Key issues to be covered
Global transaction banking outlook
Trade finance digitalisation
Transformation in cross-border payments and liquidity management
Global supply chain disruption and strategies responding to bottlenecks in global trade
Digital assets on transaction banking and corporate banking
Outcomes and learnings from key wholesale CBDC projects
Making supply chain finance (SCF) efficient
The rise of ESG in transaction and corporate banking
Managing cyber and financial crime risks in a hyperconnected world
Shaping the future of finance: sustainability, digitalisation, connectivity and beyond
Transaction Finance Reinvented Conference
08:30 – 09:00
Registration and Morning Networking
09:00 – 11:00
Welcome note
- Alain Chevalier, Chairman, Future of Finance Summit Advisory Council
- Chartsiri Sophonpanich, Board Member, Thai Bankers’ Association; President, Bangkok Bank
Opening Remarks
- Emmanuel Daniel, Founder, The Asian Banker
International Keynote
Banking in the age of disruption: Navigating technological, economic and regulatory challenges by Sir Howard Davies, Chairman, NatWest Group and Chairman, International Advisory Council, China Securities Regulatory Commission. As the first Chairman of the UK's Financial Services Authority, he was responsible for merging nine independent agencies to create a single regulatory body. He also served as the Deputy Governor of the Bank of England. In his upcoming discussion, he will share his views on the future of finance in an increasingly digital world, the turbulence caused by geopolitical conflicts and deglobalization, as well as the threats posed by climate change to global economic growth and the world order.
Leadership dialogue
The rise and fall: Substituting traditional finance with DeFi
- What are the challenges and risks tackled by the intersection of DeFi and traditional banking?
- Explainable AI (XAI) in banking for building trust, complying with regulations, and ensuring ethical use
- Lessons learned, regulatory response, and measures taken to address the fallout of banks in the US
- What will happen in the next financial crisis? Will it be more digital? More networked?
Panellists include:
- Theo Priestley, Global technology futurist and Author of “The Future Starts Now”. He’s listed as a Top 100 global technology influencer and thought leader on the Fintech, IoT, AI, Web3, metaverse and blockchain multiple years in a row.
- Barney Frank, former Congressman and Chair, House Financial Services Committee, US Congress; co-author of the Dodd-Frank Act 2011 which promulgated to resolve the issues arising from the 2008 crisis. Recently he was the director at Signature Bank. His presence presents an opportunity to discuss the important developments taking place in the US banking industry today, including the dramatic closure of Silicon Valley Bank and other crypto-related institutions.
Session co-hosted by Gordian Gaeta, Future of Finance Summit Advisory Council and Emmanuel Daniel, Founder, The Asian Banker
11:00 – 11:30
Tea/Coffee break
11:30 – 12:30
Panel Discussion
Global transaction banking outlook amid higher inflation, rising rates, and geopolitical risks
Transaction banking remained strong due to growth in accounts payables and receivables, despite market uncertainties. However, tighter macroeconomic conditions, such as slower growth rates, high inflation, rising interest rates, foreign exchange volatility, and geopolitical tensions, pose challenges. Digital banks have disrupted the traditional banking landscape, creating potential challenges. Additionally, the rise of green and sustainable banking practices demands financial institutions to incorporate environmental and social considerations. Navigating these complexities requires a strategic and adaptable approach for continued success in a rapidly evolving financial landscape.
- Maintaining sustainability in the wake of macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty
- Managing risks in a deteriorating business and operating environment
- What does it take to be future-ready in fighting the next black swan event?
- How can traditional banks balance profitability with environmental and social responsibilities?
- Key drivers of green banking and aligning traditional bank strategies with sustainable finance demand.
Panellists include:
- So Lay Hua, Managing Director & Head, Group Transaction Banking, UOB
- Qamar Saleem, Head, Financial Services Advisory APAC, IFC, World Bank
- John Gong, Professor and VP-Research and Strategy, University of International Business and Economics - Israel, and a China Forum expert
- Devashis Das, Managing Director and Deputy Head of Transaction Banking, Asia Oceania, Mizuho Bank
- Shekhar Bhandari, President, Global Transaction Banking, Kotak Mahindra Bank
Session host:
Mathew Welch, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker
12:30 – 14:00
Networking Luncheon
14:00 – 14:45
Panel Discussion
Trade finance transformation and digitalisation: An ecosystem powered by a collaborative approach as way forward
While the flight to digital has ushered in paperless trade finance processes, it has also created digital islands and closed loops, exacerbated by a lack of standardisation and acceptance of common legal standards. To drive the ‘critical mass’ to end-to-end digital trade, it is crucial to facilitate interoperability to close the trade finance gap.
