Reshaping the world order, accelerating intelligent finance

Emmanuel Daniel is the founder of The Asian Banker. He is an award-winning writer and author with a background in management consulting. He previously served in several government advisory councils, interviewed some of the leading chairmen, chief executive officers, policy makers and entrepreneurs around the world and currently consults with banks on investor, media relations and strategy formulation. His recent book, The Great Transition - The personalization of Finance is Here, was published in September 2022

Foo Boon Ping is the president and managing editor of The Asian Banker, where he manages its publishing and research business in Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. He regularly engages the financial services community on transformational issues shaping the industry; speaking at and chairing many of the Asian Banker's as well as partners events. He has more than 25 years' experience in strategic brand management, corporate & marketing communication and research & consulting, covering: retail, corporate and transaction banking, financial markets, risk management, compliance and financial technology. He had previously served in senior management positions at UOB and DBS Bank. He was also formerly a senior consulting manager at Ernst and Young and started his career as a financial journalist.

John Gong currently is the vice president of research and strategy at University of International Business and Economics in Israel. He is also a professor, researcher and expert in the fields of finance, international trade, antitrust, patent dispute and competition policies. He serves as an expert consultant at the Ministry of Commerce’s Antitrust Bureau in China, and acted as the chief architect of the Bureau’s national competition database project. Meanwhile, he is serving as an academic affiliate with Global Economics Group, a leading global economics consulting firm based in the US. He is also the principal author for the China section of the policy position paper by the BRICS New World Bank’s steering committee during its foundation time. He is also a renowned op-ed columnist for several leading newspapers including the South China Morning Post, Global Times and China Global Television Network, on economic and political issues.

Hugh Zeng is a research manager at The Asian Banker, covering China- related research. Prior to joining the company’s China office, he worked at Lufax and American Express (AMEX) where he was involved in fintech and digital transformation initiatives. Zeng started his career in wealth management and custody at HSBC. He then served as an investment operations officer at OCBC Bank, where he gained exposure to operations and technology, product and project management in the areas of qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII), qualified domestic institutional investor(QDII) and wealth management. He was also instrumental in helping OCBC build its QDII platform in 2011.

Maja Pantic is a globally recognised expert in generative AI and affective computing. As Chief AI Research Officer, Natwest Banking Group, she leads groundbreaking advancements in AI technologies, shaping the future of human-machine interactions. Alongside her industry leadership, she is a Professor of Affective and Behavioural Computing at Imperial College London, where she has been at the forefront of research on emotion recognition and AI-driven behavioural insights for over a decade. Previously, she held key roles at Samsung’s AI Centre and as AI Scientific Research Lead at Facebook, where she advanced AI applications in diverse fields. With a PhD in Computer Science and a distinguished academic and professional career, Maja’s contributions have been pivotal in bridging cutting-edge AI research with practical applications. Her work continues to inspire innovation in the intersection of technology and human behaviour.

Juergen Rahmel is the artificial intelligence lead in the chief digital office at HSBC Hong Kong, where he drives fintech engagement and oversees emerging technologies, including generative AI. With almost three decades of international experience in technology and business, he specialises in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and information security. He has held a range of leadership roles within HSBC, including head of IT of transaction sector at HSBC Germany, research director AI for the HSBC-ASTRI Lab, and chief digital officer at HSBC Germany. Rahmel began his career at Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt and has since served in senior IT management roles across multiple banks. In addition to his industry work, he is currently a part-time lecturer at the University of Hong Kong, focusing on the applications of generative AI in financial services.

T.S. Shankar is the Asia representative for BAFT (Bankers Association for Finance and Trade), a 103-year-old global industry association that advocates for policies supporting transaction banking, trade finance, and cross-border payments. Based in Singapore, he is responsible for BAFT’s engagement across the Asia Pacific region. With over 30 years of experience in financial services, Shankar has held senior leadership roles in sales and product development at banks, non-banking financial institutions, and fintech firms. He previously served as senior vice president at Bank of America, where he led global and regional teams across the United States, Singapore, and India. Shankar is also an investor in fintech and serves as an advisor to several fintech startups.

Professor He Ping joined the School of Economics and Management (SEM) at Tsinghua University in 2008, where he currently serves as associate dean and director of the Center for Global Trade and Industrial Competitiveness. His research focuses on banking and financial institutions, monetary policy, macro-finance, and blockchain finance, among other areas. He teaches courses such as Financial Institutions, International Finance, Macroeconomic and Financial Analysis, and China's Monetary Policy. Prior to joining Tsinghua, He worked in the US as an analyst in the fixed income division at Lehman Brothers and as an assistant professor of finance at the University of Illinois at Chicago. His research has been published in leading academic journals both in China and internationally, including The Review of Financial Studies, The Review of Economic Studies, International Economic Review, Journal of Monetary Economics, , and top Chinese economics journals.

