The Founders Peak Podcast: Recent Episodes

Where exceptional startup founders share untold stories that shaped who they are

An exclusive podcast where we bring exceptional startup founders from around the world who each share their inspiration and a bag full of usable entrepreneurial insights from their journeys. So, if you are an aspiring founder, or busy fund-raising, or nearing a successful exit, or even feeling like you might go down fighting, there's something useful in here for you. Most talks are hosted and recorded LIVE with audiences at The Founders Peak Stage at the world's largest FinTech event, the Singapore FinTech Festival.

Yemi is a powerhouse in digital transformation, tackling business and social challenges through cutting-edge technology. Recognised as one of Nigeria's top women in tech, she's also a mentor to numerous digital start-ups and was honored as Nigeria’s most outstanding Public Sector CIO at the ICT Centenary Awards in 2014.

In this episode, Yemi shares her incredible journey and the core values that have shaped her vision as an entrepreneur. From her pioneering work at Heckerbella to empowering women through Rising Tide Africa, Yemi's story is one of resilience, innovation, and commitment to making a difference.

Elizabeth began her career as a translator in the German Parliament and speaks five languages! Her passion for microfinance took her to Nairobi, where she lived for many years before moving to Senegal and Nigeria. Fun fact: Elizabeth is also a skilled ballerina, having danced for 15 years, even while founding AZA Finance!

In this episode, Elizabeth shares her extraordinary journey of perseverance and innovation. AZA Finance, which turned 10 in 2023, is a leading payments infrastructure company for many household names. Let's dive into Elizabeth's incredible journey and hear her insights on building against the odds

Starting her business with just one sewing machine, Nora has grown it into a powerhouse with over 300 machines and 1000 workers at full capacity.

In this episode, Nora shares her incredible journey of growth, resilience, and empowerment. Named one of the Top 20 Global Female Business Leaders in emerging markets by the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group in 2019, Nora's story is a testament to her commitment to women's empowerment, principled leadership, and no-nonsense approach. Let's dive into Nora's inspiring journey and hear her insights on transforming the garment industry from a small factory in Africa.

Benjamin grew up in Tanzania and earned scholarships to America at 17. By 21, he made history as the youngest African ever accepted into Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, being the first Tanzanian to attend both institutions.

A former national TV personality in Tanzania, Ben founded NALA in 2018, a fintech startup building payments for the next billion. NALA recently raised $10 million from top US investors like Y-Combinator and Accel. In this episode, we dive into Ben's incredible journey and hear his insights on the evolving global influence of Africa.

Robert was the first person in his village to own a laptop and built the first Digital Learning Hub in his community. He designed his own degree program at the University of Oklahoma, graduating as the first person with a degree in African Development Engineering and a minor in Entrepreneurship. Despite nearly dropping out of school due to financial hardships, he became the top student in Uganda, winning scholarships for his education.

In this episode, Robert shares how Maarifasasa, which started as a summer project in a family garage, has upskilled over 5,000 youths in digital skills and helped nearly 1000 youths find digital jobs post-COVID-19. The name Maarifasasa comes from the Swahili words 'Maarif' (Knowledge) and 'Sasa' (Now), embodying the mission to make knowledge accessible now.

Let's dive into Robert's inspiring journey and hear his insights on upskilling Africa's youth. Enjoy the conversation!

Nono wears many hats – not only is she the Founder and Head of Data & Strategy at Data Sentinels, she also produces a podcast called Shameless. She has explored an impressive 40 countries, including Ghana. Her creative spirit shines through in her work as an author of three African-fantasy novels and her screenplay, "Finding Themba," which addresses mental illness among males. A linguistics enthusiast, Nono learned American and British Sign Language in college and aced Japanese academically (despite not being able to speak it at all!)

In this episode, Nono shares her journey of creativity, resilience, and the power of seizing opportunities.

Saqib Nazir is not your average CEO. A tech enthusiast turned fintech superhero, and the visionary leader behind Cross Switch Africa. Saqib is on a mission to revolutionise how we think about payments across Africa's diverse industries—banking, insurance, remittances, you name it!

But here's the twist - Saqib didn't just stumble into fintech; oh no, he chose it with purpose. In this episode, Saqib tells us what drives him to reshape the future of payments in Africa, and why Africa's vibrant markets are ripe for innovation.

Dr Valentine Obi is a fintech pioneer with a twist of persistence and a dash of rejection. Ever been politely asked to walk out of the Central Bank? Well, in 2002, that's exactly what happened when he proposed payments by mobile phone. Fast forward to today, he holds patents for ATM Cardless transactions and mobile OTP generation. But here's the surprise—when he's not revolutionising fintech, he's busy teaching a Bible class!

In his talk, "Rejection Meets Persistence: My Growth Secret," Dr. Obi shares his journey of overcoming obstacles and driving innovation in digital payments. From pioneering instant payments in Nigeria in 2003 to introducing the first mobile banking app on the AppStore in 2008, eTranzact Global continues to set benchmarks in fintech. Here’s Dr. Obi!

Emma Maame Efua Tandoh is the Founder and Creative Lead of Love Ankara, a brand that celebrates African culture through stylish foldable footwear. Despite no formal fashion training, Emma's 13-year corporate journey in marketing and PR set the stage for her entrepreneurial success. She's also a polyglot, speaking German and having worked on three continents.

At Love Ankara, Emma's passion for African heritage shines through each foldable shoe, blending fashion with functionality seamlessly. In this episode, Emma shares her insights on navigating challenges and finding purpose through resilience.

Benjamin Nortey is the brilliant mind behind Mingo Blox. Benjamin's journey from his living room to global impact is nothing short of remarkable. As the creator of Ghana's first robot for autistic children, he's brought joy and support to countless families (in fact, we even met one!). Beyond that, he's a familiar face on television, sparking curiosity and imagination as the producer and presenter of a popular TV series on robots.

In this episode, Benjamin shares how his passion for robotics revolutionised education with the world's most affordable educational robot, priced at just 10 USD. Mingo Blox is pioneering robotics in Ghana, envisioning a future where everyone can have a robotic companion. So here is a story brimming with innovation, with Ben’s story of turning dreams into reality!

The fabulous Onyinye Okonji is a powerhouse, balancing her multifaceted life as a dancer, YouTuber, serial entrepreneur, business strategist, and food curator. She met her business partners in business school and embraced the risk of entrepreneurship, leading to the founding of Sycamore.NG.

In this episode, Onyinye shares her journey of growing two businesses in hospitality and catering in Lagos, while also scaling her startup - from bootstrapping to raising $200k, achieving 41 times growth, and expanding into six states in Nigeria with over 100 employees. Listen on for an inspiring episode on Oninye's multifaceted journey in entrepreneurship.

Kofi Owusu-Nhyira is a master multi-tasker, having earned a journalism degree running multiple businesses and qualifying as a lawyer. His flair for dramatic storytelling and vivid tales drawn from everyday life mesmerises audiences.

As an extroverted introvert, he navigates social situations effortlessly but finds strength in solitude and introspection fueled by his love for reading.

Under his leadership, Nsano has become Ghana's most gender-balanced fintech, thriving independently for over 11 years. As Ghana's first licensed enhanced PSP, Nsano sets the standard for excellence and innovation in the fintech industry. Tune in as Kofi shares his journey and the inclusive vision behind Nsano in this episode.

Evita is a true jack-of-all-trades with a diverse background in chemical engineering, medical life sciences, and law. Raised by inspiring women, she is driven by a passion for empowering women-led businesses to conquer global markets. At TecHustle, she's building the largest small business trade network in Africa, helping African small businesses trade globally and competitively by providing financial services and international market access.

In this episode, Evita shares how collective effort and community support are crucial to entrepreneurial success. Here she is!

Magalie is the multilingual Founder of Koree, who learned languages by listening to songs and translating the lyrics. She has traveled to 33 countries and made the bold move to live in Africa after being born and raised in France. Her company, Koree, draws inspiration from the cowry shells that were once used as currency in Africa, symbolising a return to roots, with cutting-edge technology.

In this inspiring talk, Magalie shares how she is thriving as a solo, non-technical female fintech founder with ADHD in Africa.

Desmond is a poet who turns to writing to escape stress and burnout. He initially avoided farming as a career choice, dreaming of becoming a chef instead. At Complete Farmer, he honors his roots by naming their offices after crops—his office is aptly called Pineapple, given his own love for the fruit and in tribute to his father, a pineapple farmer.

Complete Farmer’s journey has been a testament to resilience, pivoting seven times to find product-market fit and bootstrapping for nine months without making payroll, with early employees living and working in Desmond’s apartment. Despite the challenges, they raised their seed round during the pandemic by pitching to 139 investors, with only 5 investing.

In this episode, Desmond tells us how he navigated turbulence through the highs and lows of fundraising in the dynamic African market.

Denisha's journey is nothing short of extraordinary. Despite studying nursing in college, a tech internship led to a full-time offer at Silicon Valley Bank. Her life took a dramatic turn when she was robbed at knifepoint and used technology to catch the robber within five hours, a pivotal moment that shaped her path.

Moving to Ghana during COVID, Denisha launched Stan, raising an initial 300,00 dollars from readers of her Substack blog about fandom. Stan is reshaping the fan engagement landscape by helping artists build deeper connections with their audiences, resulting in increased fans ROI.

In this episode, Denisha reveals that curiosity didn’t in fact kill the cat, and how she is successfully creating unforgettable consumer experiences.

Boum is a man without a first name. He effortlessly navigates French, English, and German. Recognised by Forbes as a 30 Under 30 honoree for his groundbreaking work with Daba Finance, he's also a former under-16 breaststroke vice champion and an enthusiastic tennis and football player. Under his leadership, Daba Finance is pioneering investments in Africa, offering the continent’s first multi-asset investment platform.

In this episode, Boum shares his story about how taking action can open doors to incredible opportunities. You’re on, Boum!

Here is a funny story - Romeo once got so flustered about a meeting that he kept driving his car in circles. When a colleague asked why he wasn’t going in, Romeo admitted he was looking for his phone—only to realise he was talking on it the whole time!

With a story that ranges from those humble beginnings to building a multi-million-dollar business, Romeo’s experiences are rich with insights and lessons. Let’s unpack Romeo’s hustle.

This episode is a very special one. Andrew Ginsberg is the Head of Office for A.I. for the United Nations Refugee Agency in Ghana. We bring you an inspiring episode titled, "Leaving No One Behind: Accelerating Private Sector Leadership in Refugee Economic Inclusion."

Andrew isn't just a leader in refugee economic inclusion; he's also a jazz enthusiast who is currently learning to play the base guitar. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in how the private sector can play a pivotal role in supporting and empowering refugees.

Mary is not just a tech entrepreneur; she has a passion for reading romance novels and finds joy in spending time with children, which gives her an excuse to bring the child out in her! She inherited her beloved companion dog, April, when her daughter went off to college.

Mary’s company is unique in that it operates as two companies in one—Data Integrated and MobiTill. Remarkably, for most of her staff, this is their first job, and many developers have grown with the company, with most of the staff being under 30 years old. Not to mention, the two most popular people in the company are in the catering department, who keep the team well-fed and happy. In this episode, Mary shares how trust has been a cornerstone of her journey and the pivotal role it has played in her success.

The advent of mobile money disrupted the company Eric worked for, leaving him stranded in Uganda. Despite his efforts to find employment, it was feedback from a failed interview that ignited his entrepreneurial spirit. Drawing on his deep understanding of the Ugandan agriculture system, mobile money, and humanitarian work, he built a business from scratch - all from his sitting room to holding his kids in the bedroom. To fund this venture, Eric even sold his wife’s car.

Today, MobiPay serves 350,000 farmers across Uganda.

In this episode, Eric shares the profound lessons he learned through personal tragedy and how it redefined his startup journey. Here is how Eric picked up the pieces.

Isaac's story began with a burst of creativity when he wrote a 200-page novel at just 18 years old. His favorite artist, Kendrick Lamar, has been a source of inspiration, and this creative spirit shines through in everything he does. As the host of the Change Africa Podcast, one of the biggest thought leadership podcasts in Africa, Isaac has been at the forefront of driving impactful conversations. Despite being a small team of 3, Isaac and his colleagues work tirelessly seven days a week – it’s true what they say, the hustle is real!

Here is an incredible letter that he wrote to himself, with personal reflections and valuable lessons on perseverance, passion, and the power of dreams.

Akosua became an award-winning journalist in her early 20s, interviewing iconic figures like Mary J Blige, Chaka Khan, Boris Johnson, and Craig David. Her career took her to Hollywood, where she worked with BET and was a part of Jay-Z and Beyoncé’s entourage during Jay-Z's first performance in Ghana nearly 20 years ago.

Despite having no tech experience, she started Tech in Ghana eight years ago, growing it with a small team into one of the continent's leading conferences. The platform has provided global access and connections for Ghanaian startups in countries like France, the UAE, and South Korea. In this episode, Akosua shares how personal loss and pain have fueled her determination and become her superpower, driving her to build a platform that empowers others.

Moussa once pitched a Bus Scheduling and Ticketing system to a bus company owner, despite lacking experience with large systems, showcasing his boldness and determination. Even during personal challenges, like his mother's funeral, Moussa maintained professional boundaries, teaching valuable lessons about entrepreneurship and respect.

Starting from an incubator prototype, Moussa's vision has transformed into a market standard, with K-Engine's Bus Scheduling and Ticketing system now used by 80% of bus operators in Rwanda. During the COVID lockdown, K-Engine's system data enabled the government to implement critical fare and fuel incentives, turning adversity into opportunities for growth and support within the industry. Here are lessons that Moussa learned while transforming the bus transportation system in Rwanda.

Ever dreamed of building rockets but ended up inFinTech? Buckle up, because this episode features Koji Yamamoto, the CEO of Atlas Technologies – a company that deified the odds...just like Koji's career path! At 18, Koji set his sights on space, but his 20s took him on a different trajectory. Don't worry, it wasn't a black hole – in his 30s, he landed in FinTech with SoftBank, eventually founding Atlas Technologies with… well, let's just say minimal resources.

We're talking 500,000 yen, a used laptop, and his own invaluable leadership. No money, no employees, no office, no clients – but that didn't stop them! In his talk titled "From Space Rockets to FinTech: Lessons from my truly unusual start-up journey", Koji shares the secrets of their incredible rise – going public in just 4 years and 10 months, all without loans or investments. This episode is a blast-off you don't want to miss!

Calling all globe trotters and movie buffs! Thisepisode features Gordon Niamatali, the founder of Authentic Indication–a FinTech company that's shaking things up in the market, just like Gordon's heritage - half-Guyanese, half-Filipino, and raised in the US.

With 18 years of experience under his belt, Gordon is no stranger to the financial game. In his talk titled "Keep the players. Change the game", he explains how Authentic Indication is doing just that – revolutionising liquidity search with their encrypted IOI aggregator.Think broader reach than any dark pool, with zero impact on price! This episode is as action-packed as Gordon's gym routine!

Shin Sakane, Co-CEO of GFIT Inc, is a man who knows a thing or two about bouncing back. Shin's talk, "Bankruptwith $100 Million: How to Re-imagine Success After Catastrophic Failure," will leave you inspired and ready to tackle any challenge. But before we dive into his insights, let's get to know Shin a bit better. He holds a Ph.D. with highest honors in Physical Chemistry and Biochemistry from the University of Delaware.

As founder of Seven Dreamers Laboratories, Shin raised over $100 million USD for his deep tech AI robotics startup. After facing bankruptcy in 2019, Shin bounced back as a serial entrepreneur. And a glimpse into GFIT Inc - what started with two founders, has now grown into a team of 30 incredible members. The company introduced AI-based FX risk control toolsthat are revolutionizing international trading companies.

With over ¥500 million JPY in funding, Shin has earned the trust and backing of investors from Seven Dreamers and beyond. Tune in as Shin Sakane shares his inspiringjourney!

Aaron Mollin is a guy who's as comfortable dropping into a half-cab heelflip as he is, dropping legal knowledge.Aaron spent his childhood skateboarding and nearly 20 years living and breathing Japan - and yes, his Japanese is fluent, folks! He even ran a bar in Kyoto after graduation! Aaron ditched the law books to take a wild ride with Ichijiku, a sustainable hyper-luxury fashion brand he founded that uses vintage silk kimonos to create one-of-a-kind masterpieces (and requires a $1000 deposit just to reserve a piece). But Aaron's got more than just fashion sense.

He's now leading IPDefine, a company with groundbreaking AI – the world's first patent infringement discovery AI, no less! In his talk, "A Skateboarder's Guide to Entrepreneurship", Aaron drops some gnarlywisdom on navigating the entrepreneurial journey.

Keiko Sydenham is the co-founder & CEO ofLUCA Japan. Her journey "from corporate heights to startup realities" is anything but a straight climb. This mom of three boys isn't afraid to take risks (good ones, that is!), and with over 20 years crushing it in alternativeinvestments for big institutions, she's got the experience to back it up.

In her talk, Keiko dives deep into the "Evolution of Leadership”. LUCA Japan, the brainchild she co-founded, is making waves as the first online platform for alternative investments. They're all about building the digital infrastructure to empower the next generation ofinvestors, and with two successful funding rounds under her belt, it looks like she’s off to a flying start. So, get ready to be inspired by Keiko's leadership journey.