- Regulatory reform and collaboration to remove digital islands
- Data exchange and standardisation journey towards interoperability
- The emergence of application programming interfaces (API) and cloud technology in trade finance
- Legal frameworks recognising electronic documents— Where are we?
panellists include:
- Kwee Hong Yap, Head, Global Trade Finance, OCBC
- Colin Dinn, Chief Information Technology and Digital Transformation, Vietcombank
- Phattharaphon Ratanasuvan, SVP, Trade Services, Bangkok Bank
Session host:
Nicholas Drury, Director, TAB Insights
14:45 – 15:30
Panel Discussion
Transformation in cross-border payments and liquidity management: Fulfilling the promise of speed, security, transparency and traceability
The cross-border payment experience continues to be transformed with the proliferation of new payment providers, upgrades to legacy payment market infrastructure and interlinkages of the domestic real-time payment systems. This session will discuss the breakthroughs and initiatives needed to push ‘real-time’ cross-border payments.
- ISO20022 and migration to new payment standards for cross-border payments
- Platform-based approach for enabling cross-border payments
- Cross-border or wholesale payments as CBDC experimentation and innovation edge closer to reality
Panellists include:
- Sonja Davidovic, Advisor, Bank for International Settlements – BIS; Deputy Director, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
- Marc Recker, Global Head of Product, Institutional Cash Management, Deutsche Bank
- Takeshi Kito, Vice-chair, Fintech Association of Japan; Committee Member, Government of Japan's Regulatory Sandbox
- Eli Shoshani, Head of APAC, Bottomline Technologies
Session host:
Mathew Welch, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker
15:30 – 15:55
Debate: Can the RMB become the reserve currency of the future?
China's efforts to internationalise the RMB may challenge the US dollar's dominance as the global reserve currency. For this to happen, it needs to open up financial markets, increase transparency, and promote the use of the RMB in international trade. While the benefits include reducing the dominance of the US dollar and increasing China's global influence, risks such as increased volatility and political tensions exist simultaneously. The potential benefits of the RMB becoming a reserve currency are significant, but there are challenges:
- What would influence other countries' decisions to adopt the RMB as a reserve currency?
- Importance of the improvement of regulatory framework and transparency by the Chinese government
Panellists include:
- Alicia Garcia Herrero, APAC Chief Economist, Natixis
- John Gong, Professor and VP-Research and Strategy, University of International Business and Economics - Israel, and a China Forum expert
Session host:
TS Shankar, Asia Representative, BAFT
15:55 – 16:20
An inside look at the collapse of Signature Bank - An on-stage dialogue with former Congressman Barney Frank
Barney Frank, the esteemed policymaker and former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, brings his expertise to illuminate the SVB fiasco and delve into the valuable lessons that banks can learn from it. Leveraging his profound understanding of the financial sector, he will shed light on the regulatory challenges encountered during the explosive rise and subsequent collapse of SVB. Uncover the strategies and regulations that Frank advocates, enabling banks to effectively mitigate risks, champion responsible innovation, and cultivate sustainable growth.
Session co-hosted Gordian Gaeta, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker and Foo Boon Ping, President and Managing Editor, The Asian Banker
16:20 – 16:45
Networking Tea Break
16:45 – 17:30
Closing Keynote
Connecting the Dots: Exploring the intersection of Metaverse and digital finance
Let’s reimagine the future of finance in the age of metaverse and NFTs. What will the future look like? Does your digital transformation vision include tapping into the 3D virtual space?
- Redefining financial services and personalised experience via VR/AR
- Are you ready to respond to customers in a virtual world?
- What will virtual branches look like in metaverse?
- How to stimulate the virtual economy and connect it with the real economy
- The future of NFTs, digital assets and the ‘bank of the metaverse’
Panellists include:
- Kumardev Chatterjee, Metaverse Mastermind, Technology Thought; Member, INTERPOL Expert Group
- Jirayut Srupsrisopa, Founder and Group CEO, Bitkub
Session host:
Foo Boon Ping, President and Managing Editor, The Asian Banker
17:30
End of Day-1
Transaction Finance Reinvented Conference
08:30 – 09:00
Registration and Morning Networking
09:00 – 10:00
Panel Discussion
The future of transaction banking with fast-emerging competition from digital players
While traditional banks continue to increase their investment in digital and have benefited from years of tech-dollar spending, agile new competitors have been ramping up their capabilities at a much faster pace, lower acquisition and investment costs.