Li Jianggan is the founder and chief executive officer of Momentum Works, a Singapore-headquartered venture outfit that builds, advises, and invests in emerging market ventures. He previously served as managing director of Foodpanda Singapore, where he was appointed by investors to focus on sales and delivery operations. Earlier, he launched the Singapore operations of Easy Taxi under Rocket Internet, a Germany-based company that incubates, builds, and invests in internet ventures globally and grew it into the platform’s largest Asian market. He later oversaw operations across six Southeast Asian countries, driving regional expansion, product innovation, and strategic partnerships with Tencent, Huawei, VISA, and Microsoft. He also co-founded and successfully exited a licensed consumer fintech company in Southeast Asia. Li is the co-author of Seeing the Unseen: Behind Chinese Tech Giants’ Global Venturing, written with INSEAD Professor Chen Guoli, which examines the rise of Chinese internet firms overseas.

Robert Koopman is currently Hurst senior professorial lecturer at American University's School of International Service, where his research focuses on trade and trade policy's impact on economic development. He serves as editor-in-chief of the Global Value Chain Development Report 2025 and senior academic advisor to the Research Institute for Global Value Chains at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.

From 2014 to 2022, Koopman was chief economist of the WTO, providing trade policy analysis to the secretariat and member countries. He represented the WTO in both the G20 Trade and Investment Working Group and the G20 Framework Working Group. During this period, he concurrently served as adjunct professor of international economics at the Geneva Graduate Institute. Earlier in his career (1999-2014), Koopman held positions as chief operating officer and chief economist at the United States International Trade Commission.

At The Future of Finance China 2025, Koopman will analyze contemporary challenges in global trade, with particular focus on manufacturing and services industry amid trade and macroeconomic uncertainties.

Sabino Fornies is currently minister counsellor for financial and economic affairs at the EU Delegation in Beijing, where he leads the European Union’s engagement with China in areas such as banking regulation, capital markets, and sustainable finance. He joined the European Commission in 1999 and has since held various senior positions, including head of the bank resolution department and head of capital markets regulation. He has also served as a member of the cabinet of Commissioner Joaquín Almunia, responsible for economic and financial affairs. Before his work in the European public sector, Fornies was chief financial officer at BBVA Italy and head of capital markets internal audit at BBVA Spain.

At The Future of Finance China 2025, Fornies will share his views on prospects for EU-China cooperation in financial services.

Sheng Songcheng is adjunct professor of economics and finance at CEIBS and president of the Institute of China Chief Economist Forum. He is also a professor at Shanghai University of Finance & Economics. He previously served as director general of the financial survey and statistics department at the People’s Bank of China, as well as counsellor to both the central bank and the Shanghai Municipal Government. Sheng has been a recipient of the State Council’s Special Government Allowance since 1999. He specialises in monetary economics, macroeconomic policy, and financial transformation. He has made notable contributions in the development and application of aggregate financing indicators, capital account liberalisation, and interest rate reform. He has published over 100 papers in journals such as Social Sciences in China and Economic Research Journal, and authored multiple books. In 2020, his research was recognised with the Pushan World Economics Excellent Paper Award. In 2024, he was named "Public Economist of the Year" in the China Financial Value Ranking.

Li Chao joined Tencent in 2017 and established the Tianyu Financial Risk Solution team. The team developed an anti-fraud algorithm framework centered on hybrid neural networks, complex graph analysis, and transfer learning, and launched leading financial risk control products such as the Tianyu Anti-Fraud Platform and the PDOS Decision System. He currently serves as chair of the IEEE working group on financial risk control foundation models, the world’s first international standard focused on foundation models for financial risk control, aiming to promote industry standardization. Prior to joining Tencent, Li held roles as a data analyst and product lead at several technology companies. He is currently focused on cutting-edge research in artificial intelligence and was nominated as a Young Scientist at MICCAI.

Liu Gongrun is the deputy director and research fellow at the CEIBS Lujiazui International Institute of Finance. He also serves as secretary general of the CEIBS Lujiazui Finance 50 Forum (CLF50), executive member of the Shanghai Finance Society, specially appointed expert of the Shanghai Payment and Clearing Association, deputy director of the economic committee of the Xuhui District Political Consultative Conference, and deputy director of the financial technology special committee of the Shanghai Modern Service Industry Federation.

His research focuses on macroeconomic policy, financial center development, and emerging areas of finance. He has led dozens of major government advisory and commissioned research projects and has published five monographs, including Exploring Certainty. In 2021, he was named one of the Top 100 Young Scholars in China’s Industrial Research, and in 2023, he received the CEIBS Star of Cooperation Service Award.

Zhang Liqing is professor of economics, director of the Center for International Finance Studies, and former dean of the School of Finance at the Central University of Finance and Economics (CUFE). He serves as vice president of the China Society of World Economy, executive director of the China Finance Association, co-founder and deputy director of the academic committee of the Global Economic Governance 50 Forum, and chairman of the Hongru Financial Education Foundation. He has served as external supervisor of China Minsheng Bank, independent director of CSC Financial, and chief economist of PwC China. He was selected for the “New Century National Talent Project” and the “National High-level Talent Special Support Program,” and is a Fulbright Scholar. He has held visiting scholar positions at leading institutions including Harvard University, Columbia University, the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and the World Bank Institute.