Calling all Jedi wannabes and financial whizzes! Spyro Mentzas is the Founder and CEO of HiJoJo Partners – a company that's launching FinTech startups into the stratosphere, just like Spyro himself! He traded in his suit for a metaphorical light saber when he ditched the world of program trading to become a guide for startups andinvestors in the FinTech galaxy - may the ROI be with you!

But Spyro isn't just another space cowboy – HiJoJo Partners is a fully licensed financial institution, backed by the big names in Japan's financial world.They've launched over 50 targeted funds, helping companies like SpaceX and Epic Games blast off with over 30 billion yen in investments! And guess what?Spyro claims Elon Musk even played a role in his journey. In his talk, "How Elon Musk helped me launch my startup", Spyro shares the secrets of navigating the FinTech frontier.

Atsuko Yamada is the founder of Invite Japan, a company as diverse as its founder. Yamada-san might be a little "unconventional" (let's just say social norms aren't her cup of tea), but her curiosity and a healthy dose of "selfishness" (as she'll explain in her talk, "How Powerful Selfishness Fuels Success") turned a career detour into a thriving FinTech company.

They even pivoted their business during COVID, proving that sometimes a little chaos can lead to great innovation. Tune in as we dive into the world of Invite Japan, where multiple languages and cultures collide, and emotions are embraced – all while having a blast!

Ever dreamt of being a serial entrepreneur with an impressive exit rate? Buckle up, because Liam has done just that…four times! Liam's the Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of Habitto, a FinTech company on amission to banish financial anxiety for young Japanese. They offer the best interest rates and free financial advice, because let's face it, sometimes the biggest hurdle is just knowing where to begin.

But here's the kicker – with four daughters, Liam's practically a Taylor Swift expert. So, how does a guy who struggles with languages navigate the world FinTech, and why does he think embracing ignorance is a good thing for founders? Let's find out!

Sunil might not have planned to be an entrepreneur, but a college stint at a friend's shop sparked a fire that's still burning bright. This family man, with two little ones and a wife who (lovingly) funded his initial venture, brings a unique perspective to the world of startups.

His company, Fidel Technologies, is one of the first SMEs to bridge the Japan-India gap with a public listing on the Indian SME Exchange. So, get ready to dive into the world of IPOs with Sunil's talk.

This episode features two influential leaders in the fintech world! Neil Tan, Chairman of the Hong Kong FinTech Association, bringing over 20 years of experience in Corporate Strategy, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Business Development across leading banks like HSBC and Deutsche Bank. As Chairman of FTAHK and a member of the Hong Kong Government's Web3 Task Force, Neil's insights on Embedded Finance and Banking-as-a-Service are not to be missed!

Joining Neil is Kelvin Tan, CEO of audax financial technology, on a mission to revolutionize digital banking with plug-and-play platforms for banks. With a background spanning retail banking, consumer finance, and FMCG, Kelvin leads audax in delivering cutting-edge solutions, including the first multi-market retail BaaS for a global bank. He's also passionate about mentoring Singaporean talent to new heights.

A deep dive into embedded finance and Banking-as-a-Service," Neil and Kelvin share their expertise, challenges, and untold stories shaping the future of fintech. Tune in for a riveting conversation on the evolving landscape of financial technology!

An eye-opening episode with the legendary inventor of electronic money and a pioneer in online anonymity - David Chaum. In this episode, David takes us through his groundbreaking contributions that have shaped today's digital currency landscape. As the mastermind behind digital cash and cryptographic protocols, David has been instrumental in architecting our modern financial systems. Leading the xx network, a revolutionary private, quantum-secure decentralised messaging and payment platform, David continues to push the boundaries of privacy and security.

Join us as we delve into his world of innovative cryptography, privacy technologies, and secure voting systems. With a PhD in Computer Science from UC Berkeley and a legacy that includes founding the International Association for Cryptologic Research and DigiCash, David Chaum shares the untold stories behind his groundbreaking projects. Tune in for an episode that promises insights into the future of finance and the protection of civil liberties!

In this episode, Madhu shares his journey of the past 9 years, building and scaling M2P into the largest API Infrastructure platform across 10 markets in Asia. As a fintech entrepreneur with a mission to make every company a fintech, Madhu's passion for solving challenges faced by startups shines through. Join us as we explore his vision to uplift MSMEs and transform businesses in the financial landscape, all while aiming for the ultimate satisfaction of end-customers.

Tune in to discover the insights and stories that shaped Madhu's remarkable journey!

Meet Varun Mittal, the driving force behind Singlife's Innovation and Ecosystem. In this episode, we delve into the world of financial innovation as Varun shares his journey from spearheading FinTech business development across 130 emerging markets to founding "The Fintech Nation" project, comprising a book, podcast, and investment fund dedicated to nurturing Singapore's fintech ecosystem. As a co-founder of the Singapore FinTech Association and ASEAN FinTech Network, Varun's expertise in technology companies and early-stage investments in emerging markets promises a wealth of insights for startup founders and entrepreneurial leaders.

Tune in to discover how simplicity can transform the financial landscape with Varun Mittal!

Darrell Ang is co-founder of CapBay, a groundbreaking Supply Chain Finance platform. With a background spanning fintech entrepreneurship, investment banking, regulation, and management consulting, Darrel brings a wealth of experience to the table. CapBay, under his leadership, has funded over US$600 million for thousands of SMEs, earning recognition as one of CNBC's "Top 200 Global Fintech Companies." Darrel himself was honored with the prestigious "EY Emerging Entrepreneur - Malaysia" award.

In this episode, he shares insights from his dynamic career, from raising over US$10 billion with Credit Suisse Singapore to navigating the regulatory landscape with Bank Negara Malaysia. Get ready to be inspired by the transformation from risk-averse beginnings to entrepreneurial success!

With a background as a former Goldman Sachs Executive Director and now heading the Digital Assets Think Tank at the FinTech Centre of Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Thomas brings unparalleled expertise to the table. From completing over 100 IPOs to leading APAC business for Hamsa, Thomas is at the forefront of the future of finance.

In this episode, Dr. Zhu takes us on a journey through the world of digital assets. Tune in to explore the exciting realm of tokenisation and stablecoins!

Meet the visionary mind behind Citi's Future of Finance team - Ronit Ghose. In this episode, Ronit dives into the future of tech, money, and finance. With reports on FinTech and Web3 that have captivated readers worldwide, Ronit brings unparalleled insights into the evolving landscape of finance. As an advisory board member for tech and VC firms, and a former researcher for a UK Prime Minister, Ronit's expertise is unmatched.

Get ready for a deep dive into the world of digital disruption with Ronit Ghose!

Prasanna is a dynamic leader in the technology and innovation sector. In this episode, Prasanna shares insights from his roles as CEO at Block Stack and Chief Innovation Officer at PayCircle, driving the Next-Gen movements in disruptive Web 3.0 technology. With a wealth of experience as a founder of India Blockchain Forum and advisory roles at Thakur Institute of Management Studies, TransBnk, and India FinTech Forum, Prasanna brings a unique perspective on the transformative power of blockchain.

Get ready to explore the future of finance through Prasanna Lohar's expertise and visionary insights!

Dushyant is the Managing Director of Rosenblatt Securities’ FinTech Investment Banking group on Wall Street. With a stellar career spanning 25 years in the finance industry, Dushyant is a seasoned banker with a keen eye for the winds of change in money.

In this episode, get ready to dive into Dushyant's journey and discover the insights he's gained as a Fellow at MIT Sloan, guest lecturer at prestigious universities, and advisor to governments and global organizations. From his role at Rosenblatt Securities to his contributions to the global FinTech scene, this is a conversation that promises to enlighten and inspire.

Salim is the CEO & Co-Founder of Pave Bank, a trailblazing digital bank for the new financial era. With a background that includes leading BigPay to success as one of Southeast Asia's largest neobanks, Salim is a visionary in programmable money and regulated digital assets.

In this episode, Salim shares his expertise honed through years of experience in banking, payment technology, and fintech unicorns. From his role at Carta Worldwide to his work with the World Bank Group, Salim offers invaluable insights into the future of finance and the world of programmable money.

Geoff Ira is a financial maven with 15 years of industry immersion. From weathering the storm of the 2008 financial crisis to pioneering client onboarding for digital banks and blockchain enterprises, Geoff's journey is one of resilience and innovation.

In 2020, inspired by lessons from the pandemic, Geoff ventured into the insurtech startup ecosystem. Rising from Risk Lead to Chief Risk Officer, he now co-founds TradeTogether, a groundbreaking venture merging traditional financial expertise with the boundless potential of Web3 technology.

In this episode, we uncover Geoff's journey from crisis to innovation, and his vision for propelling financial sustainability and ethical practices into the future with TradeTogether.

Abhijit a first-time founder with a remarkable evolution in entrepreneurship. From a graduate at India's top commerce colleges to an international-level chess player representing India, Abhijit's journey is nothing short of inspiring.

In this episode, Abhijit shares the invaluable lessons he's learned over the past 3 years. From the importance of self-awareness to the realities of entrepreneurship, Abhijit offers candid insights into the ups and downs of startup life. From efficient multitasking to the crucial art of delegation, this is a must-listen for anyone embarking on their entrepreneurial journey!

Sucharita is the co-founder and CEO of Kaleidofin, a fintech platform championing "Finance for Freedom." With a passion for financial inclusion, Sucharita's journey is a testament to transforming the landscape of banking.

In this episode, we uncover Sucharita's story of co-founding the IFMR group and building innovative financial solutions for the underbanked. Recognised as one of India's 'Top 40 under 40' Business Leaders and a 'Top 20 Fintech Change Maker,' she shares the untold stories that have shaped her path. From her tenure at Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank to her vision for Kaleidofin, get ready for an inspiring conversation!

Cherie Wang is the founder of Planner Bee and is on a quest to simplify and automate insurance planning for everyone. As a Chartered Financial Advisor with 14 years of experience, Cherie ranks in the top 5% globally, bringing practical strategies to navigate financial pitfalls.

In this episode, we delve into Cherie's journey of streamlining the complex world of insurance planning. Discover how her innovative approach, focused on doing less to achieve more, is reshaping the landscape of financial services.

Young is the Managing Director of ZA Tech Global for the SEA market. A key member of the founding team since 2018, Young has spearheaded ZA's expansion into the SEA market, forging strategic partnerships with major ecosystems and insurers in the region.

Young's journey began as an engineer at PayPal. Over the past decade, he has immersed himself in the realms of online payments, banking, and insurance.

In this episode, we uncover Young's invaluable insights and the untold stories that have shaped his path to success. This is a conversation packed with wisdom for aspiring entrepreneurs!

Hiro is the founder and CEO of Wallex, a cutting-edge cross-border payments fintech company. With Wallex acquired by M-DAQ in 2022, Hiro's leadership has seen the company flourish with over 150 employees across Singapore, Indonesia, and Hong Kong.

Transitioning from his role as a VC investor, Hiro founded Wallex in 2016, bringing a unique perspective to the table. His experiences with GREE Ventures and Yello Mobile have shaped his insights into early-stage startups, making him a sought-after mentor and angel investor.

In this episode, we dive into Hiro's journey, uncovering the valuable wisdom he imparts to budding entrepreneurs in the ASEAN region and beyond.

Ian Huang is the Founder, CEO & Chief Architect of ParallelChain Lab. With a track record as a technologist, Ian boasts 10 blockchain patents and a wealth of experience. From leadership roles in tech giants like Tektronix, Northrop Grumman, and DEC, to founding XNET Technology (Santa Clara), which went public on NASDAQ in just 4 years, Ian's expertise is unparalleled.

In this episode, we dive into Ian's incredible entrepreneurial journey, uncovering his Huang's insights into blockchain, AI, and the secrets to nurturing the next generation of talents.

Nuraizah is a multi-award-winning technopreneur and serial entrepreneur. With a background in Electrical Engineering, Nuraizah began her career in engineering and R&D with industry giants like Motorola and Nokia. Since founding her first company in 2006, she now leads Madcat World, a software development powerhouse, and Madcash, a groundbreaking Fintech focused on empowering women with micro-businesses.

Nuraizah's unwavering passion lies in advocating for the advancement of women entrepreneurs. As the ASEAN Access Ambassador and Malaysia's local consultant for a 5-year project aimed at boosting digital adoption among women entrepreneurs, she continues to inspire and drive change.

In this episode, we explore the transformative power of seeking help and embracing vulnerability in one's entrepreneurial journey.

Formerly the Senior Vice President & Head of Payments for First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), Ramana spearheaded the creation of groundbreaking solutions. His legacy includes pioneering lifecycle solutions for corporates, from merchant acquiring to government solutions, prepaid services, remittances, and the UAE's trailblazing digital wallet - Payit.

In this episode, we delve into the transformative power of embedded finance and its role in shaping the future of financial systems. Don't miss this enlightening conversation with Ramana Kumar, as we explore the innovative landscape of Magnati and the visionaries driving the evolution of finance.

Mishal's inspiring journey of founding Trukkr, Pakistan's pioneering embedded finance platform for the logistics industry, is a testament to innovation and impact.

Trukkr stands at the forefront, offering small- and medium-sized trucking companies in Pakistan unparalleled transport management and supply chain solutions. What sets Trukkr apart is its groundbreaking fintech integration, bringing digital transformation to the previously unbanked and undocumented logistics sector.

Tune in as we delve into Mishal's remarkable journey, exploring the untold stories that have shaped Trukkr's mission to redefine Pakistan's logistics landscape with innovation and financial inclusion.

Manuel is a pioneering force in Brazil's booming fintech sector. Today, Kanastra unveils a remarkable $13 million seed funding round, propelling its mission to revolutionise infrastructure solutions for the country's innovative startups.

Manuel's journey to Kanastra was sparked by the frustrations he and his co-founders faced in the debt finance sector. Prior to this groundbreaking venture, Manuel served as the COO of Kardinal Capital, a leading private debt asset management firm in Brazil.

Tune in as we dive into Manuel's extraordinary story, uncovering the untold challenges and triumphs that have shaped Kanastra's mission to redefine Brazil's fintech landscape.

Vladimira is a visionary at the forefront of financial wellness in emerging markets. A Forbes-awarded serial entrepreneur, Vladimira's journey from Slovakia to impacting 230 million lives in Pakistan breaks stereotypes and inspires change.

Co-founding Neem in Pakistan, Vladimira embarked on a mission to revolutionise financial well-being for millions. Her innovative approach has not gone unnoticed, earning her recognition as one of Forbes' top entrepreneurs in her field. Beyond Neem, she is also the visionary behind The Future Farm, a global initiative advocating for mental health support tailored for entrepreneurs.

Tune in as Vladimira shares her compelling narrative, debunking myths and revealing the transformative power of entrepreneurship and social impact.

An Economist and MBA, Matthew's diverse career spans 7 years in Tokyo's FX business and the launch of multiple online retail ventures. Delving into the heart of innovation, he spearheaded groundbreaking initiatives at KBC, including Europe's pioneering blockchain application at Bolero Crowdfunding. Co-founding SettleMint in 2016, Matthew embarked on a mission to simplify blockchain adoption for enterprises.

Tune in to discover Matthew's journey in the Blockchain space, SettleMint, and NFTs, and he empowers enterprises to swiftly build and integrate blockchain applications, all while equipping teams with the tools and support needed for success.

Our guest on this episode is a serial fintech entrepreneur, and acclaimed blockchain author. Delve into his journey as he shares insights from his ventures, notably at Brú Finance where he revolutionised finance for farmers, tokenizing over US $600 million in crops. A Forbes 30 under 30 Asia honoree and Ethereum Foundation Fellow, Abhishek discusses the evolution of fintech for the underserved, spanning India to Europe, and the impactful strides in blockchain education, totaling over 8,000 learners.

Discover the ethos behind his latest venture, The Impact Wave, bridging global givers with social impact pioneers, and gain invaluable wisdom on overcoming startup hurdles and fostering industry-wide progress in FinTech's next billion.

Walter de Oude is the brilliant mind behind Singlife and Chocolate Finance. He presents a revolutionary approach to savings. Say goodbye to traditional fixed deposits—Chocolate Finance offers unparalleled returns without the usual hurdles. It's a testament to Walter's belief that everyone deserves financial growth to enrich their lives.

Before Chocolate, Walter founded and steered Singapore Life (Singlife) to a staggering S$3.2 billion valuation by 2020. Now, with Chocolate Ventures, a pioneering early-stage VC, Walter invites investors to join him in handpicked opportunities where he can make a difference.

A second-time guest on the podcast - this time talking to us about what it feels like to sail close to the regulatory wind. Listen in as we delve into Walter's journey navigating the entrepreneurial seas, uncovering the bold decisions that have defined his path to success.

Prithvi Rai, the visionary behind Borneo Data, champions a mission to empower companies in their quest for 'Securing user trust' using Borneo's real-time data security and privacy observability platform.

With an illustrious career spanning two decades, Prithvi honed his expertise in leadership roles as the Global Head of Security for industry titans like Uber, Facebook, and Yahoo! He also lends his strategic acumen to the Board of the Home Team Science and Technology Agency of the Government of Singapore, shaping the landscape of tech innovation.

In this episode with Prithvi, we uncover the narrative of a relentless leader's journey from Silicon Valley's corridors to the helm of Borneo Data. In his talk, Prithvi shares how influences and past experiences in his life and career shaped the journey going from a startup founder to CEO.

