speakers
DAY 1
Mohamed HORANi
Founder & Chairman
Mohamed Horani is Founder and Chairman of Hightech Payment Systems (HPS). Mr Horani is the main architect of PowerCARD – omni-channel payment software, developed by HPS and used by more than 500 institutions in over 95 countries.
Recognized as a pioneer in the global payment industry, Mr Horani has the opportunity to share his expertise in the field of payment industry as a key speaker in conferences all over the world.
Mr Horani is also implicated in the business like of his country, an expert member of a committee established by royal decree, Conseil Economique Social et Environmental (CESE), and a member of Haute Instance pour la Réforme de la Justice, a group participating in the national dialogue for judicial reform in Morocco. He has also served as a board member for several Moroccan institutions and foundations for many years. Mr. Horani was president of the General Confederation of Employers in Morocco from June 2009 to June 2012.
He holds a degree in engineering from the National Institute of Statistics and Applied Economy, Rabat.
In July 2013, he received the insignia of Grand Officer of the National Order of the Merit by His Majesty King Mohammed VI for services to the nation.
Abdeslam Alaoui Smaili
CEO, Global Payments Solutions – HPS
Abdeslam Alaoui Smaili is a visionary leader in the global payments industry, currently servingas the Chief Executive Officer of HPS, a fintech firm he co-founded in 1995 and now awardedin the top three placement in the latest global vendor guide by Datos Insights. With over 30 years of experience, Abdeslam has driven HPS’s impressive growth, including its successful public listing, positioning the company as a pivotal player in the evolving digital payments landscape.
Abdeslam’s solid background in engineering and business management has enabled him to
strategically guide HPS at the forefront of payment technology innovation. His leadership
emphasizes adaptability and continuous technological advancement, resulting in secure,
efficient, and accessible payment solutions that meet the diverse needs of global markets.
Renowned for his hands-on approach, Abdeslam is known for implementing complex payment solutions and crafting strategies that cater to the unique demands of various regions. His commitment to innovation and foresight has allowed HPS to anticipate and respond to rapid changes within the financial ecosystem.
A respected speaker at industry-leading conferences, Abdeslam is widely recognized as a
thought leader in payments and fintech. He actively participates in global forums to advocatefor best practices and regulatory frameworks that support financial innovation and inclusion,bridging the gap between emerging and established markets.
Abdeslam holds an engineering degree from Toulouse University and has completed executive programs at INSEAD and Harvard University. His leadership at HPS reflects his belief in the transformative power of technology in finance. Under his guidance, HPS has strengthened its competitive edge while contributing significantly to the global discourse on the future of digital payment.
Amane Dannouni
Managing Director & Partner – BCG
Amane Dannouni joined Boston Consulting Group in 2009 and has worked in the Paris, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Casablanca offices. He has served clients across Europe, Southeast Asia, and Africa.
Amane cofounded BCG’s Digital & Technology Enablement Center in Asia Pacific, which helps clients execute and sustain large-scale digital transformation efforts. As part of the center’s outreach, he designed and taught an open online course, in collaboration with University of Virginia Darden School of Business and Coursera, to help the business community examine the pace of digital disruption and the imperative it creates.
Amane has a deep interest in foreseeing how technology in general might invalidate established business models across multiple industries, and how greater economic and social value can be unlocked by developing the right set of digital enablers (alternative digital channels, data and analytics-based decision support, innovation vehicles, etc.). His TED talk on how digital platforms can help local economies has been viewed more than two million times and he now writes a regular article series exploring the intersection of technology with a wide variety of fields: business strategy, human perception, and ethics.
Before joining BCG, Amane had experience in deal financing and strategic due diligences. He has a Master’s degree in engineering and is a data scientist by training.
Karim Saadani
Project Director – HPS
With a degree in Computer Engineering from Valencia Polytechnical School and a master’s from Mons Polytechnical School, I have built a career at the intersection of technology and business transformation.
My journey began at Capgemini Spain, where I spent seven years immersing myself in various roles and responsibilities. During this time, I successfully led multiple ERP and BI programs across different sectors, including big retail, healthcare, and defence industries.
In 2013, I joined HPS, which marked a significant turning point in my career. This opportunity allowed me to delve deeply into the payment industry. Since then, I have led cross functional teams through platform modernization initiatives over three continents in both issuing and acquiring within the payments sector.
Patrick Simon
Head of Presales at CR2
Patrick Simon’s career in financial services started with designing and implementing sophisticated marketing decision-support tools for online market analysis and brokerage industry.