Erwin Lu is the chief technology officer at Lexin, responsible for leading the company’s overall technology development. He has over 20 years of experience in technology R&D and management, having held senior leadership roles at major internet companies in both China and the U.S. Before joining Lexin in 2021, he was the chief information officer at Ping An Life Insurance. He also served as CTO at 51Talk and Sina Mobile, and as general manager of the advertising division at Sina Weibo. Lu began his career in 2003 as a software engineer at Microsoft’s Seattle headquarters and later worked at Facebook as a senior software engineer. He holds five U.S. technology patents.

Fang Han co-founded Kunlun Tech with Zhou Yahui in 2008. He has over 30 years of experience in China’s internet industry. Before Kunlun Tech, he held key positions at the Institute of High Energy Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, TurboLinux, AsiaInfo, and Oak Interactive. Since 1994, Fang has been involved in and has advocated for the open-source movement in China. He is recognized as a founding figure of Chinese Linux and one of the “Four Pioneers of Chinese Linux.” He authored Linux Practical Handbook, China’s first Linux book. Fang is also one of China’s earliest cybersecurity experts, having led full-network security audits for the three major telecom operators. He developed DUDU Accelerator, China’s first P2P download software, and was in charge of developing the popular domestic web game Epic of the Three Kingdoms. Fang is one of the most senior participants in China’s internet industry.

Yu Juan currently serves as deputy general manager of transaction banking department at China Merchants Bank, where she leads the development and implementation of the Treasury Management Cloud (professional edition and treasury edition), delivering the efficient cash management solutions for corporate clients. With over 25 years of commercial banking experience spanning product development and management, she has overseen international business, cross-border finance, trade finance and transaction banking sectors. Throughout her career spanning roles as account manager, team leader and assistant branch president, she has developed profound expertise in commercial banking products and corporate digital transformation.

Zhao Liang joined Alibaba Group in 2009, where he was responsible for a broad range of B2B and B2C product lines. In 2018, he transitioned to Ant Group and has since led the development of the Group’s cybersecurity framework. With over 15 years of product management experience across both companies, he has specialized in financial security and risk control. Zhao played a key role in building Alibaba’s core risk control engine and Ant’s security product system, with a focus on areas such as anti-money laundering and data security. His work centers on developing scalable security infrastructure and solutions to support Ant Group’s large-scale operations.

Dr. Li Xinping is executive director of the Financial Engineering Lab, deputy director of the Research Center of Financial and Industrial Development, and research faculty at Peking University's School of Economics. His research spans quantitative investment, asset pricing, machine learning in finance, financial text analysis, and AI-driven financial modeling. He teaches courses including Quantitative Investment & Trading, Machine Learning and Asset Pricing, and Empirical Finance, and has led projects for the National Natural Science Foundation, National Social Science Foundation, and Ministry of Agriculture. Before joining Peking University, he served as chief quantitative investment officer, fund manager, and chair of the quant investment committee at top-tier Chinese mutual funds, and previously worked as senior portfolio manager at a New York hedge fund. He has also contributed to IMF policy research on emerging market lending pricing.

Oliver Oehms serves as the chief representative of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Beijing and is the executive director and a board member of the German Chamber of Commerce in China – North China. Prior to this, he held the position of CEO at the German Emirati Joint Council for Industry and Commerce (AHK), which encompassed five Gulf countries and Pakistan, and he also served as an ex officio delegate to Iraq. From 2016 onwards, Oehms led the German Chamber Abroad (AHK) in Riyadh, managing operations in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Yemen. Earlier in his career, he worked with GIZ in Jakarta, where he contributed to the establishment of a new service unit at KADIN Indonesia. From 2003, he directed the foreign trade and trade fairs department of a regional German Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Oehms began his career at the German-African Business Association (Afrika-Verein e.V.), where he advanced to the role of Regional Manager for Western Africa.

Chen Bo is the General Manager, Tencent Cloud Financial Risk Solution, where he is committed to financial risk control products and solutions. With over twenty years of hands-on experience in the field, Chen brings a wealth of practical knowledge to his role. He also serves as a graduate supervisor at the School of Big Data at Fudan University and an external instructor for the Financial Technology MBA program at Hunan University.

Su Bo is an AI solutions expert with extensive industry experience. As Vice General Manager of Spark Enterprise Group at iFlytek, he has led and participated in over 100 intelligent solution and large model projects for major Chinese financial institutions including ICBC, Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, PICC, and China Life Insurance, covering solution design and implementation.

Zong Liang currently serves as the lead researcher at Bank of China, senior researcher at the World Finance Forum, and secretary-general of the Academic Committee of Cross-Border Finance 50. In recent years, he has participated in more than 20 major national and provincial-level research projects. Zong has also published over 200 papers in a number of well-known journals, such as Studies of International Finance and Financial Times. He has contributed to more than 10 professional books, including The End of Globalization (November 2020), Theories and Prospects of RMB Internationalization, and Global Financial Change after the Crisis.