Our speaker today is Vinod Nair, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of MoneySmart Group.

Vinod is a career entrepreneur and never worked for anyone else. He once did a 10-day silent meditation retreat on a mountain in Sri Lanka - it was the hardest thing he had ever done. He also happens to be a biohacking geek who takes 9 different supplements a day to stay in top form.

His company, MoneySmart Group, was the very first investment that Golden Gate Ventures made. MoneySmart has outlasted and outperformed companies with far more funding - owing it all to its strong culture, teamwork, and perhaps even the shoes-off policy that the company has wholeheartedly embraced.

In his talk, Vinod speaks about Bouncing back: How he unlocked resilience and drive through zero-based calendaring

Our speaker today is Rob Schimek, Group CEO of bolttech.

Rob successfully launched the bolttech brand right in the middle of the global pandemic in 2020 – with an ambitious vision to connect people with more ways to protect the things they value. Homegrown in Singapore, bolttech today is the world’s most internationally scaled insurtech, operating in 35+ markets across four continents. This year, bolttech raised US$246 million in its Series B fundraise—the largest ever Series B for an insurtech.

Rob has competed in the world’s toughest endurance competitions, including the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. He has completed 5 out of the 6 World Marathon Majors, and is running the Antarctica Marathon shortly!

Rob talks about his journey From Ironman to founder and how he is Forging resilience in both worlds

Our speaker today is Dr Sara Saeed Khurram, Co-founder & CEO of Sehat Kahani.

Sara is the first and only woman in her entire family to ever run a business of her own! She tells us that she has pitched to investors while cooking a meal for her family and still managed to secure the investment!

Sehat Kahani is the first female led company in Pakistan to raise a pre series A round of $1 million, and is the only female-led company in Pakistan to raise a series A round in its history! Sara is also the first female in Pakistan to recv the Rolex Award, and her work was just featured in the iconic British Vogue Magazine.

In her talk, Sara tells us about 3 hurdles she overcame to successfully turn her purpose into an enterprise.

Our speaker today is Samuel Rhee, Co-founder & Chairman of Endowus.

Sam calls himself a third culture kid being from Korea, growing up in England and having worked in HK and Singapore. Despite giving up promotions and bonuses, he still got pushed to the top in his 17 years at Morgan Stanley and became CEO and CIO of Morgan Stanley IInvestment Management. Sam was a startup founder in his 40s!

Let’s hear why Sam thinks that Silicon Valley doesn't have all the answers

Our speaker today is Bulent Tekmen, Founder of Colendi based in Turkey.

Bulent founded Colendi to empower every individual regardless of gender, background, financial position, banked or unbanked, to give them financial freedom and financial inclusion through simple, easy-to-use products. In his words, Colendi IS the future of finance that uncomplicates the complicated by empowering the unempowered.

Let’s hear from Bulent about what he thinks of entrepreneurial life in his talk titled sleep like a baby while living on the edge!

Our speaker today is Andrea Baronchelli, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer of Aspire. He was part of the early founding team of Lazada, built the company from the early days till the exit to Alibaba. He is also a Y-Combinator & Rocket Internet Alum.

Backed by Y-combinator, Aspire has been named one of the top100 Fintech globally in 2023. The company tripled its yearly revenues, hitting profitability in the second quarter of 2023 and US$15B of annualised total payment volumes.

Andrea’s endearing talk is titled, Questions, not answers. How to build anything. Lets listen to Andrea.

Our speaker today is Dr Rahul Banerjee, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer of BondbloX.

BondbloX is the world’s first fractional bond exchange! Rahul and his co-founder went to b-school together! Rahul’s doctoral thesis was on the "role of trust in advice acceptance from AI". Along the way, Rahul married his highschool sweetheart. His career started in Brooke Bond (one of India's largest selling tea brands), and now he is a Bond Broker!

Rahul draws on his journey to share with us that he is Neither a billionaire nor broke. And how then, timing plays its hand. Suddenly.

Our speaker today is Irene Zhao, Founder of SO-COL.

Irene is a Singapore-based crypto influencer with half a million followers on social media. She launched her NFT collection called IreneDAO, which recorded S$7.5 million in trading volume within the first week! A true hustler, she came to Singapore on a MOE scholarship at the age of 15.

SO-COL raised a $100m valuation within just 6 months, with 30,000 unique wallet addresses earned within 1 month of launch.

Irene truly is an unapologetic founder and here’s how she navigated controversy on the journey to success

Our speaker today is Janos Barberis, CEO of Founders Taboo.

Janos founded Founders Taboo to increase awareness, access, and affordability of support for startup founder mental health and well-being. Janos is building the world’s largest online community and resource hub offering psycho-education, online support and connections to providers specialised in offering treatment and crisis support specifically for founders.

Founders Taboo also offer regular retreats for founders. In fact, his team once had to drive 14 hours across 5 countries to make it to a retreat for founders as all the planes were cancelled! A fun fact about Janos - in every talk he has given, Janos always has one picture of Freudy, his husky.

Janos talks to us about Founders mental wealth: and how entrepreneurs need to be valued differently¨.

Our speaker today is Jing Li, Founder & CEO of Sirius Technologies.

Jing left his home at 15 to explore the world and returned after 12 long years. He then became a founding member of WeBank, one of the largest and best digital banks in the world. Jing then departed on a journey to find a way to bring WeBank to more people, which is how Sirius Technologies was born with the help of a bunch of Chinese engineers in Thailand. Fun fact - their biggest market outside of Thailand is Colombia, which is on the opposite side of the globe! Jing is exploring an alternative way of modernising enterprise IT for embedded business models.

Jing’s talk is about why he thinks Troublemakers make good founder material.

Let’s find out.

Our speaker today is Cesar Jung-Harada, Professor at the Singapore Institute of Technology and Founder & Director of MakerBay.

Cesar’s first real job was working in a glass-blowing studio. He also used to live in a yurt in the London Financial District, and has sailed around the world!

The very first version of his company MakerBay was built in a former chicken farm in Hong Kong New Territories. It is the first Makerspace focused on social and environmental impact in Asia, and is also the largest non-governmental Makerspace in Hong Kong.

From his entrepreneurial adventures and his passion for the enviornment, Cesar thinks Science will not save us. Let’s hear why.

Our speaker today is Dr Krishna Murthy Ella, Executive Chairman of Bharat Biotech - a visionary entrepreneur in the field of vaccines and biotherapeutics and the brilliant scientist behind Covaxin - India's first indigenous COVID-19 vaccine

Dr. Ella is a true luminary in the field of science, having received not one or two but six honorary degrees. Notably, he's the first Indian to be bestowed with an honorary degree from the prestigious University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA.

Dr. Ella is often called the visionary "Father of Genome Valley." His relentless pursuit has transformed Snake Valley into India's premier hub for Life Sciences R&D, with over 400 companies calling it home. In recognition of his exceptional contributions to science and healthcare, Dr Ella was honoured with India's third-highest civilian award, the Padma Bhushan, in 2022. This achievement underscores his profound impact on the nation.

Our speaker today is Tali Goldman, Founder & Managing Director of Market for Good.

Market for Good boasts an 80%-female employee roster, breaking the gender stereotypes in the business world. In a remarkable display of commitment, their initial seed investment came from their advisory board and employees. As trailblazers in the field, Market for Good stands alone as the only B2B platform capable of quantifying social impact, setting new standards in the industry.

Tali served two years in the military where she helped soldiers from low-income families pass their high-school graduation exams. This undoubtedly contributed to her strong leadership and problem-solving skills. Fun facts - despite being born into a Latin American family, Tali has never consumed red meat. She loves silver jewellery-making and salsa dancing.

Let’s hear from Tali about how she learned to solve things that she cannot accept.

Our speaker today is Anurag Banerjee, Co-founder & CEO of Quilt AI - a Singapore-headquartered AI company that’s 50% for profit and 50% not-for-profit. Recently rated as one of the top 12 generative AI companies in the world, The Economist called Quilt AI “an AI for good company” for their work on mental health, child protection and gender equity.

It’s interesting to share that Anurag calls himself a failed poet and he is a former DJ too! Someone once mistook him for Satya Nadella at an airport!

Anurag thinks Founders Really Do Not Matter. And here’s why

Our speaker today is Ben Gattie, Founder & CEO of The Working Capitol or TWC.

Ben spent 18 years in real estate (and is still obsessed with buildings and their potential). He also makes really good pizza!

The Working Capitol’s hub was once a biscuit factory in the 1920s. TWC is one of the pioneers in the co-working space in Singapore where they opened their doors 8 years ago. They build neighbourhoods and are home to over 150 industry leading enterprises, retail and F&B brands (including Elevandi and Shake Shack).

In his talk, he speaks about Liquidation. And how it may be the best thing that ever happened to him.

Our speaker today is Bo Chen, Co-founder & CTO of Xendit.

Bo founded Xendit at the age of 23 and enjoys putting together original rap performances at company offsites. He graduated early from University of California, Berkeley to start working at startups as quickly as possible.

Xendit is the first Indonesian tech startup to pass through the acclaimed incubator YCombinator, S15, as well as the first B2B Payments company in Indonesia that achieved a Unicorn status.

He tells us to Become a cockroach and to learn to Survive to thrive. Here’s how..

Our speaker today is Ryan Selkis, Co-founder & CEO of Messari - a crypto data analytics, tooling, and research platform with a mission to promote transparency, rebuild trust and power smarter and safer decisions in the space.

Ryan is a father of five - four human children and one startup. He is a vocal crypto missionary, passionate about the need for thoughtful regulation and better disclosure practices. Fun fact - Ryan has interviewed three presidential candidates in the last three years.

In his bold, and provocative talk, he tells us to send more mean tweets. Here’s why.

Our speaker today is Martha Mghendi-Fisher, Founder & Executive Board Chair and Angel Investor at European Women Payments Network.

Martha’s whole business model is based on her being the most stupid person in the room. There is no ‘’me’’ in the companies/organisations she has founded, there is always ‘’us’’. Martha collects people. Her work focuses on women, children, minorities and the underestimated.

Martha is not afraid nor intimidated by anyone. She strongly believes that if she wanted to have The Pope come speak at one of her events, she could just simply ask him. The worst he can say is no. When she was a little girl, Martha wanted to be a nun but it didn’t turn out that way! Another fun fact - she finds swimming pools disgusting!

She thinks we all don’t have to build unicorns- we can be a waddle of penguins

Our speaker today is Christian Frahm, Founder & CEO of United Fintech.

Christian grew up in Denmark, is a father of 4 and married to his dear wife who he met when he was 18. Ever since he was a small boy, he always wanted to be an entrepreneur. Christian has worked at the intersection between technology and finance before even the term fintech was coined.

United Fintech, which Christian founded in 2020 is a digital transformation platform helping banks, asset managers and bigger institutions transition to the digital world. Prior to that, he founded Finalto in 2008 and took it from scratch to exit in less than 10 years for $120m!

In his talk, he speaks about Defying nine lives: How to find the courage in your heart to keep going.

Our speaker today is Peter De Caluwe, CEO of Thunes.

Peter is the Belgian pioneer of Fintechs in emerging markets who effortlessly juggles payments, micropayments, and microlending – consider him the fintech triple threat! Besides being a CEO by day; he's also a passionate diver in his free time which in turn helps him skillfully navigate both boardrooms and deep-sea depths.

With a career that reads like a financial saga, Peter's playbook includes 30 acquisitions – turns out, he doesn't just navigate deals, he dives into them headfirst!

His talk today is titled From burning to turning to earning. The inside story of a business resurrection. We hope you will enjoy listening to Peter.

Our speaker today is Anna Gong, Founder & CEO of Perx Technologies. Otherwise known as the godmother of Software as a service, Anna is a serial risk taker. Having helped build and scale 4 B2B startups in Silicon Valley, she decided to do another one, this time in Asia, and she still said this may not be her last one.

Anna wanted to go into performing arts but instead had a sliding door moment after meeting a Stanford boy and followed him into the tech sector in Silicon Valley.

Anna loves sports and the spirit of competitive sports and can sometimes get a little too excited, especially when watching a kids soccer game. She also happens to be terrible at picking gifts for people but is saved by her new assistant, ChatGPT.

Anna talks about Beating the startup odds: How she survived 3 valleys of death and you can too.

Our speaker today is Dr Tianyi Jiang, Co-founder & CEO of AvePoint.

TJ came to America at 11 years old not knowing a word of English. He worked his way to the top of his class, earning degrees from Cornell and NYU, including a PhD in Machine Learning & Data Mining. He also survived the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center, which changed the course of his life.

TJ grew AvePoint from two people in a public library to a global software powerhouse with 2,200 employees around the world. After bootstrapping for 20 years, they went public in 2021 at a $2 billion valuation. Fun fact - TJ took superstition to new heights during his high school wrestling career. For all four years, he wore the same lucky socks to every single match.

TJ speaks about Bouncing back stronger: 4 ways to turn failure into fuel for success

Our speaker today is Ken Zheng, Founder & CEO of NEXTPLS (aka Panda Remit).

Ken, a modern-day romantic comedy lead, won a dream trip on China's popular dating show but missed out due to a leg injury from basketball. Despite subsequent knee surgeries, he pivoted from TV fame to successful entrepreneurship.

His company Panda Remit began with a tight-knit team of 17, and remarkably, nearly all original members remain part of the company after five years, showcasing an unwavering bond matching their robust business model. Panda Remit doesn't just transfer money; they're revolutionising it - just like Michelangelo's artistry, where borders are mere lines on a map and money flows as boundless as paint on a canvas.

In his talk, he boldly urges you to Ask yourself: What would you do if you were not afraid?

Peter Walker, Head of Insights at Carta who are the largest global repository of startup equity with 2.2 million equity holders on their platform. They are deep believers that the future of work entails ownership, not just wages.

Ina Founders Peak EXCLUSIVE, Peter talks about How 2023 changed startup cap tables - and what that means for 2024

Shekhar Kapur is a celebrated, and award-winning Film, TV, Theatre Director & Producer.

At 24, he left a career as a Chartered Accountant/Management Consultant to pursue a career in the Arts. He has created iconic award-winning films and TV shows in India , in Hollywood and the UK. His films have been nominated for several Oscars. Shekhar has created major theatrical musicals in the West End, Broadway, in Europe, and Dubai. He has served as an International Advisory Board Member for the Singapore Media Development Authority, and served on the National Innovation Council under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and most recently on the Board of the Dubai Expo. Till recently he was Chairman of the Indian Film and Television Institute.

Here is an EXCLUSIVE and very special episode where I got to sit with Shekhar on a fireside chat and went Behind the Lens with him. It was clearly a fan boy moment for me and I am very sure you will enjoy listening to Shekhar and his deep and philosophical views on AI and success and on failure.

Our speaker today is Karan Mehta, co-founder & CTO of RING.

Karan loves adventure sports and travelling, and took up farming during Covid lockdowns - cultivating papayas, lemons and chikoos in a 22 acre farm. He is a Carnegie Mellon graduate who left the US to build for India - and has indeed built and run 4 startups including RING.

Bringing together payments and credit, and serving over 16 million customers, RING has been at the forefront of Digital Lending in India since the space opened up in 2015.

Karan talks about a very critical topic affecting many startups - the Friction between founders and how he recommends founders deal with it. Lets listen in.

Our speaker today is Roth Sim, Founder & CTO of BanhJi FinTech.

Roth is one of two finance professionals in Cambodia to hold four accounting and finance qualifications. He proudly represents Cambodia as a member of ASEAN MSMEs Advisory Board. Despite being a finance professional, painting has always been Roth’s passion.

BahnJi FinTech garnered recognition as a leading ASEAN startup by the World Economic Forum in 2018 and was awarded Best Startup in Cambodia by the Ministry of Post and Telecommunication. Their commitment to inclusivity was acknowledged with a Government of Cambodia award for Inclusive Business in 2021.

Its no surprise that Roth talks to us about The unseen burden of being the first fintech startup in the country. Take it away Roth…

Our speaker today is Amit Jain, Founder & CTO of Zamp.

Amit has played multiple roles in his career - consulting, running a tech company known as rent.com, heading APAC at Uber, and being a VC at Sequoia. He has worked across 5 continents (and travelled to 7).

Zamp started a year and a half ago as a modern-age banking and treasury management platform for enterprises It’s funded by Sequoia Capital and CEOs of several companies such as Uber, DoorDash, GoJek and Careem.

His talk is titled The path less traveled: and here is his journey from a VC to a Founder.

Our speaker today is Omar Saleh , Founder & CTO of Khazna.

Omar is Egyptian born and raised and has worked and studied in the US, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. He is a 2-times Egyptian Kickboxing Champion.

Khazna is a credit-led neobank with a unique & profitable B2B2C business model. It received the Central Bank of Egypt’s first prepaid card licence and aims to become Egypt's go-to specialised bank for underbanked mid-to-low-income consumers. Over 80% of Khazna's users accessed formal financial services for the first time ever through Khazna.

Omar believes in the power of people and talks to us about Building your start-up dream team, something that is one of the most critical influencers of startup success. Here’s Omar.

Our speaker today is Gaurav Singhvi, Co-founder & CTO of We Founder Circle - which has 5 Co-founders, located in 4 cities with teams sitting in 9 cities of India.

Gaurav has created 13 different communities in the last 30 years. Gaurav walks us thru all that he has learned thru his journeys in his heart-warming talk titled Walking alone and flying together.