Patrick then broadened his experience to include consultancy and knowledge transfer for IT systems and new technology. Patrick’s role within CR2, as a Head of Presales, is focused at leading a team of senior consultants that continuously work closely with clients to ensure that they maximise on their investment and are aware of the challenges and enablers associated with accelerating and sustaining digital transformation.
Owais Iqbal
Executive Director – OCBC Bank
Owais Iqbal is a Consumer Banking Executive with over 20 years of experience shaping the future of digital payments and consumer banking. At OCBC, he drives end-to-end transformation across cards, unsecured lending, loyalty, and operations—creating seamless experiences that connect customers and employees through innovation.
A leader in payments modernization and AI-driven transformation, Owais leverages data, analytics, and digital platforms to personalize engagement, optimize decisioning, and enable first-to-market capabilities. His work bridges business strategy with technology execution, ensuring payments are seamless, secure, and tailored to evolving customer journeys across regional markets.
Passionate about innovation, Owais continues to explore how emerging technologies—particularly AI and real-time data—can redefine financial services and deliver customer and employee-centric excellence in the era of NextGen Payments
Jean-Franc Dorval
Vice-President Core Banking – BNC
With over 30 years of experience at the National Bank of Canada, Jean-François Dorval is a recognized executive leader known for his ability to mobilize engaged teams and generate sustained value over time.
His professional journey has allowed him to develop a passion and expertise in various fields, including the distribution of financial solutions and advice, large-scale project management, as well as strategy and customer experience. His ability to approach opportunities and challenges from multiple perspectives while defining promising and articulated business strategies is part of his trademark.
Currently responsible for the credit card portfolio and all activities related to personal banking transactions at the National Bank, Jean-François exercises human and committed leadership to elevate the performance of his teams in a highly competitive and constantly evolving context. Jean-François holds a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Quebec in Montreal.
George Thomas
CEO – Sagicor Bank
George Thomas is the Chief Executive Officer of Sagicor Bank (Barbados) Limited. He has over thirty years of experience in the finance and technology sectors.
George has led digital transformation at global banks, fintechs and consulting firms. He was the architect responsible for the initial implementation of Internet, Mobile, Telephone Banking and Online Payments at a Canadian- owned bank operating across the Caribbean region and was also the Consulting Lead for digital transformation at two leading mass market retailers in Barbados’.
George, a Barbadian national, has worked in executive leadership roles in the USA, Canada, Europe, Middle East and Africa. George possesses a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from The University of the West Indies and a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering with a concentration in Computer Engineering from Louisiana State University.
Karsten Kemna
Regional Director – Asia Pacific HPS
Karsten Kemna has been living and working in the Asia-Pacific region since 2007. He is a seasoned business and technology leader with over 23 years of experience in the banking sector across three continents, primarily in the software and fintech domains.
Since early 2023, Karsten has been leading the HPS team in Asia Pacific, with a clear mandate to drive customer success and expand the company’s presence in this dynamic region. In addition to overseeing go-to-market and new customer acquisition strategies, he is responsible for managing existing client relationships and leading the professional organization across Asia Pacific, including implementation and support functions.
Karsten began his industry career with Diebold Nixdorf, an end-to-end solutions provider for retail banks and retailers. Over 16 years, he played a key role in driving the company’s growth, particularly in APAC. He later transitioned into the wealth management sector, taking the helm at the Swiss digital banking provider CREALOGIX. In parallel, he founded his own boutique consultancy, KCUBE Technology, specializing in banking innovation.
Before his corporate career, Karsten spent nearly 15 years as a professional basketball player, competing at the highest levels in the USA at the collegiate level and in Germany’s Bundesliga, where he also represented the national team.
Sophia Furber
Journalist – 451 Researcher
Sophia Furber, Research Analyst at 451 Research (S&P Global) Sophia Furber is a research analyst in the 451 Research Fintech research and consulting group within S&P Global Market Intelligence. Her coverage focuses on Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Sophia is a research analyst focused on fintech and payments in the EMEA region. Sophia’s professional background includes over a decade’s experience in financial journalism and almost two years work as an international observer in rural Nepal with the Carter Center’s Peace Process observation mission.
Sophia takes pride in bringing clients, readers and stakeholders unbiased, nuanced information that helps them to make sense of complex situations.