In this session, incumbents and disruptors will convene to exchange ideas on collaboration and partnership to make customers’ transaction finance journey more seamless. They must be able to answer questions such as: Who will acquire more of the customer’s wallet share? Who will capture more transactions and what will the future business model of this collaboration look like?
- Future partnership models between incumbents and new players
- The adoption of embedded finance and the power of platforms—How are APIs driving this?
Panellists include:
- Kanokporn Jootar, EVP, Head of Domestic Transaction Banking, TMBThanachart
- John Howard Medina, COO, Philippine Bank of Communications
- John TM Wong, MD, Head of Global Liquidity and Cash Management, Hang Seng Bank
- Venkat ES, Head of Asia Treasury Product, Global Transaction Services, Bank of America
Session host:
Mathew Welch, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker
10:00 – 10:30
Mastering the art of collaborating with Fintech platforms
On stage dialogue with Kelvin Teo, Co-Founder, Funding Societies
Funding Societies is Southeast Asia's largest SME digital financing and debt investment platform, specializing in short-term financing for SMEs. It has a track record of loan disbursement of more than $2.6 billion through more than 5.1 million transactions across the region. Since 2015, their efforts have supported the growth of numerous small and medium enterprises while enabling investors to diversify and expand their portfolios. Since founding Funding Societies alongside Reynold during their time at Harvard, Kelvin Teo has seamlessly combined his expertise in working with SMEs with his innovative contributions to the local FinTech scene.
Session host:
Mathew Welch, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker
10:30 – 11:00
Tea/ Coffee Break
11:00 – 11:45
Panel Discussion
Global supply chain disruption and the role of innovation and partnerships in eliminating bottlenecks
The world is experiencing trade frictions, COVID-19 and Russia-Ukraine crisis. As a result, business enterprises have struggled to maintain continuity in processes, production and procurement—managing physical supply chains, liquidity and working capital. As supply chains realign, what are the expected headwinds that buyers, suppliers and their financiers face? How can working capital be unlocked to enable efficiencies in supply chain financing?
As the disruption continues along with growth in e-commerce, the delivery of SCF through a strategic alliance between banks and fintech/platforms opens an opportunity to foster next generation of business models. The future of supply chain platforms is one predicated on the confluence of technology partnerships and innovation.
- How do evolving supply chain dynamics impact supply chain relationships and financing?
- How supply chain crisis changes supply chain financing?
- What role can technology platforms play here and how can they integrate with banks?
- The role of data in the supply chain financing evolution
- Opportunities and challenges in deep-tier financing
- Blockchain-driven supply chain finance solution for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
Panellists include:
- Rajesh Mehra, Trade & Supply Chain Finance Regional Practice Group Lead, APAC - FIG Advisory Services, IFC
- Steven Beck, Head, Trade and Supply Chain Finance, Asian Development Bank
- Ng Poh Yee, MD, Head of Corporate Trade Sales/ Financial Supply Chain Management, UOB
- Jose Antonio Pastoral, Business Head for Trade and Supply Chain Finance, BPI
Session host:
Foo Boon Ping, President and Managing Editor, The Asian Banker
11:45 – 12:30
Panel Discussion
The rise of ESG in transaction and corporate banking: Challenges and opportunities in the journey towards carbon neutrality
ESG can help businesses make sound decisions and investors can achieve better long-term returns. However, most companies are still learning what ESG means to their organisations and which ESG factors are critical to their businesses. This is an opportunity for banks to assist clients to navigate their ESG journey, especially in their trade and supply chain flows.
- Understanding existing ESG data and where to source it
- Measuring ESG performance
- SCF as a driver of sustainability and carbon neutrality
Panellists include:
- Paul Ark, Innovation and sustainability in emerging venture capital and startup ecosystems
- Sandeep Sethi, Consultant, Financial Services Solutions and Corporate Treasury Advisory APAC
Session host:
Siddharth Chandani, Senior Research Analyst, The Asian Banker
12:30 – 14:00
Networking Luncheon
14:00 – 14:45
Panel Discussion
Impact of digital assets on transaction banking and corporate banking
As decentralised finance (DeFi) continues to boom, the digital assets ecosystem is in a constant state of evolution. The most promising use cases of digital assets in financial services are in cross-border payment, settlement and trade finance.