Our speaker today is Kelvin Teo, Co-founder & Group CEO of Funding Societies.

Kelvin would like us to know that he is not the Kelvin Teo on Wikipedia, who is also a Malaysian, management consultant and entrepreneur, but won a reality dating show "Love Me Do". Kelvin survived in Brazil with no money, card and friends, because he found out at the boarding gate that he needed a visa to transit in Canada.

Kelvin did taekwondo and sparring when he was young, because he came from a public school in Malaysia with gangsters. Now, he would just run.

The founding of Funding Societies was an accident, because neither Kelvin nor his co-founder Reynold were planning a start-up. Their venture was sparked by a mixture of inspiration and frustration, influenced by what he calls the PayPal mafia. Today, Funding Societies is the largest digital finance platform for SMEs in Southeast Asia.

He shares some amazing insights from his entrepreneurial journey in a free-wheeling talk titled The Harvard founder who did the opposite of what he learned

This episode is just too special. We’d like to say Pauline and Simon are the ‘first couple’ of The Founders Peak stage. No, we’ve never had a couple take stage as one team. And with what Pauline experienced recently as she was getting off a plane, this story is gut-wrenching as it is inspiring and as it is a story of love and belief and hope and resilience.

Pauline is a Board Advisor at Viridios Capital and Head of New Ventures at Stealth. Her husband, Simon is a Director at Synechron Technologies.

Pauline is German, French and Nicaraguan, and went to school in 12 different countries growing up. At university in London, she started her own Hip Hop record label.

Simon Is the most English-sounding Australian you’ll ever meet. He was a record-breaking athlete (at age 10), and is a children's author in his spare time.

Together, they're building a eco-friendly chalet in Pauline’s hometown in Chamonix.

Together, they talk to us about The Unbreakable Spirit of a Founder - especially

Our speaker today is Kunal Shah, Founder & CEO of CRED in India.

Kunal is a philosophy major turned two-time fintech entrepreneur. His Delta 4 theory of innovation is often quoted by entrepreneurs as a success framework. He is a prolific angel investor who believes in the power of entrepreneurs transforming lives at scale.

His company CRED is a lifestyle platform for India's most creditworthy. CRED wants to improve people's relationship with money and has enabled nearly 15 million Indians to better their credit scores.

Kunal speaks to us about Trust - the bedrock of enduring businesses

Our speaker today is Rahul Shinghal, Co-founder & CEO of Tazapay - a cross border payment platform backed by marquee investors including Sequoia and PayPal, enabling local collections in 70 countries.

Rahul has been in fintech for about 25 years, starting out in Fintech well before it was called Fintech. He has held leadership positions at PayPal and Stripe before starting Tazapay in 2020.

He shares his learnings on a topic important for all aspiring entrepreneurs From corporate code to startup mode: The opportunity cost of making an entrepreneurial shift. Lets listen to Rahul.

Our speaker today is Matthew Spacie, Founder & Executive Chair of Magic Bus.

Matthew is an India-based British entrepreneur, humanitarian, and a former international rugby player. He is co-founder of ClearTrip.com, India’s second largest travel portal, and now the co-founder and CEO of Magic Bus. Matthew has extraordinary insight into how social entrepreneurship can be used to help children out of poverty.

Matthew talks about this in his truly inspiring talk the value of a billion - is it perception or fact?

Our speaker today is Biogirl MJ, Science teacher-turned-content creator raising eco-awareness on climate change.

Her channel Just Keep Thinking Sg won the Content Creator of the Year Award this year. Her channel also has its own mini wildlife documentary series. Their videos are a big hit amongst mummies.

MJ is a slave to her cat, Qwerty. While she wanted to be a lawyer when she was younger, MJ is now obsessed with Science!

Yellow is her favourite colour and in her signature funny, high-energy and honest talk, she walks us thru her journey From teacher to content creator: and How a calculated YOLO completely changed her life.

Our speaker today is Manu Chopra, CEO of Karya.

Karya is named after the Sanskrit word for "work that gives you a sense of dignity". Karya was on the cover of Time Magazine for their work in using AI to move people on a pathway out of poverty.

Manu was named by Time Magazine among the 100 Most Influential People In AI, but even more excitingly, at the Time 100 Gala in San Francisco, he got to hang out with Will.i.am! Manu is obsessed with Bollywood and can speak for hours about his favourite Bollywood movies.

Manu speaks to us about The unprecedented power and responsibility his generation has to harness AI for good

Our speaker today is Dr Loretta Chen, Co-founder & CEO of Smobler.

Smobler is made up of turnkey metaverse architects and pioneers, funded by The Sandbox and Brinc. They created the first phygital wedding, and launched the Kingdom of Bhutan into the Metaverse. They are powered by IDEALS -inclusion, diversity, equity, access, love and sustainability.

Dr Loretta is regarded as Singapore's Anna Wintour. She is recognised amongst the Top Women of the Future, Forbes and Asia's Most Inspiring. She is also a rescue cat mom to 25!

She speaks to us about turning crisis to opportunity and a metaverse for good

Our speaker today is Ned Phillips, Founder & CEO of Bambu.

Bambu used to be called Cache - they raised too much but not enough money. It was a decision between Bambu and an endurance coconut ice cream business when Ned started.

Ned likes to run till he almost passes out. Ned can also catch his own food.

All in, Ned is a risk taker, and believes in its power to transform.

No surprise that Ned chose to title his talk as - Stay safe? Never. It’s too risky

Lets learn from ned.

Our speaker today is Kaidi Ruusalepp, Founder & CEO of Funderbeam.

Kaidi was the first IT lawyer in Estonia in the late 90s. She is the advisor to the President of the Republic of Estonia, Mr Alar Karis, on startup and venture capital matters.

Funderbeam closed a $40m investment this Spring which was one of the top 2 investments in London in May. Funderbeam was selected as the best fintech company in Europe in 2017, and has clients (that are investors on the platform) from 134 countries.

Kaidi talks to us about The power of capital and what founders get wrong

Our speaker today is Julian Teicke, Founder & CEO of wefox.

Julian is a serial entrepreneur who loves founding, building and scaling companies that create a positive impact in the world. He founded wefox in 2015, which today is the largest insuretech in the world. wefox has raised more than $1 billion USD in funding since it was founded.

We were delighted when Julian chose to shares with us The secrets behind raising $1.5bn in funding. Lets listen to Julian.

Our speaker today is Dr Deng Yaping, Olympic Champion & Table Tennis Grand Slam Winner.

Yaping still holds the Guinness record of "Longest time consecutively ranked as the table tennis world number one (female)" and "Most table tennis Olympic gold medals won by a female". Yaping is also the founder of DYP Sports Investment Fund.

In her inspiring talk, she urges us all to Never surrender - and this is her story of how she made the impossible possible

Our speaker today is Antonio Separovic, Co-founder & CEO of Oradian.

Oradian provides cloud core banking software as a service to banks and fintechs – enabling high performance at scale. They are live with 65 banks in 12 countries, who serve 15 million end clients.

In his talk, antonio tells us what is the flip side of the gold medal.

Our speaker today is Amit Shah, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Wylth®.

Forget Silicon Valley sequels, our next entrepreneur's career is a box-office-breaking franchise. After co-founding India’s largest Wealth Management Firm, he is now piloting a Wealth-Tech venture that's set to revolutionise the B2B2C wealth management space.

No surprise that Amit is talking about the Success paradox, and how he is navigating the weight of expectations from all corners, in his second startup

Our speaker today is Joanna Yeo, CEO of Arukah Capital.

Joanna has lived and worked across finance, data science and technology, in roles focused across food, clean water, climate and financial inclusion. Her first full sentence as a child was “no I do not want” in protest to being pushed into a swimming pool before she could swim. It worked, and she’s been vocal and active against any form of coercion ever since - especially for those who, like children, are not strong enough to resist just by physical strength.

In a talk full of energy and enthusiasm, Joanna talks to us about creating impact through inclusion and identity

Our speaker today is Vidit Agrawal, CEO of GajiGesa.

Vidit was the first employee of Uber in Asia, where he led partnerships for APAC. He is an active angel investor with over 25+ investments. Today, GajiGesa is South Asia’s biggest employee wellness app with the core product of Earned Wage Access. Serving over 300+ enterprises and 250,000 blue-collar workers in Indonesia, GajiGesa has helped save over 40 million us dollars in predatory loan fees for its users.

He does this all by working with his spouse as a co-founder. Tell us what that’s like Vidit.

Our speaker today is Aditi Sholapurkar, Co-founder of SALT.

Aditi is ridiculously good at ordering dessert. She’s also super introverted so the best way to hang out with her is to get a dog and then set up playdates with her dogs Jamun and Misri.

In fact, her startup SALT has the highest pets to human ratio of any tech startup. This company also has zero chill when it comes to Fonts, quiz night or board games. And, they recently won the AllianceHack award for Female Economy Fintech of the Year 2023.

Aditi talks to us about Lessons in “otherness” - what building for women has taught her.

Our speaker today is Abdallah Abu-Sheikh, Founder of Astra Tech and CEO of Botim. Abdallah is a serial entrepreneur, known for kick-starting ground-breaking innovations that are ahead of time. He is the man behind the MEA region’s first-of-its-kind Ultra platform.

While it seems obvious that making ground-breaking innovations is a tough road to to take, Abdallah tells us what it takes to be Anti-fragile, and how to gain from a loss. Lets take a listen.

Our speaker today is Jenny Au, Founder & CEO of FundFluent.

She was born in Hong Kong, grew up in Sydney, worked in the US, China, Singapore and Malaysia. Don’t ask her where home is. Jenny has launched over 10 corporate-backed startups. She almost did not finish university!

Her pandemic-born startup has been beating the odds since day one. FundFluent is a platform that helps small businesses to access funding, and they are on a mission to transform the way SMEs access and secure funding.

“Funding everywhere" is closer than you think!

She tells us how to defy start-up odds with just stubborn optimism

Our speaker today is Zack Yang, Co-founder of FOMO Pay.

Zack founded his company because of fear of missing out (FOMO). He has FOMO all the time. He went to Stanford business school, only to learn that entrepreneurship comes from within. FOMOPay is Asia's First Licensed Gateway Connecting Fiat & Crypto Currencies

Zack has been with the Singapore FinTech Festival for 7 years, moving his booth from Hall 7 of the Singapore EXPO as a little startup, to Hall 3 this year - a real company!

So let’s hear Zack’s entrepreneurship story driven by FOMO.

Our speaker today is Prashant Aggarwal, CEO & Board Member of MoneyHero Group.

Prashant is a tabla-playing, globetrotting executive known for accidental luck with spilled coffee leading to major deals. MoneyHero Group thrives on adaptive renaming, welcoming back talent, and boasts a diverse workforce with 48% female, 42% male, and 10% non-binary or other gender identities, fostering a creative and collaborative atmosphere.

From the cliff edge of disaster to listing on the Nasdaq - here are leadership lessons Prashant has learned as an entrepreneur

Monika Martinsson's journey kicked off in the dynamic realm of FinTech, where she dazzled as a developer and sharp-witted analyst. Over 12 years in global capital markets, she commanded high-octane trading software and led thriving teams across EMEA. In 2017, she took a bold leap alongside three visionary colleagues, birthing the brainchild that is Deedster. This powerhouse is on a relentless mission to revolutionize sustainability. Armed with cutting-edge tech, Deedster slashes CO2 emissions and engages individuals, corporations, and banks in an exhilarating battle against climate change.

Monika is at the forefront of a thrilling movement towards a greener, more vibrant future. Get ready to witness her passion and expertise redefine what's possible, one sustainable stride at a time.

Growing a company “from zero to hero” is no easy task. It requires consistency, hard work, and the right mindset. But what’s needed to maintain the “hero” level once the “zero” phase is over? Our next speaker knows a lot on this one. Toms Jurjevs is the founder and CEO of Sun Finance, which he has grown from a two-people startup to a multi-million dollar international company that successfully operates in eight countries across three continents, and counting.

He says that using Sun Finance’s user-friendly lending platform is easier than finding a date on Tinder. This growth journey is a testament to Toms' 5 guiding principles - some of which he will share with us today.

Haukur Skúlason is the spirited CEO and Co-founder of Indo, Iceland's trailblazing challenger bank. Championing a radical shift in banking's DNA, Haukur is on a mission to reinvent trust. As the mastermind behind Indó, he is gearing up to bring an end to "bullshit banking", striving for a relationship where customers not only trust but genuinely like their bank.

Backed by a spirited team and armed with two decades of banking and fintech experience, including roles in incumbent giants and a fintech adventure, Haukur has harnessed the best of both worlds to pioneer Indó's neo-banking revolution. By resurrecting customer-centricity, pricing fairness, and a touch of green mascot charm, Haukur and Indó are rewriting banking's story, putting the "customer" back in "customer-first."

Morten Møgelmose, the founder who wants to give his customers the best experience in physical fashion stores all over the world. Morten is the co-founder and CEO of Zliide, a tech startup that is revolutionizing physical fashion retail. Morten's embarked on his journey during his High School days, when a dreadful experience in a fashion store in London sparked the idea for his transformative venture.

Fresh out of High School, Morten and his 3 friends founded Zliide, introducing a revolutionary hardware that replaces the conventional anti-theft tag with an unlocked tag, seamlessly activated through your smartphone upon purchase. Ingenious!

Gioia is an unorthodox millennial who transitioned early on from economics to design. For the past 4 years, by day, Gioia Arieti worked as a Human-Centered Designer fostering Danske Bank's digital transformation. Recently, she changed focus to work in digital transformation consulting for life sciences. For the past 4 years, by night, she has been working on creating a new time unit inspired by long-term missions in Space.

In May 2023 she became an analogue astronaut and her work has gained coverage in an American innovation magazine, TEDx in Bulgaria, Melissa Space conference in France and won an art prize from a European Space community. She is now sparking innovation in organizations while advocating for multidisciplinarity.

Alexander Wulff is a Danish serial entrepreneur and the author of two best-selling books in finance and economics. As CEO & Co-founder of the fast-growing Danish fintech company Scaleup Finance, he knows how to build a company from startup to scaleup. Prior to his time at Scaleup Finance, he co-founded Abeo, a construction tech company that scaled internationally.

Denise Johansson, the spirited co-founder and co-CEO of Enfuce, a Nordic payment service provider - the first in the world to put payment processing in the public cloud. She is a true a visionary leader who is igniting change within the fintech world. With over 15 years in the payments industry, she's pioneering sustainable financial solutions and championing open banking. Notably, she's a driving force behind women's presence in fintech, fostering collaboration and growth. With an unyielding spirit, she's set audacious goals, propelling Enfuce's expansion and technological innovation.

Under her guidance, the team transforms from colleagues to a united force, making the impossible possible. Denise's impact radiates through Enfuce's pioneering shift to cloud-based payment processing, setting the tone for a 'people first' ethos and propelling the fintech revolution. Her commitment to diversity, inclusivity, and forward-thinking innovation is reshaping the fintech landscape.

Liudas Kanapienis is a dynamic force in the vibrant Lithuanian Fintech world! As a seasoned serial entrepreneur, he spearheaded the groundbreaking evolution of Lithuania's inaugural Fintech venture, Paysera Ltd, transforming it into a thriving fintech powerhouse. With 15 years of experience in the field, Liudas has steered numerous financial enterprises to success. He is currently the co-founder and CEO of Ondato, a venture dedicated to revolutionizing compliance in the financial sector.

With a keen focus on streamlining KYC and AML processes, he empowers financial institutions to reclaim valuable resources and time.

Recognised as the NFT OG, and a pioneer in the fields of Blockchain, Crypto Currencies and Augmented Reality, Morten Rongaard's reputation is forged in the fiery realms of FinTech innovation. He has earned a seat as board member of the Nordic Blockchain Association. Morten has the rare skill of being able to combine creative thinking with financial finesse, and he is the mastermind behind Reality+, the hugely successful sustainability platform.

What sets this Danish Viking apart is his knowledge and experience to help leading brands moving from web 2.0 into web 3.0 and becoming their brand guardian. Morten's expertise shines like a supernova and we couldn't be more pleased to welcome him to the 'yellow circle' for the second time!

Charlotte Roenje is a passionate economist who in 2019 founded Jamii.one — a tech company dedicated to advancing financial health and alleviating poverty. Her profound expertise remains instrumental in shaping the landscape of financial health and fintech, illuminating the path towards a more equitable and prosperous future for all.

Charlotte's unwavering commitment to combat poverty through the transformative force of financial inclusion is truly commendable!

Thuc Hoang is the ingenious mind behind Firi, and he has redefined the cryptocurrency landscape in the Nordics. In 2017, driven by a local market need, Thuc partnered with his co-founder and a brilliant ensemble of tech geniuses to establish Firi, a beacon of excellence in the crypto realm. The team passionately dedicated their free hours from 2018 to 2021 to sculpt Firi into what's now one of the fastest-growing cryptocurrency exchange platforms in the Nordics. As the Founder of Firi, his journey reflects a fusion of audacity and innovation.

Firi's name draws inspiration from the Norse term for "lighthouse", a fitting emblem for their commitment to illuminating the enigmatic world of cryptocurrencies. Guided by Thuc's ingenuity, Firi leads the way, making crypto accessible, secure, and understandable for all.