Senzo Nsibande
CEO Issuing – First National Bank
Senzo Nsibande is the Credit Card and Platform CEO at one of South Africa’s leading financial services institutions, FNB. He has 13 years of experience in the integrated financial services sector, having occupied various roles across banking, lending, payments, financial wellness, and sustainability.
Senzo joined FNB as a Graduate Analyst in 2011. He then grew and built on his trajectory, growing into a role as a Quantitative Analyst. Thereafter, in 2015, he was appointed as the CEO’s Executive Assistant, a position from which he moved on to head up Fraud and Disputes.
In his years at FNB, he has successfully led diverse teams across multiple disciplines.
This experience, paired with his entrepreneurial mindset has enabled Senzo to build strong businesses that embrace risk and adaptability to capture opportunities.
Throughout his career, Senzo has demonstrated the ability to navigate between intricate details and high-level strategic requirements, collaborating effectively across the group to operationalise innovation and solve complex problems. His primary focus has always been on delivering sustainable value to all stakeholders by addressing real client needs with world-class solutions, developed through empowered and high-performing teams.
Senzo has been fortunate to lead diverse teams and disciplines and considers himself a serial innovator who has demonstrated the ability to solve complex issues by collaborating across different stakeholders. One of the highlights of his career include being part of the team that conceptualised and brought virtual cards to FNB.
A collaborative leader and innovator who seeks to inspire and lead people, his passions include – strategy, financial inclusion, sustainability, scaling financial services in Africa, Amapiano and his family.
Senzo holds an MBA qualification from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS). He also holds a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Corporate Strategy.
Kamal Aouda
Presales Director – HPS
Kamal Aouda is a seasoned professional with over 25 years of leadership experience spanning the payments, consulting, and banking industries.
In his current role as Head of Global Presales at HPS, Kamal drives strategic engagements with central banks, financial institutions, and fintechs worldwide. His expertise extends across the entire electronic payments value chain, combining deep business insight with strong technical and architectural acumen to deliver tailored, client-centric solutions.
Prior to joining HPS, Kamal held senior roles at Deloitte, the Central Bank of Morocco, and multiple retail banks, contributing to landmark projects in IT modernization, and banking process reengineering. Kamal holds an MBA in Information Technology Management along with postgraduate certificates in Applied Computer Science from Canadian universities.
Trevor Torzsas
Managing Partner – TCR Advisory
Trevor Torzas has almost 30 years of experience in the financial services industry as an executive in retail, commercial & private banking, stock trading, consulting and advisory in multiple geographies. He has first-hand experience in running large bank infrastructures as well as building neobanks and fintechs.
At the heart of his career has been a client-first, data-driven approach to developing strategy and actioning digital transformation. His most recent experiences include customer centric digital transformation, product development and payments innovation across the Caribbean, Central and South America resulting in accelerated, sustainable business growth.
Trevor has built sales and execution teams in Canada, Europe, US, Central and South America and the Caribbean through employee engagement and mentorship. Currently he is the Managing Partner at TCR Advisory, holds board seats at LOM Financial, ICPS and Guyana Strategic Management Company and is a strategic advisor to Agio Digital (a company at the heart of the stablecoin revolution). He holds both a BSc. & MSc. from the University of Toronto.
Caio Reis
VP Strategy & Marketing – Thales
Caio Reis is Vice President of Strategy and Marketing at Thales, where he drives the vision and transformation of the Payment Services business toward the Modern Card Issuing era.
With over 18 years in financial services and digital security, he focuses on identifying the next wave of payment innovations and accelerating how they’re brought to market. By combining strategic vision with a marketing mindset, he works to turn technology into tangible value for banks and fintechs—helping them modernize their payment offerings, strengthen their digital capabilities, and build some of the most competitive card programs in the market.
Stefano Ottaviani
CIO CSEE Area – Nexi Group
Stefano Ottaviani is CIO for the Central and South Eastern Europe region at NEXI Group,
where he leads over 400 IT professionals across four countries, delivering services in
Issuing, Acquiring, and Merchant Services domains.
With more than 35 years of experience in digital payments and IT architecture, Stefano has held executive roles across Europe. He is passionate about aligning technology with business strategy, driving innovation, and leading complex transformation programs. Known for his natural leadership and ability to manage cross-functional, multinational teams, Stefano thrives in dynamic and challenging environments. Prior to NEXI, he held senior roles at NTT DATA, focusing on IT security and payment solutions. He is based in Milano, where he lives with his family, and enjoys music, motorbiking and playing hockey.