This panel will discuss the importance of harmonisation and standardisation of definitions and rules governing this space. Where do the challenges lie? What kind of collaboration between regulators, central banks, traditional banks and private sectors is needed?
- Tokenising central bank currency for interbank settlements
- CBDC and stablecoins—Co-existence or primacy?
- Risks posed by digital assets in transaction process and regulatory concerns
Panellists include:
- Phitha Tanpairoj, Head of Transaction Banking Products, Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya)
- TS Shankar, Asia Representative, BAFT
Session host:
Foo Boon Ping, President and Managing Editor, The Asian Banker
14:45 – 15:15
Fireside chat with David-J Cooper, Head of Transactional FX and Workflow Solutions APAC Head, Cash Management, Deutsche Bank on “Addressing today’s corporate treasury needs through automation and technology”
With higher rates and cost of funding, what are the treasurers’ priorities today? What are the implications of deglobalisation, localisation of supply chains and escalation in energy and other prices on corporate treasury?
With a raft of highlighted issues, reducing FX risk and optimising short and long-term investments have become the priority. As they navigate the complexities of the new post-pandemic world, real-time treasury management supported by automation, data and technology advances will be vital to address their pain points.
- Challenges facing today’s treasurers and how FI can help them navigate the current market volatility
- Demands of today’s corporate treasury
- Use cases of digitalisation in the treasury space
- Mitigating FX risks through adoption of the Banking-as-a-Service “BaaS” model
- Role of Big data, API, AI, and analytics to build more accurate and reliable cash forecasts for the vision of real-time treasury management
Session host:
Nicholas Drury, Director, TAB Insights
15:15 – 16:00
Panel Discussion
Managing cyber and financial crime risks in a hyperconnected world
Technology has been a key enabler but challenges brought by the increasingly sophisticated cyber threats become a key concern in this hyperconnected world. Though we can never eliminate risks, we can prevent and mitigate them appropriately and timely through a unified methodology integrating people, process, technology and most importantly data into the management and decision-making process.
- Stepping up cyber security operations with predictive AI
- The power of data: Improving anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CTF)
- Frictionless customer experience versus fraud detections: Is it possible to have both?
Panellists include:
- Suresh Ramasamy, Chief Research Officer/CISO, Center for Advanced Computing and Telecommunications (CACT)
- Peter Deans, Advisor, The Asian Banker Risk Management Awards Programme
- Virag Thakkar, Regional Information Security Officer, Allianz Partners
Session host:
David Gyori, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker
16:00 – 16:30
Tea/Coffee break
16:30 – 17:30
Closing Session
Debate: Will ChatGPT eat your job?
Who has the edge in the job market: ChatGPT or humans? Rapid advances in emerging generative technologies like ChatGPT, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), have raised concerns among professionals about job displacement. How can we level up against AI, which is constantly in a high pitch of development and now seen to be surpassing super-human abilities?
In this session, we will explore the pros and cons of generative AI technologies and the impact of embedding them into digital journeys in the financial sector. We will discuss the skills and competencies that financial services professionals must acquire to remain relevant in an industry dominated by AI.
- Generative AI tools may replace certain roles in finance
- Potential for synergies between humans and AI systems
- What competencies do bankers need to stay competitive?
Panellists include:
- Henry Aguda, President & CEO, UnionDigital Bank
- Peter D. Finn, Co-founder and CEO, Synectify
- Chrisada Sookdhis, Head of Data Science, AIA Thailand
Session co-hosted by Gordian Gaeta, International Resource Director, The Asian Banker and Emmanuel Daniel, Founder, The Asian Banker
17:30
Closing Remarks and End of Summit
*Please note that this is a working agenda and topics and speakers are subject to change.
For more details please contact:
Agenda & Speaking Opportunities:
- Usama Muhammad
- musama@tab.global
- +44 744 8470 186
Exhibition & Sponsorship Opportunities:
- Cindy Yu
- cyu@tab.global
- +86 10 5869 6125
Delegate Registration:
- Joshua Sangalang
- jsangalang@tab.global
- +63 9050253810