Tori Samples is a Senior Product Manager at the Stellar Development Foundation, where she focuses on humanitarian use cases and bulk disbursements. Prior to joining SDF, Tori was Co-Founder and CTO of Leaf Global Fintech, a blockchain-based digital wallet that provides cross-border financial services on both smartphones and non-smartphones. Tori built Leaf's system from the ground up in Rwanda. Initially designed for refugees and cross-border traders, Leaf operates across East Africa and was acquired by IDT Corporation (NYSE:IDT) in 2022. Tori's background prior to Leaf was in technology as a Data Architect. She has an MBA from Vanderbilt University and recently became a Certified Expert in Financial Inclusion Policy through the Alliance for Financial Inclusion and the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management.

Iyinoluwa Aboyeji is an investor and entrepreneur in the public interest. He is passionate about partnering with mission driven innovators and investors building an African future where prosperity and purpose is within everyone’s reach. He is currently the CEO and General Partner of The Funds for Africa’s Future an early-stage venture capital firm with a portfolio of over 100 companies collectively worth over $6 billion dollars.

Prior to founding the Fund, he was the founding CEO of Flutterwave, a billion-dollar global payments platform connecting African businesses and individuals to the global economy. Flutterwave is currently Africa’s most valuable startup processing payments of over $1billion dollars in payments every month and backed by global investors like Y Combinator, Greycroft, Mastercard, Visa and Tiger Global amongst others. He was also the co-founder of Andela, a billion-dollar business which matches Africa’s top engineering talent to global technology companies. Andela is also backed by top global investors like Spark Capital, Google Ventures, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and Softbank amongst others.

Mike Endale, a seasoned founder and engineering visionary with over two decades of experience, is dedicated to crafting products that make a genuine difference. As the co-founder and CEO of Moxit, he spearheaded the creation of a groundbreaking technology designed for the U.S. childcare industry. Moxit was later acquired by a venture-backed startup supported by prominent names such as a16z and Goldman Sachs in the heart of Silicon Valley.

In his current role as Principal at BLEN Corp, Mike leads a digital agency that collaborates with top public agencies, non-profits, and enterprises to develop captivating digital solutions.

Assel Zhanassova was Vice Minister of Trade and Integration and was responsible for digitalisation of trade, development of payment systems and digital banking. Assel Zhanassova has more than 10 years of experience in implementation of local and international IT projects. She is one of the top 30 Women in FinTech Powerlist 2019 by Innovate Finance In 2010, she obtained a bachelor's degree in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge under the Bolashak International Presidential Scholarship. In 2014, she got her Master's degree in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge.

Prior to the appointment as Vice Minister of Trade and Integration from 2017 to 2020 she was AIFC Chief Digital Officer In 2016-2017, she was CEO of Zerde National Holding JSC. In 2014-2016, she was Deputy Director of the Digital Technologies Department of the National Bank of Kazakhstan. In 2010-2014, Assel Zhanassova was Head of IT Security at the Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation PLC in London. She was responsible for implementing large strategic projects in Kazakhstan, Africa, Europe.

A student of Chinese philosophy who loves customer-centric and transformative technologies. Trained in management consulting and private equity in China and across Africa before starting his own business supporting the growth of informal retailers. Sandile Dlamini is now building his second business with a mission to ensure employees access their earned wages any time before payday. This will empower them to have the liquidity to cover expenses and emergencies and prevent them from predatory credit lenders.

Parul is a co-founder and director of pinBox. She has extensive experience in conceptualizing and implementing innovative financial literacy models and strategies, as well as technology-led outreach platforms for micro-pension and micro-insurance inclusion in developing countries. Parul developed and implemented "gift-a-pension", the first P2P eCommerce platform globally for pension and insurance inclusion of home help (nanny, drivers, guards, cooks) and blue-collar workers in garment export units.

At pinBox, Parul has worked in Rwanda, India, Uganda, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea and Kenya on designing a replicable and inclusive model and for contributory microPension programs. She was also part of World Bank, United Nations Development Program and FSD teams on advising pension regulators and finance ministries in developing field-tested strategies for expanding voluntary pension coverage. Parul has ~10 years of experience as a journalist at BBC, CNBC and NDTV.

Bente joined mTek in 2019 with the mission to break the 3% barrier of insurance penetration through digital transformation. Her innovation has revolutionized customer experience and eliminate the laborious insurance paperwork through an elaborate know your customer framework. She has been instrumental in the ongoing transformation of the insurance through transparent and integrated processes, resulting to over 200,000 Kenyans. Prior to founding mTek, Bente build her reputation as a talented project manager, which saw her start the Extreme Clean Carwash franchise in partnership with Vivo Energy.

Eche is the co-founder of Afropolitan, a network that connects the best of Africa and the diaspora across art, finance, tech, and media. Afropolitan’s mission is to become the first ever internet country, a concept known as the network state. With over 10 years of experience building communities within the African Diaspora, Eche has a passion for fostering connections and driving progress within the continent. Prior to Afropolitan, Eche was an executive at Flutterwave Inc., a payment technology company that helps banks and businesses provide secure payment experiences for customers in Africa and around the world. With his expertise and vision, Eche is leading the charge to elevate and support the voices and talents of the Afropolitan network.

Olayinka David-West is a Professor of Information Systems with professional experience in the IT and financial services industry and a passionate advocate for digital transformation and inclusive finance. Her research and practice engagements involve policy and strategic management interventions towards digitally transformed businesses and society.

Professor David-West is actively engaged in the implementation and effective use of IT in business organisations and governments; focusing on organisational design and business transformation challenges. In addition, she focuses on digital policy formulation. While her goal remains to optimise the effective use of ICTs, her experiences span multiple domains including, but not limited to software selection practices, change management, strategic planning, IT Governance, and IT competency assessment across various industry sectors. With contextual knowledge in emerging markets, she has developed approaches to plan, design, implement, manage, measure, and sustain changes in business processes and work practices as a result of IT systems deployments. In government, this practical knowledge has been employed in the analysis and development policies, especially in local content, broadband and financial inclusion.

Professor David-West is a thought leader and active participant in the Fintech (IT, financial services and regulation) and financial inclusion ecosystems. With the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), she leads the Sustainable and Inclusive Digital Financial Services (SIDFS) initiative, a research and advocacy programme dedicated to enhancing financial inclusion in Nigeria. With her technical knowledge and communication skills, she frequently facilitates active discussions in the capacity of technical Master of Ceremony (MC), panel discussion moderator and interlocutor. She has led consulting engagements for organisations including the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), the World Bank Group (WBG) and Microsoft Nigeria. She is the author of several academic papers, technical reports and case studies.

Professor David-West advocates engendering male-dominated industries and mentors young women in STEM. She has featured on the Tech Women of Lagos exhibition, listed among the Leading Women in Nigeria’s Financial Technology Industry, and profiled in FintechTimes as a leading African financial inclusion expert.

Matteo Rizzi is an unconventional entrepreneur with two decades of experience in Financial Services, constantly referred amongst the top executives in the industry. He spent 13 years at SWIFT - where he co-founded Innotribe, the innovation arm of the cooperative, launching the first global startup challenge. Since 2013, he has a FinTech Investor and/or Venture Partner role with global VCs and CVCs (20+ deals, 5 exits). In 2015, he co-founded FinTechStage (now FTSGroup.eu) - a platform for Investors and Innovators to boost FinTech innovation globally. In 2019, Matteo founded Timepledge.org a global initiative to foster financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. The same year he launched Breaking Banks Europe (as the Executive Producer). He is the author of ""The FinTech Revolution"" and ""Talents & Rebels"" and is fluent in 5 languages.

Esigie Aguele is the Co-Founder and CEO of VerifyMe Nigeria. His remarkable journey and unwavering dedication to reshaping the landscape of identity verification and financial inclusion make him a true trailblazer in the field. With over 23 years of expertise in Enterprise Architecture and Business Transformation, Esigie excels in FinTech, Telecoms, and US Federal Government sectors.

Jacqueline Brondberg Aby is a Danish/Ivorian entrepreneur, who moved to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in 2018 to develop a Money Transfer service she had worked for in London since 2013. Taking ATLMoney Transfer from 3 payout partners in Africa, to expand their payout network to over 700 locations in West Africa, with a year on year increase in volume of over 50%. Prior to this Jacqueline founded the first babysitting on-demand service in London, with a live booking and payment system. She excited Day&Night Sitters to pursue the opportunity to eventually move to Africa.

The MAGMA adventure begins in May 2021. Identifying a need and opportunity to be part of the rapidly growing fintech/remittance industry in Africa and eager to bring her knowledge acquired around the world, accumulating 15+ years working and living abroad, including missions in Dominica, London and France to the service of Ivorians and Africa. MagmaTech was founded to streamline the support and payout services for the benefit of money transfer operators and partners operating in the field of digital money transfer and payments. Magma focuses on West and Central Africa, as a service to bring financial inclusion to the proximity of the users.

Awarded as one of the Top 100 Impactful Change-makers in Africa, Oswald Anonadaga is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of FloodGates Limited and Trustur, Inc. He also serves as Chief Technology Officer of WingiPay, Executive Director of the Ubuntu Development Network, and as the International Director of Membership for the Federation of African Law Students, where he manages a network of over 33,000 law students and young lawyers across 37 countries. As an Entrepreneur, Oswald has received the award for Top Democracy-affirming Startup in Africa and Top 5 Worldwide by the US State Department, Microsoft, and IE University for which he was invited to the White House. With a mission to contribute to the integration and advancement of Africa, Oswald also serves as a leader and speaker in technological advancement, youth empowerment, and Pan-African integration. He has spoken on these topics at events such as the African Union Office of the Youth Envoy Youth Envoy Democracy Event, 3rd African Peer Review Mechanism Youth Symposium, Most Respected CEOs Event, Ghana International Trade and Finance Conference, The Money Summit, the Women Lead Forum and many more.

CEO/Co-founder of Fingo Africa, YC S21 favourite company.

PPE University of Warwick

Raised 4 million dollar seed round

Rich Teo co-founded Paxos in 2012 and currently serves as CEO Asia of Paxos. Paxos is an institutionally focused crypto services provider that counts PayPal, Bank of America, Mastercard and Binance as clients. Prior to Paxos, he served as a Principal at Cedar Hill Capital Partners, overseeing the firm’s investments across the capital structure of various financial services institutions. Rich has more than a decade of experience in analyzing and investing in financial technology, market structure, and clearing corporations. He was also a Financial Analyst at Citi where he worked on mergers and acquisitions involving exchanges, trading technology, banks and brokers. Rich received a BBA from the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business.

Tale Alimi is currently the Co-founder& CEO of Owoafara, a technology for inclusion Company building a digital banking market place to provide financial services for the underbanked in emerging markets. She is an entrepreneurial thought leader who is passionate about Economic freedom for the underserved, Economic development in Africa, Unlocking opportunities that would empower people and using technology to solve impact problems. She is the winner of the Women in Africa, Fintech revelation award and Owoafara was a regional winner of the Global startup awards 2021.

The Company has been featured on major technology publications like Disrupt Africa and Tech cabal and on main stream media like Forbes and Business Insider. Her current focus is finding non-traditional technology driven solutions to expansion funding for MSME's in Africa so that they can successfully scale their business.

Philip is the Co-founder and director of Global operations at AC Group Ltd, a company providing smart transport solutions. Within 9 years of operations, AC Group has been able to digitise public transport payments, provide Wi-Fi on all public buses, and provided visibility for bus operators in Kigali to recover more than 45% of their revenues. AC Group has created more security, efficiency, and convenience for the commuter, transforming public transport.

Being at the forefront of innovation, AC Group today has over 1.8 Million clients in Rwanda. Other clients & partners include; The World Economic Forum, African Union, and Smart Africa. Phillip's areas of expertise include aligning with disruption, discovering jobs to be done, organising for innovation, maintaining a disruptive scope, managing the strategy development process, product development and management, business development, and smart public transport solutions management.

He specializes in design thinking, implementation, and smart transport solutions in Africa. From his previous roles as a consultant, Philip has a vast knowledge of the public transport ecosystem which includes, logistics management, route network planning, and operations management of public transport. Currently, Philip is working on creating more value for Tap&Go cardholders and introducing an ecosystem for EV buses in Rwanda. Philip has an academic background in Innovative disruption and has undertaken the Harvard Business school program on disruptive strategy.

Jil-Alexandre N'DIA is the CEO and co-founder of Weblogy, a pioneer and leader in digital marketing and community information systems in Francophone Africa. In 25 years of existence, Daniel AHOUASSA, the co-founder, and Jil-Alexandre N'DIA have strategically led the startup's growth. Present on 4 continents, with Abidjan.net and its network of WAEMU country sites, AfriqueFemme.com, and JobAfrique.com, they have attracted over six million unique daily visitors since 2012. In 2016, Weblogy innovated with electronic payment systems in Sub-Saharan Africa by launching its first Abidjan.net Prepaid Visa Card. This new product allowed the company to position itself as the first prepaid card program manager Fintech in Francophone West Africa in September 2020. Weblogy signed a strategic partnership with Visa and thus proposed a state-of-the-art mobile super app called Visa APaym. This allows the dematerialization of all Visa cards and thus facilitates contactless payment. This application, the first in UEMOA, has been awarded the PCI-DSS Level 1 certification for the third consecutive year since September 10, 2020. The development of this application, its value-added services, and the volume of reloading and transactions of its prepaid Visa cards enabled it to obtain the status of the best Fintech of the year 2021 and the status of Best innovation Technology Finetch in 2023 in Francophone Africa by the region's largest processor, GTP and Visa. It then innovated with the virtual Visa card, the Visa business card, and the Visa platinum card, the first in francophone Africa. In January 2021, Weblogy launched APaym Pro, its acquisition platform that allows all businesses or simple entrepreneurs to get paid easily by all means of payment existing on the market such as mobile Money, Visa, Mastercard, and Visa QR code.

Since November 2018, Weblogy is also the Program Manager for the VTC service application Yango, which currently holds a fleet of more than 10,000 vehicles. This proximity to taxi drivers solves the problem of banking for taxi drivers in Côte d'Ivoire. Jil-Alexandre N'DIA is the winner of the Young Entrepreneurship Excellence Award from the President of the Republic in 2013 and 2nd in the Excellence Award for Communication Development in 2019. He is: Officer of the Order of Merit of Posts and Telecommunications, Officer in the Ivorian Merit Order Officer of the National Order of Côte d'Ivoire. Jil-Alexandre N'DIA holds a degree in Information Systems Management from Indiana University, Kelly School of Business in the United States and was admitted in 2020 to the Stanford Seed transformation program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. President of the NGO "J’aime Jacqueville" for financial inclusion and Vice-President of the Kaydan Foundation for the promotion of entrepreneurship, the co-founder of Weblogy is socially engaged. In January 2022, a book written by Venance KONAN and Faustin EHOUMAN, prefaced by Tidjane THIAM, titled "Abidjan.net, A Story of the Future" was released in bookstores and became a bestseller just on pre-order.

Victor Mapunga is Zimbabwe's leading technology serial entrepreneur having built award winning solutions in Blockchain, Crypto, FinTech & E-commerce. He is the Founder & CEO of FlexID, a blockchain powered digital identity wallet which aims to unlock access to financial, insurance, healthcare & government services to over 400 Million Africans. He's the first Zimbabwean entrepreneur to be inaugurated into the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers in Davos Switzerland, as one of 100 global tech companies in innovation. He is a previous speaker at the Global Technology Governance Retreat in Silicon Valley California, Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Africa Innovate Summit in Boston, Consensus in Austin, Texas, amongst others in Singapore & Italy.

Victor has received training in entrepreneurship & technology from Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology & King’s College, London respectively. Mr Mapunga currently operates his technology group from Harare, Singapore, & South Africa.

Charlotte is an economist with a deep commitment to poverty reduction at scale. During her studies, Charlotte focused on and worked with Microfinance and East Africa, which led her to join PwC in 2014, where she focused on sustainable strategies and market entry. In 2019, Charlotte founded Jamii.one, a technology-driven company dedicated to building financial health and reducing poverty. As CEO and principal shareholder, she also established the Jamii.one Foundation, dedicated to ending poverty through financial inclusion. Charlotte's influence extends beyond Jamii.one. She chairs the board of TechVelopment Denmark, supporting Nordic companies in leveraging technology for business-driven development in emerging markets.

Additionally, she is a three-time elected business representative on the board of Copenhagen Fintech. Charlotte's exceptional contributions to fintech earned her a place in the 'Women in Fintech Powerlist' as a 'Standout 45' in 2021 and recognition as one of the "25 Female Founders You Should Know" by the Danish Chamber of Commerce in 2023. Her dedication and expertise continue to inspire in the realm of financial health and fintech.

Nadeem Shaikh is a globally recognized voice in the Digital Financial Services industry. Having lived and worked globally, built, scaled, and invested in a range of businesses, he has unique insight as an entrepreneur, innovator, venture capitalist, and philanthropist. Over the past decade, he has been at the heart of the "Fintech" revolution.

Recognizing that the fundamental needs of customers were changing and no longer subject to predefined industry silos, Nadeem began exploring the "Financial Wellness" concept and raised one of the first VC funds dedicated to this space. On the same vision, Nadeem co-founded Neem Exponential, an open banking platform to provide Financial Wellness to millions of underbanked people and businesses, launched in Pakistan.