Mark Elliott
Division President, Mastercard, Africa
Mark Elliott is Division President of Mastercard, Africa. He is responsible for the overall performance, strategic direction, and brand development of Mastercard in Africa. His role includes the scaling of the latest payments technologies with creative solutioning and driving financial inclusion.
Mark joined Mastercard in 2011, from Barclays Bank, as Global Products and Solutions Lead, based in Dubai, where he had responsibility for all products and solutions across the Middle East and Africa. In 2014, he moved to Johannesburg as Division President, South Africa. Prior to Mastercard, he worked at Barclays Bank, ING Barings, PwC, and Arthur Andersen in various roles with a focus around M&A and general management.
Mark holds a BA (Hons) in Combined Studies and is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales. He is also a non-executive board member of non-profit organization Junior Achievement South Africa. He is a British national who grew up in India and Hong Kong.
Olivier Muissa Mangaya
Head of Payments and Channels – Equity Bank
Olivier Muissa Mangaya serves as Head of Payments and Channels at Equity BCDC, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s second-largest bank, where he leads strategic transformation of payment services and digital channels. With responsibility for a team of over thirty-five professionals, he orchestrates complex multi-stakeholder partnerships across fintech, banking, corporate, and public sectors to drive financial inclusion and digital innovation.
His recent achievements include launching transformative digital platforms such as Equity Online for Business, establishing strategic partnerships with government ministries for passport payment portals and digital identity solutions, and leading complete digital transformation of major healthcare institutions. With expertise spanning API ecosystem development, cross-border payments, and fintech integration, Olivier brings extensive experience in building scalable payment solutions that serve diverse markets.
He holds an Executive MBA from Frankfurt School of Finance and Management and a Master’s in International Banking Management from CFPB Banking School Group in Paris.
Khevin Seebah
Managing Director – ICPS
Khevin Seebah is the CEO of ICPS Ltd, a joint venture of the MCB Group and Hightech Payment Systems (HPS), a leading payment software company based in Morocco, present in 85+ countries with 350+ users. Khevin provides strategic leadership for the company by working closely with the board of directors and the senior management team to establish long-term goals, strategies and policies.
He is responsible for the day-to-day management decisions and for implementing the company’s long, medium and short term plans. He holds a Bachelor degree in Economic and Administration with Information System and a Masters (Honors) in Business Intelligence and Information System from the University of Sciences Sociales Toulouse, France. Khevin has 15+ years of information system, business intelligence, advisory and management experience in Operations and Information Technology field.
His main exposure has been in Europe with the multinational Airbus Group and Africa with particular emphasis on Project management, System Architecture, Card Management System, Core Banking and Data warehousing. He has thorough practical experience of Cards/Payment and banking services. Khevin has been instrumental in the setup and transformation of key units at ICPS.
Taoufik Daidai
Chief Executive Officer, MT Cash
Taoufik Daidai is the Chief Executive Officer of MT Cash, a subsidiary of Maroc Telecom.
He oversees the company’s strategic development and digital transformation in electronic payments, driving innovation and financial inclusion across Morocco’s fintech landscape. Under his leadership, MT Cash has expanded its ecosystem through strategic partnerships, cutting-edge payment solutions, and a strong focus on regulatory compliance and operational excellence.
Abu Yahaya
CIO – Fidelity Bank
Abu Yahaya is currently the Chief Information Officer Fidelity Bank Ghana Ltd. Abu is a seasoned technology
executive with over 25 years of professional experience, including nearly two decades in senior management roles across Africa.
He is widely recognized as a distinguished leader in the Digital Payments and Technology sector. Throughout his career, Abu has led transformative initiatives in technology, digital banking, and strategic partnerships, consistently driving innovation and operational efficiency across various industries.
Teferi Mekonnen
CEO – Oromia Bank
Teferi Mekonnen is a seasoned banking business leader with diverse knowledge wealth of more than two decades, with an EMBA. He is a Chief Executive Officer since March 2020 and in command of the comprehensive transformation of the Oromia Bank with the visible dazzling marks so far, with operational philosophy of ‘Digital First’. Mr Teferi innovated and led the rebranding transformation of the Oromia International Bank into Oromia Bank, which was inaugurated in December 2021, after a project period of over 2 years.
