and that’s where underserved communities are truly served. 

Through both her professional work and community building, Valerie is committed to challenging traditional financial systems and shaping a more inclusive, globally relevant future of finance.  

alerie Kontor is an ecosystem builder and product specialist, and the Founder of Black in Fintech, a network championing inclusion and innovation for Black and underrepresented communities across the global fintech ecosystem. 

She brings experience across banking, fintech scale-ups, and startup advisory, with a career rooted in product management and lending innovation. Valerie has worked on building and scaling credit products designed to improve access, usability, and financial outcomes for underserved customers. 

Her work sits at the intersection of product and inclusion, driven by a core belief that meaningful innovation happens when inclusion is embedded at the foundation, and that’s where underserved communities are truly served. 

Through both her professional work and community building, Valerie is committed to challenging traditional financial systems and shaping a more inclusive, globally relevant future of finance. 

Veronica Glab

Industry Speaker

Veronica Glab is a FinTech strategist with over a decade of experience across the UK and EMEA, designing market entry, partnerships, and communications strategies that help startups scale across borders. 

She previously served as Head of Partnerships at Innovate Finance, the UK’s fintech industry association, and has led partnership strategy at JUICE Ventures. 

She is the author of FinTech Wrapped, an annual report analysing global fintech VC trends, and is a frequent international speaker and writer on fintech investment and the evolution of financial ecosystems. 

Veronica is a strong advocate for democratised access to financial services and financial literacy and the role of technology in expanding financial inclusion. She works between London and Portugal and speaks Spanish, Polish, and Portuguese. 

Yorick Naeff

CIO ABN AMRO

Yorick Naeff is a Dutch fintech leader best known as CEO and co-founder of BUX, the European mobile-investing platform serving over half a million clients. With a background at ING in strategy and innovation, he helped scale BUX across multiple markets and eventually sold BUX to ABN AMRO and Coinbase. 

Following BUX’s acquisition, Yorick recently stepped into the role of Chief Innovation at ABN AMRO Bank, where he’s driving breakthroughs in AI, digital assets, and next-generation financial services. He is also an entrepreneur in residence at Techleap, he serves in the ETF advisory board of JPM’s Asset Management division, and he's a member of the International Advisory Board of the VU University in Amsterdam.