Nadeem is also a former Head of Global Financial Services at Veon (and Jazz), with a deep understanding of Financial Services overall and within Pakistan. He co-founded and served as a CEO at the Anthemis Group, a pioneer venture capital firm in FinTech with over 500 million USD assets under management. Through Anthemis Group, Nadeem has invested in over 80 companies in the US and Europe. Previously, Nadeem served as a President at First Data International, with deep expertise in payments in developed and emerging markets. Nadeem is a Board Member at several impact-driven businesses and charities globally including Access Afya, Prospero World, and CARE Pakistan.

He is also the Chairman of The Future Farm, a global organisation dedicated to bringing emotional resilience, vulnerability, and mental health into the world of entrepreneurs.

Nadeem recalibrates his energy whilst painting, hiking, and exploring new parts of the world, through vibrant conversations and spending focused time with his loved ones.

Sofie is CEO of hiveonline, the sustainable digital finance solution connecting the African informal economy. Prior to founding hiveonline, Sofie built multiple core banking and payments systems for 8 international banks in 60 countries, and led whole business transformations and new bank builds. She has led teams up to 2,000 people and budgets of over $1bn. She holds an MSc in informatics, chairs the Edinburgh Futures Institute's FI and Fintech Industry Advisory Board, is author of Fintech Revolution: Universal Inclusion in the New Financial Ecosystem and advises the UN, Central Banks, NGOS and others on blockchain for impact and sustainability, DLT policy and economic impacts of emerging technology.

Shinichi Takatori convincingly backs his bold claim having successfully raised an eye-popping $120Mn in venture funding so far – all with no prior experience. As Founder and CEO of Kyash, Shinichi calls inexperience his superpower.

In his talk, Shinichi shares authentic insights and inspiration from his incredible journey as a first-time entrepreneur.

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Code Chrysalis in Japan, Yan Fan is aiming to make Japan a global software leader. In 2016, she co-founded and served as CTO of a coding bootcamp in Jordan helping train and place refugees in engineering careers.

In her talk, Yan introduces the concept of ‘context switching’ for scaling founders, of which she herself is one.

Genri Goto built Japan’s largest online drugstore kenko.com, and led it to a successful IPO. He even sued the government and won! And he is at it again. This time with his multilingual translation service company, Kotozna.

In his talk, Genri boldly states that Japan has been trapped in a state of stagnation over the last 3 years, and that he has decided to disrupt this stillness, and act as a catalyst for change. He not only has the genes but also the guts to achieve that change!

Tim Romero is Head of Google for Startups Japan, and the Founder of Disrupting Japan Podcast. He is deeply involved in Japan’s community as an investor, founder, author, and educator. In his talk, Tim delivers a bold, mesmerising, and authentic untold story of why he decided to call off his start-up all at the 9th hour.

Chiaki Hayashi, co-founder of Loftwork. In her talk, Chiaki speaks from her heart as she boldly shares her own tough recovery from a stroke a few years ago. She believes the future for Japan is rural, and she has been working with woodworkers there to use new technologies such as 3D printing. A café in Shibuya is now the best manifestation of that work. She warmly invites us all to Cafe Espresso Machiawase!

Satoko Ohtsuki is the CEO and Co-founder of Spider Labs, which provides an AI-driven fraud detection tool. In her talk, Satoko says that Japan has not seen a major global success start-up in the last 20 years. She touches upon a very critical aspect which may be unique to Japan.

Jeff Wentworth co-founded Tokyo-based blockchain software company, Curvegrid, in 2017. With their blockchain middleware, building on blockchain becomes simple and affordable. In his talk, Jeff shares his experience of surviving a black swan event that taught him invaluable lessons about resilience, transparency, adaptability, and the power of a strong network.

Tia Haygood is the owner and Principal photographer at TOPTIA Photography. In her talk, Tia shares how we should convert our insecurities into confidence. In this inspiring and heart-warming talk, Tia takes us on a journey on how to create your own cover story. Can a photo make an audience feel that you are very good at your job? Tia knows it can.

Jonathan Hope created Keychain with a vision that every individual, corporate, or government, can manage digital trust independent of big technology. In his talk, Jonathan recalls how he was laughed at for years. People would ask him what ‘digital trust’ even means.

Nalin Advani is the President of TiE Japan. A hands-on investor with 2 IPOs from 20 Seed/Series A investments so far. Wow, impressive!

Naotaka Nishiyama is the Founder of Tech Japan, and strongly believes in the importance of achieving both economic growth and a society that promotes emotional well-being. His personal mission is to provide opportunities for individuals to make them shine. Today, Nishiyama is dedicated to providing opportunities for individuals to excel in both non-monetary and business fields through his work at Tech Japan.

Jim Weisser is a builder. He founded his first company back in 2000. His second was acquired by Cisco. Jim joined Cisco as part of the acquisition. But he returned to his entrepreneurial roots in 2019 starting SignTime. He for sure knows a thing or two about building successful and effective start-up teams.

Fumiko Inada is the Co-founder & CEO of ENTREBITION by Bee Informatica, who is spearheading the launch of an innovative online platform designed to empower entrepreneurs by providing a comprehensive network for finance and knowledge sharing.

Dr. Masahiro Fukuhara is the CEO and Founder of Institution for a Global Society Corporation. In his talk, Masahiro talks about how he pushes the boundaries of innovation, striving to create a brighter, more equitable world.

Jun Yamadera, founder of Eyes, JAPAN co. ltd., established the company in 1995, making it the first IT startup from the University of Aizu, Fukushima.

Over the past 20 years, he has spearheaded numerous cutting-edge projects, including exporting Fukushima rice through the web in 1995 and creating the world's first virtual pottery system.

Mack is the world's youngest person ever to circumnavigate the globe solo in a microlight aircraft at age 17 years, and two-times Guinness World Record holder.

In this talk, Mack shares moments from his incredible 54,000-km journey flying to over 30 countries across 4 continents in 142 days. Showcasing the best of human endurance, Mack tells us what determination and raw courage is about!

Dr. Julian Hosp⁠ is the CEO and Co-Founder of ⁠Cake DeFi⁠. Cake DeFi is a fully transparent, highly innovative fintech platform dedicated to providing easy access to decentralised financial services and applications by enabling users to generate returns from their crypto and digital assets. Julian is widely regarded as a leading influencer in the crypto space, with over one million followers across all his channels globally. His ideas, knowledge and influence have been conveyed in numerous articles, and through keynote engagements at leading industry conferences. Julian was a professional athlete and a medical doctor previously. Today, he lives in Singapore with his wife and three sons.

In this talk, Julian tells us about his near-death experience that gave him extreme fire, extreme motivation to build a billion-dollar business - and the power of having a “no” list which ultimately determines your focus.

Vineet K. Singh is a seasoned entrepreneur with 25+ years of work experience in sectors across Payments, PropTech, E-commerce & Classifieds. He was part of the Management Team of Info Edge as a CBO for 15 years. He built and scaled Naukri, 99acres & Mobikwik from scratch to be market leaders. Vineet’s current endeavour, Castler, is building India's First Digital Escrow Banking product for both domestic and cross-border transactions. They have become market leaders in a short span of 18 months.

From building and scaling India’s first job site to amazing heights, to launching his own e-commerce company only to have to shut it down within 20 months - Vineet has experienced some high highs and low lows - all with amazing grit and perseverance.

You could say that Alice Chen took a scenic route to becoming a Fintech entrepreneur, after practising law in multiple jurisdictions around the world with firms such as Skadden Arps and DLA Piper, she co-founded InvestaX, a Singapore-licensed investment and trading platform for digital securities and security tokens in 2015, with a focus on providing a turn-key tokenization and security token trading platform to b2b clients. She continues to draw on her legal experience as the firm's general counsel as well as helping the community stay abreast of the latest in the industry as Chair of the Singapore Fintech Association Digital Financing Subcommittee, and through teaching as a guest lecturer on the topic of Digital Assets and Blockchain at Singapore Management University.

In this talk, Alice opens up about her biggest fears as an entrepreneur and how she defused them with drive and purpose.

With over three decades of diversified global experience in the financial services, Suresh Sethi is a practitioner in the space of financial inclusion. He has worked extensively towards shaping the digital and mobile payments space in India by leveraging fintech and digital-led innovations. As the founder CEO & MD of India Post Payments Bank, he established the largest inter-operable banking infrastructure by reimagining the role of the ubiquitous Postman to become a catalyst for financial transformation. Suresh is currently the MD & CEO of Protean eGov Technologies Ltd., an iconic organisation that has been a significant contributor to India’s population scale e-governance stack. Protean is now poised to power the next era of digital transformation through creation of open ecosystems across diverse sectors.

In this talk, Suresh shares his deepest learnings from when he led the transformation of one of the largest legacy public sector organisations in India.

Victor Alexiev is a seasoned venture builder, tech entrepreneur, and corporate innovation leader with over 20 years of experience in managing product teams, digital innovation, and business building initiatives spanning across multiple industries and continents. During his career he has brought over 20 products from idea to commercialization, working closely with multi-cultural and cross-functional teams. A trained expert in Decision Sciences and Agile Product Management, Victor is a sought-after advisor, mentor and board member.

In this talk, Victor tells us about the interplay between chance and choice - how choices are something you control and make consciously, guided by your objectives. While chance is everything else - the unknown, the uncontrollable, and the risk. He made them both work in his favour!

Konstantin Richter is the CEO and Founder of Blockdaemon, the leading institutional-grade blockchain infrastructure building a full suite of staking, node, API and custodial products connecting institutions and developers to leading networks. His curiosity about new digital monetization and payment processes led him to a stint at Nokia before he became an entrepreneur successfully building out SaaS/marketplace platforms (Audiotube, Lookbooks, Wiredrive), with his last successful exit in 2017. He has been active in the blockchain ecosystem as an advisor and contributor since 2015, with entities like Gem, Po.et, and MadHive, before creating Blockdaemon towards the end of 2017.

In this talk, Konstantin talks about Web3 start-ups and shares insight into Silicon Valley. He shares with us, first-hand, what it truly takes to build a successful multi-billion dollar global business.

Arvin is the co-founder of hoolah, Southeast Asia’s first Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) payment provider that empowers consumers to afford the things they want through flexible payment options while helping merchants grow their payment capabilities. With combined experiences in both the corporate and startup world, he currently leads ShopBack’s Partnerships team in scaling its Financial Services offerings while also leading the BNPL subcommittee for the Fintech Association of Malaysia.

FinTech Entrepreneur, Investor and Product Builder with 25 years in leadership roles in Technology, Banking & Investment Management Industry across Asia and the UK. Founder of Bento, SaaS Wealth Tech (acquired by Grab).

In this talk, Chandrima Das shares a part that founders often draw a veil over - the detrimental impact of their single-mindedness towards their venture on their families, friends and particularly on their children. Now, Chandrima is working hard on her personal reclamation project.

Florian Dumas is a seasoned finance professional with a 25-year career in finance spanning across Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong. He has directly managed U-Reg since the company was incorporated. In his previous roles as regional head of sales Florian managed teams across Asia and has led large infrastructure projects as either a sponsor or as a senior stakeholder. He is an expert in regulatory processes.

In this talk, Florian shares how he came to change his perception of age and experience when building a high-performance team in a startup.

Gavin Tan is the CEO and co-founder of Brick, the leading Open Finance API provider in Southeast Asia. Gavin likes to think of himself as a modern data and payments plumber. He is a fintech enthusiast deeply involved in fintech products, operations and regulatory strategy. A lawyer by training, Gavin helped scale high growth fintechs across SEA, including Aspire (YC W18) - the 1st SME Neobank for SEA.

In this talk, Gavin shares that facing big things with zero clue may sometimes leave us tense, but somehow, not knowing the answers could give us 3 superpowers that contribute to our success.

Katrina Cokeng is the CEO & Co-Founder of Xen Capital, a B2B2C alternative investment platform offering wealth advisors and asset managers an easier way to access capital at scale. Previously, Katrina co-founded and scaled Oriente, a leading digital finance platform in Southeast Asia. She brings over 20 years of global experience in strategy, investment banking and private equity from McKinsey & Co, Merrill Lynch and Pomona Capital. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

In this talk, Katrina shares her journey from corporate to start-up founder, and how she is still overcoming her imposter syndrome! Her talk transcends all age groups and is simply timeless.

Mohit Chobey is a man of many talents. From being a Corporate Business leader & Banker for more than 2 decades,to being an Entrepreneur marrying off his Love for endurance sports & fitness with an E Commerce Health & Wellness company. Post an unsuccessful culmination, he pivoted to Ed-tech & turned around the fortunes of an ailing K 12 company. He is a 3 times Full Ironman finisher, besides a Ted X speaker and turned author during COVID times, coming out with 2 best selling books, one of which is the first in the Trilogy of Leadership & its resonance with Endurance sports. He currently is a Co Founder in an Ed-techm besides being a mentor to 3 Fin-tech Organisations.

In this talk, Mohit compares successfully running a marathon to running a startup. Both require diligence, commitment, work ethic, and strategy. And most importantly, they require patience, and pacing.

Vipul Sekhsaria has a taste for filter coffee, a wildlife junkie, ask him to sing a song next time you meet him, and he will not hesitate. Co-founder at Kaleidofin and an in-house customer network specialist. For the day job, Vipul is responsible for customer discovery, acquisition and distribution design spread across India covering 12 million platform users and 1.7 million + customers across Kaleidofin products – Ki cash, Ki credit and Ki score. In other times, the go-to man for solving problems and carving out innovative financial solutions! Keywords that relate to Vipul: Customer acquisition strategy, Customer behaviour, Financial solutions for informal customers, Nat-Cat risk, Credit, Savings, Insurance.

In this talk, Vipul shares that embracing ambiguity is the only way to deal with ambiguity… and perhaps even conquer it. He says that it is in temporary times that one learns permanent lessons.

Wei Shi Khai is the General Partner and Chief Operations Officer at LongHash Ventures. In 2021, Shi Khai was awarded Forbes 30 Under 30. He was previously a management consultant at McKinsey, with a focus on digital transformation and analytics across the financial and telecommunications sector in Southeast Asia. Shi Khai holds a Bachelor of Science from Imperial College London.

In this talk, Shi Khai talks about Web3 and the incredible potential it holds for us to create a future of freedom and possibility. And about creating a world we envision that doesn't exist yet.

Ms Jacqueline Poh was appointed Managing Director of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) on 4 October 2021. She was previously Deputy Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office Strategy Group, which leads and organises the Public Service to develop and implement the strategic priorities of the Government. She also oversaw the National Population and Talent Division and the Centre for Strategic Futures. Ms Poh was the founding Chief Executive of the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech), and was previously the Managing Director of the Infocommunications Development Authority (IDA). She has also held key positions in the Ministry of Manpower, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Defence. Ms Poh is an alumnus of Oxford, Cambridge, INSEAD (MBA) and Stanford. She has three teenagers and more patience than before she had them.

In this talk, Jacqueline shares why Singapore is a choice location for founders to base themselves at, whether it is to grow their startup to achieve greater impact for a better future, or to build a fulfilling life with their families in one of the world’s most liveable cities.

Being a disruptive digital explorer, Viktor Atanasov is the CEO and co-founder of WOGI, the fastest-growing incentive payments provider across South East Asia. Viktor is also a co-founder of a Frankfurt-listed, Allterco, an award-winning company specialising in IoT smart home automation devices.

In this talk, Viktordigs deep into why co-founder conflicts happen in the first place, and how founders, no matter how different from each other, have the same things in common.

Sonam Wangchuk is an Indian engineer, innovator and education reformist. He is the founding-director of the ⁠Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh⁠ (SECMOL), which was founded in 1988 by a group of students who had been in his own words, the 'victims' of an alien education system foisted on ⁠Ladakh⁠. He is also known for designing the SECMOL campus that runs on solar energy and uses no fossil fuels for cooking, lighting or heating.

In this talk, Sonam talks about the merits of growing up in a natural environment and how he did not have to go to any schools till 9 years of age. And while many people thought that was perhaps an unfortunate thing for a child, Sonam later learned that he was actually very lucky to not have schools.

Recognised as a NFT OG and a pioneer in the fields of Blockchain, Crypto Currencies and Augmented Reality. Morten Rongaard is a regular speaker around the world on those topics and board member of the Nordic Blockchain Association and holds several advisor positions. Morten has the rare skill of being able to combine creative thinking with financial acumen and the key driver behind Reality + hugely successful sustainability platform. This Danish Viking is known for sharing his knowledge and experience to help leading brands moving from web 2.0 into web 3.0 and becoming their brand guardian.

In this talk, Morten truly wears his heart on his sleeve and talks to us about the impossible dilemmas every founder faces…which require making some hard choices which often have consequences.

Ladi Delano is a British-born Nigerian entrepreneur and the co-Founder and co-CEO of Moove, a global mobility fintech democratising access to vehicle financing for mobility entrepreneurs. He has previously founded and exited several businesses in Africa and Asia, and holds a Master’s degree from Oxford University and an MPA from the London School of Economics.

In this talk, Ladi shares his lessons from his extraordinary entrepreneurial journey, and how he realised the importance of building a company that fosters shared value.