Ormia Bank is the healthiest, sound, compliant and shining under his leadership with both national and international accolades. In 2023, Mr Teferi Mekonnen was awarded The LEGION OF HONOR and NISHAN by for his extraordinary meritorious performance in industrial leadership by the ABYSSINIA QUALITY AWARD, while the Bank is awarded INDUSTRIAL HIGHER HONOR AWARD. Most notably, Oromia Bank has won three successive international quality awards form the ESQR from 2022-2024, in view of the best ever consistent international trade service.
In parallel, Teferi is serving as a board of director of the Ethswitch S.C., the Bahir Dar University, the Oromia Steel Pipe Mill PLC, the Tsehay Industry S.C. and the Ethiopian Bankers Association.
Before assuming his current role at the Oromia Bank, Teferi served in the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, the Wegagen Bank and the Oromia Bank at different Middle Management and Senior Executive Management level roles.
Mwenya Mubanga
Head of Digital Products and Channels – Access Bank
Mwenya Mubanga is the Head of Digital Products and Channels at Access Bank Zambia, with over a decade of experience in the banking sector.
He leads a dynamic team spearheading the bank’s digital transformation and channel rationalization following its merger. Mwenya has played a pivotal role in launching the merged bank’s card proposition and delivering several industry firsts including the introduction of the PAPSS remittance solution for local currency transfers and the bank’s first fully digitized social savings solution.
A certified Digital Finance Practitioner, Mwenya is passionate about advancing digital payments and remittance solutions, while promoting financial inclusion and sustainability to drive meaningful impact.
Ana Nedeljkovic
Customer Relationships – CR2
Ana Nedeljkovic is Vice President of Customer Relationships at CR2, where she leads a team of strategic account managers across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
With over 20 years of experience in the payments industry, Ana is passionate about driving customer success and advancing financial inclusion through digital banking innovation. Her work focuses on helping financial institutions deliver impactful, customer-centric services in emerging markets.
Ana’s career includes senior roles at First Data (now Fiserv), where she managed multi-country clients and led bid management and marketing across Southeastern Europe. She holds an MBA from Heriot-Watt University and a law degree from Belgrade University. Multilingual and globally minded, Ana speaks English, Serbian, Italian, German and Spanish. Originally from Belgrade, Dubai has been home for 11 years for Ana, where she resides with her family and is a proud mother of three daughters.
Hakima El Alami
Director of Payment Systems and Instruments Oversight Department – Bank Al-Maghrib
Ms. Hakima EL ALAMI has been with bank Al-Maghrib since 1997. She is the current Director of Payment Systems and Instruments Oversight Department responsible for conducting national strategies related to development of electronic means of payment and payment systems resilience. The Department is also in charge of implementing regulation and oversight framework of FMIs and means of payment.
She joined Bank Al-Maghrib as an executive in charge of financial analyses and corporates ratings, and also assessment of the quality of the private debt instruments within the context of central bank advances. Since 2003, she was appointed as a Manager in the Monetary and Exchange Operations Department where she spent 13 years in charge of cashless means of payment and payment systems oversight.
Hakima EL ALAMI holds a higher studies diploma (DES) from Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, and a Diploma of Advanced Studies –DEA- in economic organizations engineering , Complex systems modeling, from the University of AIX-Marseille III.
Mrs EL ALAMI is Alumni of Fletcher School Leadership Program for Financial Inclusion (FLPFI). TUFTS University. Boston. She is also is Alumni of Women’s World Banking and the Alliance for Financial Inclusion 2022 Leadership and Diversity Program for Regulators (With SAID BUSINESS SCHOOL. UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD)
Hanae Ben Driss
Managing Director – Switch Al Maghrib
Hanae Ben Driss is the Managing Director of Switch Al Maghrib (SWAM), Morocco’s national payment switch and a cornerstone of the country’s digital payments infrastructure. With over 25 years of experience in financial services and electronic payments, she has held senior leadership roles with major industry players across Morocco and Africa.
Hanae played a pivotal role in launching the Centre Monétique Interbancaire (CMI) and establishing national interoperability, before leading Visa International’s expansion in Francophone Africa. Since joining HPS Group in 2009, she has driven strategic projects, including the launch of innovative SaaS offerings and the acquisition and transformation of the national switch, now SWAM.
Hanae holds a master’s degree from the Mohammadia School of Engineering and executive education from INSEAD. She is committed to advancing innovation, financial inclusion, and the acceleration of digital payments in Morocco and beyond, while fostering trust and collaboration across the ecosystem.