Life is a precious opportunity for unlimited progress through unending education” – this is the philosophy of Gitanjali Jain, a multi-hyphenate, who believes in constantly reinventing herself through lifelong learning. A social entrepreneur turned educator, Gitanjali is currently heading the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL) as its Founding CEO. HIAL is an alternative Institute for mountain development that believes in a curriculum that is contextual, pedagogy that is experiential, approach that is trans-disciplinary and problem solving methodology that blends indigenous wisdom with modern technology. Gitanjali is also a ballerina, an Odissi dancer, a Black belt in Karate and a World Champion in the 2009 World Karate Championships in Pittsburg!

In this talk, Gitanjali tells us how one becomes a master of oneself. She says the first step is to have a vision larger than yourself. The second step is to then constantly live for this idea.

Mr. Aswin Phlaphongphanich is the Co-founder and CEO of DeeMoney - Thailand’s leading and fastest-growing fintech specializing in cross-border payments. Born in Thailand, in a Sikh family, Aswin is the epitome of a self-made person, who started his first business from the basement garage, in his apartment, at the age of 21. Coming from a prominent real-estate and hotelier family that saw its fortune collapse during the 1997 Tom Yum Kung crisis, during his formative years, Aswin’s goal was to ensure survival for his family and himself. An enigmatic and charismatic leader, Aswin’s grit and perseverance has been shaped largely by the experience of hitting rock bottom and the journey back up. His resilience has taken him through multiple successful ventures during this entrepreneurial journey.

In this talk, Aswin shares incredible untold stories of his flavorful founder's journey, and shares the 3 critical ingredients that took him from trying to just survive to heroic success.

A tech visionary and a serial entrepreneur, Anish Achuthan is the Co-founder and CEO of the world’s fastest-growing digital banking enterprise, Open Financial Technologies. With over 17+ years of experience in the fintech industry, Anish launched OPEN - Asia’s first SME neobanking platform to solve the business banking challenges faced by startups, small businesses and freelancers. Then, he set up Zwitch, an embedded finance platform with no-code and low-code capabilities that allows both fintechs and non-fintechs to launch their own fintech verticals. Further, he started BANKINSTACK, a cloud-native fintech OS that empowers banks in their digital transformation journey.

In this talk, Anish talks about how an entrepreneur has to start somewhere without waiting for that perfect moment.

Amrish Rau is the CEO of Pine Labs. He leads the company's growth and expansion in Asia and beyond. He has over two decades of experience in the fintech space, having run his own startup and built large organisations. Prior to Pine Labs, Amrish co-founded Citrus Pay which was acquired by Naspers FinTech, PayU in 2016. Post the acquisition, he was made the CEO for PayU India and later took over as head of Investments for Naspers where he was responsible for increasing the company's footprint in the financial technology sector.

In this talk, Amrish shares what one needs to put in place before turning entrepreneur.

Amit Gupta is an entrepreneur now on his third successful venture – with a rewarding corporate career with leadership roles squeezed in as well! Amit believes in the power of democratisation and his two most recent ventures are Ecosystm - a next generation Technology Research & Advisory company, and Kampd – a platform for professional communities and content. He’s a firm believer in giving back, and is the Chair of TiE Singapore, and is also among the current Global Board of Trustees of TiE – the world’s largest entrepreneur and investor focused on fostering entrepreneurship. He sits on numerous boards and has also supported the New Zealand start-up ecosystem as an advisor to the New Zealand government.

In this talk, Amit tells us about the 6 mighty P’s of his entrepreneurial journey.

Diana Paredes is the CEO and Co-founder of Suade, a software platform that enables financial institutions to understand and deliver their regulatory requirements. Prior to founding Suade, Diana had a successful career in investment banking, covering all asset classes at Barclays and Merrill Lynch, across sales, trading & structuring. Whilst working in the industry, she saw an opportunity to innovate and launch her current Fintech/Regtech startup. She believes that a data-driven approach to regulation is the key to preventing the next financial crisis.

In this talk, Diana tells us her secret to becoming a successful founder, which is finding balance. She tells us about the realities of bootstrapping, and how she applied the Japanese concept of Ikigai (which means life’s purpose) to her entrepreneurial journey.

Gaurav Hinduja co-founded axio (formerly Capital Float) in 2013. Under his direction, the company has grown to become India’s leading digital finance company with over 7 million credit customers. As the Managing Director of axio, he continues to drive leadership in the Fintech space through numerous strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Amazon. Gaurav holds an MBA from Stanford University and graduated from Christ University in Bangalore with a distinction in commerce. Having completed the Ironman 70.3 in France and Dubai, Gaurav is deeply passionate about fitness and dedicates time to train rigorously for triathlons.

In this talk, Gaurav opens up about how he fought through some of the darkest and most difficult few months of his life after a business deal fell through. He turned his life and his business around - starting by taking on the Ironman Triathlon, aligning his business goals with his endurance goals.

Wealth manager turned entrepreneur and digitalisation evangelist, Keith Tan’s passion for good coffee and technology kicked off Crown Coffee’s meteoric journey in 2016. Through astute observations, Keith quickly recognised gaps in the labour, service, and quality market that could be enriched by adopting industry-disrupting technology. Leveraging on robotics, AI and data, Keith started Crown Digital and created Ella, one of the world's most successful robot barista, with a renewed focus to empower traditional businesses through automation, with a vision to be the largest coffee beverages operator powered by AI and robotic technology.

In this talk, Keith tells us about how his passion for good coffee and technology kicked off his adventurous entrepreneurial journey.

Eric Barbier is a serial entrepreneur who has built and scaled multiple payments companies globally. This includes TransferTo (now Thunes and DT One) and Mobile 365 (acquired by SAP). Today, he is the CEO and founder of TripleA, the first cryptocurrency payments gateway to be licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). TripleA empowers more than 15,000 businesses across 120+ countries to make and accept payments in digital currencies, building towards his vision of greater global financial inclusion. With over 17 years of experience in mobile and payments, Eric Barbier is also a board member of global companies such as AMEEX, STC pay and Sleek.

In this talk, Eric digs deep inside his wealth of entrepreneurial experiences through his journeys.

Deepti Sanghi is the CEO & co-founder of Kodo, India's fastest-growing corporate card and spend-management platform for startups and scaled businesses. Kodo has raised ~$14M in equity capital from a group of investors led by YC Continuity and Brex. Deepti brings strong domain expertise in India's fintech and financial services ecosystem. Before launching Kodo, she headed Partnerships at MoneyTap (backed by Sequoia & NEA) where she played a key role in launching and scaling a consumer credit card and app-based credit line. Deepti began her career as an investment banker at SBI Caps (investment banking division of the largest bank in India – SBI) and Edelweiss (a publicly-listed financial services group in India) where she worked on M&A and PE fundraising transactions for financial service companies in India.

In this talk, Deepti talks about how she successfully navigated through the turbulent times of the last two pandemic years - with empathy. Her goal is to convert every moment of financial anxiety into delight for her customers as she believes the most successful companies are those that can practise empathy for all their stakeholders.

Jason Thompson is the Chief Executive Officer of Partior, the trusted global network for value exchange. He is responsible for steering Partior as it charts its growth strategy to disrupt the payments industry and for formulating strategies for the firm’s expansion and product offerings. With over 20 years of leadership experience in the financial services sector under his belt, Jason is known for shaping some of the region’s notable unicorns, Grab Financial Group and OVO. When he’s not in the office, Jason enjoys spending time with family and friends, travelling, keeping fit and improving his cooking skills.

As someone who runs boot-strapped joint ventures, Jason says that the unicorn is not a destination. What matters is the core business, the strategy, the industry position, and above all culture. In this talk, Jason tells us how to create that culture starting from a bold entrepreneurial vision.

Ang Xing Xian is the CEO and Co-Founder of CapBay, a leading Supply Chain Finance platform that helps businesses obtain smarter financing. Under his leadership, CapBay has provided more than USD 500 million in digital financing to businesses in Southeast Asia. Xing Xian has extensive experience in management consulting as a management consultant with Accenture Strategy, advising multinational companies on technology and analytics. He was also an in-house management consultant for Creador, a private equity firm. Xing Xian graduated from Oxford University with a Master’s in Computational Finance, following his Mathematics Bachelor's degree from Imperial College London.

In this talk, Xing Xian explains that given the outcomes entrepreneurs are aiming for are distant, measuring progress can be hard. He introduces the concept of elevated periods of growth in the journey of a startup, and periods where the company painfully grinds forward, and he explains how to measure progress for each and what happens in between them.

Derrick Lee is the Chief Technology Officer and Co-founder of Accredify. He oversees the entire process of Accredify's new products and features from ideation, to development and release. He is responsible for the firm's technical roadmap, policy, operational processes, and the growth of Accredify's tech team. Derrick began his career in tech at the age of 12, founding a series of multiple entrepreneurial ventures focused on tech solutions, including developing an online marketplace for website templates, app development, and a platform to facilitate Initial Coin Offerings. Together with his Co-founders, Derrick was recognised in Forbes 30 Under 30 Class of 2022.

In this talk, Derrick speaks about the four principles that Dr. Richard Wiseman wrote about in his book ‘The Luck Factor’. Derrick reflects upon how luck played a pivotal role in his journey to where he is today.

Arvin Singh is the co-founder of hoolah, Southeast Asia’s first Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) payment provider that empowers consumers to afford the things they want through flexible payment options while helping merchants grow their payment capabilities. With combined experiences in both the corporate and startup world, he currently leads ShopBack’s Partnerships team in scaling its Financial Services offerings while also leading the BNPL subcommittee for the Fintech Association of Malaysia.

In this talk, Arvin tells us about 2 lessons that made his transition easier - eliminating self doubt and making lifestyle changes.

Yunus Sevimli is the co-founder and CTO of Almond FinTech. His work centres around promoting equitable access to technology across a breadth of fields. Prior to Almond, Yunus held leadership roles in early-stage ventures commercialising cutting-edge medical research, and devised low-tech approaches to poverty alleviation in rural Southeast Asia. He is the author of several patents and scientific papers across medtech, additive manufacturing and robotics. Yunus holds a MS in Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has recently been named among the 30 and Under Fintech Leaders in Singapore.

In this talk, Yunus tells us what he learned through the great writings of the Roman and Greek thinkers and philosophers, that may be relevant for entrepreneurs. For example, anticipating obstacles and thinking of them as part of the journey.

Joshua Bao is one of SUNRATE's co-founder and is responsible for driving the sales and marketing strategy of the organisation. Prior to co-founding SUNRATE in 2016, Joshua has more than 16 years of experience in global financial and corporate services. As a co-founder, Joshua had to make countless unpopular decisions that he believed were right. While the majority of those decisions have proven to be right, Joshua hopes his experience and insights will help his fellow co-founders follow their heart (and mind) and never be peer-pressured nor “FOMO-ed” into making popular decisions.

In this talk, Joshua shares his approach to making such decisions that has helped him grow his business more successfully.

Nirav Choksi is the Co-founder and CEO of CredAble, India's largest working capital technology platform that enables more than USD 3BN in working capital and has witnessed 500% year-on-year growth. He co-founded CredAble with the aspiration of building an enterprise that empowers the business ecosystem with a seamless flow of credit. Today, CredAble caters to large, mid-sized, emerging corporates, MSMEs and Financial Institutions with its pioneering technological platforms. Nirav is a veteran of the Indian business ecosystem. Prior to CredAble, he had also co-founded and led Equentia Natural Resources Pvt. Ltd. a multi-commodity trading and structured finance company. A seasoned entrepreneur of more than 28 years and an Angel Investor himself, Nirav has incubated and scaled several businesses, raised debt and equity financing, and built multidisciplinary global teams in the areas of technology, private equity, and international commodities.

In this talk, Nirav tells us that startups often build products that clients don’t really need. But still we think what we’ve created is a ready gold mine. A lesson amongst others that he shares is not about where an entrepreneur should invest and how much, but when to stop investing when things don’t seem to be working out.

Edmund Ng is a serial entrepreneur, founder of 3 start-ups, one of which grew to $20m valuation in 2 years. A military soldier turned technologist, he has contributed significantly to Singapore’s tech ecosystem, pioneering mainstays like the self-service SAM kiosks and financial and procurement networks behind the scenes. His experience culminates in Doxa Connex, the Collaborative Trade Platform that connects and unifies upstream and downstream procurement, payments and financing among banks, buyers, and suppliers.

In this talk, Edmund tells us that having co-founders is recommended because starting a company alone is very hard. You need at least one person to fight alongside you.

Pratik Gandhi is the Co-Founder and COO at Nium, a leading fintech company that provides banks, payment providers, and businesses of any size with access to global payment services. As Co-Founder and COO at Nium, Pratik leads the Global Finance, Compliance, Operations & Customer Service teams. Pratik brings over 25 years of leadership experience into Nium, having worked for companies such as Arthur Andersen, Xerox, PepsiCo and Telstra before specialising in banking in the last 15 years. He was the Regional CFO for the Consumer Finance business at Citibank and then CFO & Head of Portfolio Management at SCB Singapore.

In this talk, Pratik tells us how taking tough calls, which may include doing something diametrically opposite of what you started with, can yield unexpected and better, even exceptional outcomes.

Dhruv Arora is the Founder and CEO of Syfe, Asia’s leading digital wealth management platform with a mission to empower people to build their wealth for a better future. Having pursued a career as a trader with a leading investment bank, Dhruv realised that he had a different calling. Having seen the impact of offering wealth management services to high net-worth individuals, Dhruv founded Syfe to offer the same access to wealth management services and financial literacy to the masses. Today, Syfe serves customers in 65 countries from Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia offices.

In this talk, Dhruv passionately explains three things that are common between free soloing, and starting a business… knowing your terrain, knowing about safety nets and why starting alone does not mean you have to do it alone.

Debbie Watkins has lived in Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Singapore over the past 20 years, and worked in 30 additional countries throughout Africa and Asia. Her focus for this entire period has been technology-enabled inclusive finance - mobile products and services, business and strategy consulting and management - building multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teams in a number of countries. She is now the CEO and co-founder of ⁠Lucy⁠– a mobile banking and business-building services app built to help entrepreneurial women who are overlooked, underestimated, and underbanked become unstoppable.

In this talk, Debbie tells her amazing story of how she has learned what women in smaller and emerging countries need - education, access to finance, and a safe space to pull themselves out of poverty and into economic growth and prosperity.

Michele Ferrario is the Co-Founder and CEO of StashAway, the largest digital wealth manager in SEA and MENA. Michele spent half of his career in and around financial services, as a consultant to large financial institutions at McKinsey & Co., and as a Private Equity investor. He then spent the second part of his career building consumer internet companies, as Managing Director at Rocket Internet in Italy, Pakistan and South East Asia, and then as Group CEO of ZALORA, where he was responsible for it growing 15x. Michele holds a BA from Bocconi University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

In this talk, Michele reminds us that you should not stop doing difficult things because you think you might not succeed.

David Brear is the CEO of 11:FS and since his dream of being a sportsperson was crushed (along with the ligaments in his knee!) and he had to get a proper job, he has worked in pretty much every angle of the financial services industry never losing that competitive desire to drive forwards and win. Having pitched, established and run billion-pound transformations for some of the biggest FS companies on the planet the realisation that Digital Financials Services Is Only 1% Finished has spurred his desire to establish an organisation that can actually support the industry through its greatest challenge.

In this talk, David explains why attitude and effort are the two primary catalysts which when applied consistently end up powering real success.

Feng-Yuan Liu is Vice-President of Business Development of Aicadium, Temasek’s AI centre of excellence. Feng-Yuan is a serial entrepreneur and intrapreneur, with a passion for applying data-driven methods and artificial intelligence both in the service of the public good and launching new ventures. He successfully co-founded and exited an early stage Sequoia-backed startup building technology to enable enterprises to build AI software responsibly. Before that he was responsible for launching Singapore government’s data science and artificial intelligence team from zero to one out of the Prime Minister’s Office. He believes in the power of multidisciplinary teams and how technology-native organisations can accelerate their rate of learning.

In this talk, Feng Yuan tells us that the ability to regulate your emotions as an entrepreneur, to keep your calm, is one the most scarce and precious resources entrepreneurs can have. So treat your emotional energy as a strategic resource, one that you spend very carefully.

Walter de Oude founded Singapore Life in 2014 and grew that business both organically and inorganically to a value of S$3.2bn by 2020. Walter's new venture, Chocolate Finance aims to deliver best in market cash savings returns for almost anyone, almost anywhere. Based on his entrepreneurial experience, Walter has also established Chocolate Ventures, an early stage VC through which Walter invites investors to co-invest with him on opportunities where he feels he can add value.

In this talk, Walter shares his most valued learning's from what he calls 'the simple, yet hard and complicated art of capital raising'

Coen Jonker is the Chairman and co-founder of Tyme, a multi-country digital banking group operating in Asia and Africa. Tyme launched its flagship bank, TymeBank, in South Africa in 2019 with over five million customers, making it one of the fastest-growing digital banks worldwide. Following a successful legal career, Coen joined Standard Bank as its Director of Inclusive Banking in 2005. In 2011, he joined Deloitte as a Partner where he incubated and spun out Tyme prior to its acquisition by Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) in 2015. In 2017, CBA appointed him as Group Executive for international retail banking and insurance. However, in 2018, Coen along with controlling investor African Rainbow Capital, bought Tyme from CBA and re-launched the business as a global digital banking group. Coen chairs the Board for Tyme Group, is CEO of TymeBank, and represents Tyme on the GOtyme and Tyme Pakistan boards . Coen is an active investor and supporter of startup entrepreneurs.