Ryan Green
CTO – Enigma
Ryan Green is the Chief Technology Officer at Enigma Technologies, Inc., leading our technical efforts to extend AI-driven business processes with data about U.S. businesses. Ryan has over 20 years of experience in software development, including roles at Anchorage Capital Group and Goldman Sachs.
Ryan’s passion for building data-first products and experience developing innovative data systems at scale make him suited for the unique challenges of this domain. Ryan has a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Michigan in History and a degree from Columbia Engineering in Computer Science.
João Salcedo
Partner – TCR Advisory
João Salcedo is a technology and data strategy executive with extensive experience architecting and delivering large-scale financial systems across Latin America, Australia, and the United States. Over his career, he has led enterprise data modernization, cloud architecture, and real-time payment transformation programs for major banks and central institutions — including Santander Bank, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and the Central Bank of Brazil.
João played a pivotal role in defining the data and real-time architectural foundation behind Brazil’s PIX system, one of the world’s most successful instant payment infrastructures. His work enabled the interoperability, scalability, and low-latency data flow required for PIX’s rapid nationwide adoption — setting a global benchmark for inclusive, real-time financial ecosystems.
In parallel, João has been deeply involved in bridging traditional financial rails with blockchain-based settlement systems. His initiatives explore how stablecoins and tokenized value transfer can extend the reach of fast payment networks, enabling cross-border interoperability, programmable money use cases, and real-time liquidity management. He actively advises on the convergence of digital assets, data governance, and payment regulation, ensuring that innovation aligns with security, compliance, and user trust.
As a recognized thought leader in financial data architecture and digital transformation, João is passionate about designing the next generation of payment ecosystems — where real-time rails, open data, and blockchain infrastructure converge to activate new value-added services. His cross-regional perspective, spanning developed and emerging markets, brings unique insight into how data, trust, and technology can accelerate the toward a cashless, interoperable, and inclusive digital economy.lcedo
DAY 2
Fintan Byrne
CEO – CR2
Fintan Byrne is Chief Executive Officer of CR2, part of the HPS Group and a respected leader in global banking and payments transformation. For more than 25 years, he has built a career at the intersection of financial services, technology and innovation.
Fintan began his career with Bank of Ireland, spending over a decade in senior business and IT leadership roles. This foundation gave him deep insight into how technology can unlock value and efficiency in financial services. During the early fintech wave, he launched a start-up in London, gaining valuable entrepreneurial perspective that continues to shape his leadership approach today.
He went on to hold international leadership roles at NCR and Transaction Network Services (TNS), where he led the global eCommerce payments gateway MIGS. Following its acquisition by Mastercard in 2014, Fintan became Head of Mastercard’s MPGS business for EMEA, driving expansion and innovation across the region.
Since joining CR2 as CEO in 2017, Fintan has transformed the company into a trusted digital partner to banks across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. His focus on execution, collaboration and innovation has positioned CR2 as a leading force in enabling banks to compete in a digital-first world.
Fintan holds a BSc in Computer Science from Trinity College Dublin and an Executive MBA from Smurfit Business School. Based in Dublin, he remains an active supporter of sport, on and off the field and brings the same competitive energy and team ethos to his leadership.
Fahd Bettache
General Manager – Attijari Payment
Fahd Bettache is the Managing Director of Attijari Payment, a subsidiary of the Attijariwafa bank Group. An engineer by training, he has more than twenty years of experience in information systems, payment technologies and the transformation of operational models.
He joined the Attijariwafa bank Group in 2009, after several years of experience in national and international companies, where he contributed to various technological and organizational development projects. Since 2021, he has been managing Attijari Payment, with responsibility for the strategic and operational management of the subsidiary.
He oversees its development towards the status of Payment Institution while ensuring the consolidation of its governance, the performance of its activities and its anchoring within the national payments ecosystem.
Eric Vigor
General Manager – SG ABS
As General Manager of SG ABS in Casablanca, Eric Vigor had to supervise significant number of transformations and migration for Société Générale Banks in Africa such as major upgrade of CBS, implementation of instant payment and bank to wallet, or replacement of internet & mobile banking for retail and corporate customers.
Eric Vigor is working for Société Générale Group since 1998. First as an internal consultant in the HO before starting an international career in different countries such as Egypt, Russia, Romania, Algeria and now Morocco. He worked in insurance and banks subsidiaries mainly as programs directors or COO positions
Jim Stanger
Partner and Chief Sales Officer – Edge One
Jim Stanger is the CRO and part owner of Edge One where he has worked for thelast 26 years. Edge One is a full-service ATM company in the upper Midwest regionof the United States.
Edge One has won awards from NCR for Partner of the year inNorth America (2015), Service organization of the year worldwide (2020), serviceorganization of the year for North America (2025), from the ATMIA for Serviceorganization of the year (2025) and countless other accolades from otherorganizations.
Jim has personally led Edge One’s efforts to start ATM terminaldriving, ATMs as a Service Program, ITM Deployments, is a winner of NCRSalesperson of the year award, and most recently has instigated Edge One’s launchof the Edge Now Terminal Driving and Edge Connect Core Integration platforms,bringing HPS to the tier 3 banking market in the US.
Pablo Villegas
EMEA Payments Head – Amazon Web Services
Pablo Villegas is the EMEA Payments Industry Head at Amazon Web Services (AWS), defining and executing strategy whilst driving transformative cloud solutions with payments providers.
Pablo plays a key role shaping industry priorities, steering innovation and operational resilience for global and local organizations, delivering results in complex industry challenges.
Liz Lumley
Journalist – Girl Disrupted
Liz Lumley is the deputy editor of The Banker and a specialist commentator on fintech. She has spent over 20 years working in the financial technology space, most recently as director at VC Innovations and architect of the Fintech Talents Festival, managing director at Startupbootcamp FinTech London and an editor at financial services and technology newswire, Finextra.
Marion King
Chair and Trustee – OBL
Marion King was appointed Chair and Trustee of OBL in February 2023. Her priorities are to maintain and protect the CMA Order, and work with key stakeholders and the JROC, to promote the adoption and growth of open banking.
She will oversee the transition to a Future Entity that will be at the heart of the transformation to an economically sustainable and scalable open banking ecosystem.
She has a portfolio of non-executive positions including Non-Executive Director at Bibby Financial Services and Chair of the Payments Association Advisory Board. She is also a member of Pennies Payments Advisory Board and a trustee of the MS Society.
Marion was previously Director of Payments at NatWest Group and President of MasterCard UK & Ireland. Prior to that she was the Chief Executive Officer of Vocalink – a specialist payments partner to banks, corporate partners and government departments
Charles Mudiwa
CEO and Managing Director – DFCU
Charles Mwanyara Mudiwa is the Chief Executive Officer of dfcu Bank, Uganda. He has over 26 years of experience in Banking, with strong business leadership, success in turning around businesses and increasing business profitability. Prior to joining the Bank, Charles has had a 20-year journey at Standard Bank Group as CEO of Stanbic Bank Kenya Limited, CEO of Stanbic Bank Zambia Limited, CEO of Standard Bank Malawi and Director Mass Markets at Standard Bank South Africa, amongst other roles. He has previously served on the Boards of Stanbic Bank Zambia and Kenya, Standard Bank Malawi Ltd; Standard Bank Insurance Brokers of South Africa, Edu-loan Limited South Africa, and Agri bank Zimbabwe.
Charles is the founding Chairman of Liberty Insurance Company (Zambia Ltd) and past Chairman of the Bankers Association of Zambia. Charles holds a Honors degree in Economics from the University of Zimbabwe, Post Graduate Diploma in Leadership & Change Management from Leeds Metropolitan University (UK); Advanced Management Program and Certificate in Digital Transformation & Enterprise Leadership from the Columbia Business School (USA), and a Banking Certificate from the Institute of Bankers of Zimbabwe, among others. Charles is a certified executive coach and holds a Practitioners’ Diploma in Executive Coaching from the Academy of Executive Coaching (UK). He is a member of the Institute of Bankers of South Africa.
Charles is an active Rotarian and served as the Past President of the Rotary Club of Lusaka, and as the Director of Fundraising and Foundation at the Rotary Club of Nairobi Muthaiga North. Additionally, he was the Patron of Rotary Club of Nairobi Samawati, a corporate chapter at Stanbic Bank Kenya. He has also served as a member of presidential Economic Advisory Team and as a Technical Adviser to the presidential commissioner of inquiry of economic matters.
Meabh Maguire
Global Commercial Head in Sales – CR2
Meabh Maguire brings over two decades of experience in the payments and digital banking sectors, spanning Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe.
As the Global Commercial Head of CR2 and a key member of the CR2 Leadership team, Meabh is responsible for driving new customer acquisition and fostering strong customer relationships.
Meabh’s experience spans various leadership roles across marketing and sales both in Fintech and Government organisations. Meabh currently serves on the advisory board of Women in Payments EMEA.
Maha Kohen
General Manager – Damane Cash
Imad Boumahdi
CEO & Founder – Paytic
Imad Boumahdi is the Founder and CEO of PayTic, a fintech company transforming how financial institutions manage chargebacks, reconciliation, and other operational processes. With a mission to bring clarity, automation, and scalability to the backend of payments, PayTic enables banks and processors to harness their data for smarter decision-making and cost efficiency.
Drawing on deep experience in the global payment’s ecosystem, Imad has led PayTic’s growth across four continents, working with institutions to turn operational data into actionable insights. He is a strong advocate for leveraging payments data not just for compliance, but as a strategic asset to unlock new revenue streams, improve customer experience, and build resilient infrastructures.
Imad brings a multicultural, data-driven, and future-facing perspective to the discussion on payments data monetisation.
Ivan Dovica
Co-Founder & CEO – Tapix
Ivan Dovica is the co-founder and CEO of Tapix by Dateio.
Previously an associate in The Boston Consulting Group. He has a PhD in applied mathematics and optimization at Berlin Institute of Technology. Now focused of helping banks become data-driven with enriched transaction data.
Syed Yusuf
Product Manager – CR2
Syed Yusuf is a seasoned product leader with over 18 years of experience in digital banking and payments. His career spans banking and fintech, beginning at ICICI Bank and evolving through leadership roles that blend strategic vision with hands-on delivery.
Since joining CR2 in 2011, Syed has progressed through senior consulting and architecture roles to become the Product Head for CR2’s global digital banking and payments platform. He leads product strategy, roadmap development, and cross-functional alignment across markets and teams. Reflecting on his role, he shares ““Innovation only matters when it delivers real outcomes for banks and their customers. That’s the purpose that drives me every day.”
Syed is known for his calm leadership style, customer-centric mindset, and ability to bridge business and technology. He brings a structured, outcome-driven approach to product management, grounded in user empathy, regulatory awareness, and market insight.
Issam El Ansari
Head of Global Transaction & Financial Banking Services – BNI Madagascar
Executive Head of Global Transaction & Financial Banking Services at BNI Madagascar with over 25 year’s experience in European and African banking. Issam oversees strategy, with a strong leadership background across Transaction Banking, Financial Services, Liquidity Management and Payments ecosystem.
Issam EL ANSARI is a senior banking executive leading Global Transaction & Financial Banking Services at BNI Madagascar. With 25 years of experience, he drives innovation, client growth and operationnal excellence across international banking, trade finance, payments and financial services.
Issam EL ANSARI serves as an Executive Head of Global Transaction & Financial Banking Services at BNI Madagascar. With over two decades of domestic and international banking in France with Société Générale group & Madagascar at BNI, he leads strategic initiatives in transaction banking, trade finance, payments and financial services.
Andrew Briggs
Professor Emeritus of Nanomaterials – University of Oxford
Andrew Briggs is Emeritus Professor of Nanomaterials at the University of Oxford and Chair of QuantrolOx. His research interests focus on nanomaterials for quantum technologies with machine learning for controlling the experiments, and the nanoscale thermodynamics of timekeeping and learning. From 2002-2009, he directed the UK Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration in Quantum Information Processing (QIP IRC). From 2010-2020 he led grant making by Templeton World Charity Foundation. In 2021 he co-founded QuantrolOx to commercialise machine learning for tuning and characterizing quantum devices, with performance that exceeds what is feasible for humans and greatly accelerates progress in quantum computing.
He is a Fellow of St Anne’s College, Oxford, Fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford, Fellow of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, Honorary Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society, Fellow of the Institute of Physics, Member of Academia Europaea, Fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion and Honorary Lay Canon of Christ Church, Oxford, and he serves on many advisory boards. 40 former members of his laboratory hold faculty positions, and almost as many are employed in quantum companies around the world. From his laboratory and QIP IRC former members have between them founded 12 early-stage companies, of which 10 are in quantum computing.
He has more than 650 publications, with nearly 32,000 citations. His books for a general readership include “The Penultimate Curiosity: How Science Swims in the Slipstream of Ultimate Questions”, for which there is a documentary film and a six-book series for children; “It Keeps Me Seeking: The Invitation from Science, Philosophy and Religion”; and “Human Flourishing: Scientific Insight and Spiritual Wisdom in Uncertain Times”. His most recent book carries endorsements by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Astronomer Royal, and has won an ISSR 2023 Book Prize.