In this talk, Coen tells us how he dealt with what he calls 'the dark night of the soul' - something every entrepreneur needs to learn to encounter more than once in their journey.

Ilya Melkumov was a professional esports player and captain who successfully sold his team to NaVi, one of the biggest gaming organisations in the world. After playing for more than 12 years Ilya decided to switch his career path and move to FOM Capital, a VC firm investing in groundbreaking technology companies. Using the knowledge from FOM Capital and his degree from the London School of Economics Ilya started Inovat, a digital Tax Free refund service that helped travellers save millions on tax refunds when shopping abroad.

In this talk, Ilya talks about the pressure of playing e-sports in front of 20000 people when he was just 18 years old. But his lessons on team building, resilience, and something he calls META are truly worth on-boarding.

Jenny Li is a strategy focused and results orientated finance leader, with more than 15 years’ experience in improving financial governance, working in and advising multinational business to high growth start-ups undertaking rapid change and growth. Jenny co-founded AsiaVerify in 2019, a Singapore incorporated regtech company empowering global businesses to verify businesses in Asia, in real time, so that people can engage with Asia with confidence and ease. Jenny is passionate about speaking in celebration of the social, economic and cultural achievements of women in innovation and how we can foster a more inclusive and diverse ecosystem.

In this talk, Jenny speaks about wonder women and how a group of a few created something that is now meaningfully helping female founders to achieve exactly what they want from their entrepreneurial journeys. Jenny shares how movements start, and gain momentum.

Sean Lam was the co-founder of Jewel Paymentech which was acquired by Fintech unicorn Advance Intelligence Group in 2022. His passions include imagineering solutions to complex fraud and security problems that impact the whole of society. He previously served as a risk director at the world's leading payment network and prior as a security consultant with a Big 4 accounting firm. Outside of work, Sean sits on the Singapore Standards Council and volunteers as a police officer with the SPF.

In this talk, Sean offers solutions and ideas on how entrepreneurs can increase their chances of getting the timing right.

Phase #0: 15 year intra-preneur, with many firsts in corporate life.

Start-up #1: RedPill, pioneered Analytics revolution, exited to IBM

Stupidity Gene #2: Crayon Data, go bolder with AI, build a platform - ⁠maya.ai⁠.

Uppers: sparky daring people, purpose & values-driven journeys: deadly cocktails - of data & intuition; right & left brain; long term persistence & short term impatience.

AI Podcaster, check out #SlavesToTheAlgo.

As someone who has successfully sold a company, what he calls a high, to then having to let go a part of his team on his current and 2nd journey, in this talk, Suresh Shankar talks about how both these extreme experiences share the same space in an entrepreneur's mind at the same time. And how entrepreneurs should harness these best.

Serey Chea is Assistant Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia. She is passionate about financial inclusion and women economic empowerment. Achievements under her leadership include the establishment of Credit Bureau Cambodia in 2012 that propelled Cambodia's Ease of Access to Finance to number 7 worldwide in 2017 by the World Bank, the introduction of Bakong, a national backbone payment system using DLT allowing interoperability amongst all financial service providers making financial services more accessible and affordable, and the introduction of financial literacy into the general education program. Serey holds a PhD in economics and is a member of the Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum.

In this talk, Serey talks about her experiences of being a regulator, not a typical entrepreneur - but she identifies many commonalities and even contrasts between both. She speaks about the risk of failure in the public eye and what the wider repercussions of any such can potentially be.

Michael Shaulov is the CEO and co-founder of Fireblocks, a secure digital asset infrastructure company. He is a serial cybersecurity entrepreneur and investor. He pioneered mobile security in an elite military technological unit (8200) where he received the Israeli Presidential Excellency Honor, prior to co-founding Lacoon Mobile Security, which was acquired by Check Point.

In this talk, Michael shares how back in 2018 he built a company from the ground up to now servicing over 1600 clients globally with a team of 600 employees - all in just 4 years!

Jonathan Levin is Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Chainalysis, the blockchain analysis company, where he is regularly called upon to testify for the U.S. Congress and other government hearings on the emerging risks and opportunities in cryptocurrencies. Jonathan is also a mentor for the Techstars Alchemist Blockchain accelerator. Prior to Chainalysis, he was the CEO of Coinometrics, which provided the first dashboard of blockchain intelligence. He was also a postgraduate economist at the University of Oxford, where he researched cryptocurrencies. Jonathan holds a BSC in Economics from Bristol University and Master of Philosophy in Economics from the University of Oxford.

In this talk, Jonathan talks about how he went about building trust in this thing called Blockchain technology.

Naveen Kukreja, one of the most prominent faces of India’s fintech industry, is the Co-founder & CEO of Paisabazaar – the country’s largest marketplace for lending products and free credit score platform. In less than 9 years, Paisabazaar has served over 33 million consumers from 823 cities. Naveen has 2 decades of deep experience in the fintech and financial services markets of Europe and Asia with stints in Citibank, Capital One and Aviva. Naveen believes the next decade of fintech revolution belongs to India, with rapid digitization, technology and data innovations as the key catalysts.

In this talk, Naveen shares his take on how he successfully harnessed learning's from being a marathon runner into his business.

Monika Martinsson's journey kicked off in the dynamic realm of FinTech, where she dazzled as a developer and sharp-witted analyst. Over 12 years in global capital markets, she commanded high-octane trading software and led thriving teams across EMEA. In 2017, she took a bold leap alongside three visionary colleagues, birthing the brainchild that is Deedster. This powerhouse is on a relentless mission to revolutionize sustainability. Armed with cutting-edge tech, Deedster slashes CO2 emissions and engages individuals, corporations, and banks in an exhilarating battle against climate change.

Monika is at the forefront of a thrilling movement towards a greener, more vibrant future. Get ready to witness her passion and expertise redefine what's possible, one sustainable stride at a time.

Growing a company “from zero to hero” is no easy task. It requires consistency, hard work, and the right mindset. But what’s needed to maintain the “hero” level once the “zero” phase is over? Our next speaker knows a lot on this one. Toms Jurjevs is the founder and CEO of Sun Finance, which he has grown from a two-people startup to a multi-million dollar international company that successfully operates in eight countries across three continents, and counting.

He says that using Sun Finance’s user-friendly lending platform is easier than finding a date on Tinder. This growth journey is a testament to Toms' 5 guiding principles - some of which he will share with us today.

Haukur Skúlason is the spirited CEO and Co-founder of Indo, Iceland's trailblazing challenger bank. Championing a radical shift in banking's DNA, Haukur is on a mission to reinvent trust. As the mastermind behind Indó, he is gearing up to bring an end to "bullshit banking", striving for a relationship where customers not only trust but genuinely like their bank.

Backed by a spirited team and armed with two decades of banking and fintech experience, including roles in incumbent giants and a fintech adventure, Haukur has harnessed the best of both worlds to pioneer Indó's neo-banking revolution. By resurrecting customer-centricity, pricing fairness, and a touch of green mascot charm, Haukur and Indó are rewriting banking's story, putting the "customer" back in "customer-first."

Morten Møgelmose, the founder who wants to give his customers the best experience in physical fashion stores all over the world. Morten is the co-founder and CEO of Zliide, a tech startup that is revolutionizing physical fashion retail. Morten's embarked on his journey during his High School days, when a dreadful experience in a fashion store in London sparked the idea for his transformative venture.

Fresh out of High School, Morten and his 3 friends founded Zliide, introducing a revolutionary hardware that replaces the conventional anti-theft tag with an unlocked tag, seamlessly activated through your smartphone upon purchase. Ingenious!

Gioia is an unorthodox millennial who transitioned early on from economics to design. For the past 4 years, by day, Gioia Arieti worked as a Human-Centered Designer fostering Danske Bank's digital transformation. Recently, she changed focus to work in digital transformation consulting for life sciences. For the past 4 years, by night, she has been working on creating a new time unit inspired by long-term missions in Space.

In May 2023 she became an analogue astronaut and her work has gained coverage in an American innovation magazine, TEDx in Bulgaria, Melissa Space conference in France and won an art prize from a European Space community. She is now sparking innovation in organizations while advocating for multidisciplinarity.

Alexander Wulff is a Danish serial entrepreneur and the author of two best-selling books in finance and economics. As CEO & Co-founder of the fast-growing Danish fintech company Scaleup Finance, he knows how to build a company from startup to scaleup. Prior to his time at Scaleup Finance, he co-founded Abeo, a construction tech company that scaled internationally.

Denise Johansson, the spirited co-founder and co-CEO of Enfuce, a Nordic payment service provider - the first in the world to put payment processing in the public cloud. She is a true a visionary leader who is igniting change within the fintech world. With over 15 years in the payments industry, she's pioneering sustainable financial solutions and championing open banking. Notably, she's a driving force behind women's presence in fintech, fostering collaboration and growth. With an unyielding spirit, she's set audacious goals, propelling Enfuce's expansion and technological innovation.

Under her guidance, the team transforms from colleagues to a united force, making the impossible possible. Denise's impact radiates through Enfuce's pioneering shift to cloud-based payment processing, setting the tone for a 'people first' ethos and propelling the fintech revolution. Her commitment to diversity, inclusivity, and forward-thinking innovation is reshaping the fintech landscape.

Liudas Kanapienis is a dynamic force in the vibrant Lithuanian Fintech world! As a seasoned serial entrepreneur, he spearheaded the groundbreaking evolution of Lithuania's inaugural Fintech venture, Paysera Ltd, transforming it into a thriving fintech powerhouse. With 15 years of experience in the field, Liudas has steered numerous financial enterprises to success. He is currently the co-founder and CEO of Ondato, a venture dedicated to revolutionizing compliance in the financial sector.

With a keen focus on streamlining KYC and AML processes, he empowers financial institutions to reclaim valuable resources and time.

Recognised as the NFT OG, and a pioneer in the fields of Blockchain, Crypto Currencies and Augmented Reality, Morten Rongaard's reputation is forged in the fiery realms of FinTech innovation. He has earned a seat as board member of the Nordic Blockchain Association. Morten has the rare skill of being able to combine creative thinking with financial finesse, and he is the mastermind behind Reality+, the hugely successful sustainability platform.

What sets this Danish Viking apart is his knowledge and experience to help leading brands moving from web 2.0 into web 3.0 and becoming their brand guardian. Morten's expertise shines like a supernova and we couldn't be more pleased to welcome him to the 'yellow circle' for the second time!

Charlotte Roenje is a passionate economist who in 2019 founded Jamii.one — a tech company dedicated to advancing financial health and alleviating poverty. Her profound expertise remains instrumental in shaping the landscape of financial health and fintech, illuminating the path towards a more equitable and prosperous future for all.

Charlotte's unwavering commitment to combat poverty through the transformative force of financial inclusion is truly commendable!

Thuc Hoang is the ingenious mind behind Firi, and he has redefined the cryptocurrency landscape in the Nordics. In 2017, driven by a local market need, Thuc partnered with his co-founder and a brilliant ensemble of tech geniuses to establish Firi, a beacon of excellence in the crypto realm. The team passionately dedicated their free hours from 2018 to 2021 to sculpt Firi into what's now one of the fastest-growing cryptocurrency exchange platforms in the Nordics. As the Founder of Firi, his journey reflects a fusion of audacity and innovation.

Firi's name draws inspiration from the Norse term for "lighthouse", a fitting emblem for their commitment to illuminating the enigmatic world of cryptocurrencies. Guided by Thuc's ingenuity, Firi leads the way, making crypto accessible, secure, and understandable for all.

Tori Samples is a Senior Product Manager at the Stellar Development Foundation, where she focuses on humanitarian use cases and bulk disbursements. Prior to joining SDF, Tori was Co-Founder and CTO of Leaf Global Fintech, a blockchain-based digital wallet that provides cross-border financial services on both smartphones and non-smartphones. Tori built Leaf's system from the ground up in Rwanda. Initially designed for refugees and cross-border traders, Leaf operates across East Africa and was acquired by IDT Corporation (NYSE:IDT) in 2022. Tori's background prior to Leaf was in technology as a Data Architect. She has an MBA from Vanderbilt University and recently became a Certified Expert in Financial Inclusion Policy through the Alliance for Financial Inclusion and the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management.

Iyinoluwa Aboyeji is an investor and entrepreneur in the public interest. He is passionate about partnering with mission driven innovators and investors building an African future where prosperity and purpose is within everyone’s reach. He is currently the CEO and General Partner of The Funds for Africa’s Future an early-stage venture capital firm with a portfolio of over 100 companies collectively worth over $6 billion dollars.

Prior to founding the Fund, he was the founding CEO of Flutterwave, a billion-dollar global payments platform connecting African businesses and individuals to the global economy. Flutterwave is currently Africa’s most valuable startup processing payments of over $1billion dollars in payments every month and backed by global investors like Y Combinator, Greycroft, Mastercard, Visa and Tiger Global amongst others. He was also the co-founder of Andela, a billion-dollar business which matches Africa’s top engineering talent to global technology companies. Andela is also backed by top global investors like Spark Capital, Google Ventures, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and Softbank amongst others.

Mike Endale, a seasoned founder and engineering visionary with over two decades of experience, is dedicated to crafting products that make a genuine difference. As the co-founder and CEO of Moxit, he spearheaded the creation of a groundbreaking technology designed for the U.S. childcare industry. Moxit was later acquired by a venture-backed startup supported by prominent names such as a16z and Goldman Sachs in the heart of Silicon Valley.

In his current role as Principal at BLEN Corp, Mike leads a digital agency that collaborates with top public agencies, non-profits, and enterprises to develop captivating digital solutions.

Assel Zhanassova was Vice Minister of Trade and Integration and was responsible for digitalisation of trade, development of payment systems and digital banking. Assel Zhanassova has more than 10 years of experience in implementation of local and international IT projects. She is one of the top 30 Women in FinTech Powerlist 2019 by Innovate Finance In 2010, she obtained a bachelor's degree in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge under the Bolashak International Presidential Scholarship. In 2014, she got her Master's degree in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge.

Prior to the appointment as Vice Minister of Trade and Integration from 2017 to 2020 she was AIFC Chief Digital Officer In 2016-2017, she was CEO of Zerde National Holding JSC. In 2014-2016, she was Deputy Director of the Digital Technologies Department of the National Bank of Kazakhstan. In 2010-2014, Assel Zhanassova was Head of IT Security at the Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation PLC in London. She was responsible for implementing large strategic projects in Kazakhstan, Africa, Europe.

A student of Chinese philosophy who loves customer-centric and transformative technologies. Trained in management consulting and private equity in China and across Africa before starting his own business supporting the growth of informal retailers. Sandile Dlamini is now building his second business with a mission to ensure employees access their earned wages any time before payday. This will empower them to have the liquidity to cover expenses and emergencies and prevent them from predatory credit lenders.

Parul is a co-founder and director of pinBox. She has extensive experience in conceptualizing and implementing innovative financial literacy models and strategies, as well as technology-led outreach platforms for micro-pension and micro-insurance inclusion in developing countries. Parul developed and implemented ""gift-a-pension"", the first P2P eCommerce platform globally for pension and insurance inclusion of home help (nanny, drivers, guards, cooks) and blue-collar workers in garment export units.

At pinBox, Parul has worked in Rwanda, India, Uganda, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea and Kenya on designing a replicable and inclusive model and for contributory microPension programs. She was also part of World Bank, United Nations Development Program and FSD teams on advising pension regulators and finance ministries in developing field-tested strategies for expanding voluntary pension coverage. Parul has ~10 years of experience as a journalist at BBC, CNBC and NDTV.

Bente joined mTek in 2019 with the mission to break the 3% barrier of insurance penetration through digital transformation. Her innovation has revolutionized customer experience and eliminate the laborious insurance paperwork through an elaborate know your customer framework. She has been instrumental in the ongoing transformation of the insurance through transparent and integrated processes, resulting to over 200,000 Kenyans. Prior to founding mTek, Bente build her reputation as a talented project manager, which saw her start the Extreme Clean Carwash franchise in partnership with Vivo Energy.

Eche is the co-founder of Afropolitan, a network that connects the best of Africa and the diaspora across art, finance, tech, and media. Afropolitan’s mission is to become the first ever internet country, a concept known as the network state. With over 10 years of experience building communities within the African Diaspora, Eche has a passion for fostering connections and driving progress within the continent. Prior to Afropolitan, Eche was an executive at Flutterwave Inc., a payment technology company that helps banks and businesses provide secure payment experiences for customers in Africa and around the world. With his expertise and vision, Eche is leading the charge to elevate and support the voices and talents of the Afropolitan network.

Olayinka David-West is a Professor of Information Systems with professional experience in the IT and financial services industry and a passionate advocate for digital transformation and inclusive finance. Her research and practice engagements involve policy and strategic management interventions towards digitally transformed businesses and society.

Professor David-West is actively engaged in the implementation and effective use of IT in business organisations and governments; focusing on organisational design and business transformation challenges. In addition, she focuses on digital policy formulation. While her goal remains to optimise the effective use of ICTs, her experiences span multiple domains including, but not limited to software selection practices, change management, strategic planning, IT Governance, and IT competency assessment across various industry sectors. With contextual knowledge in emerging markets, she has developed approaches to plan, design, implement, manage, measure, and sustain changes in business processes and work practices as a result of IT systems deployments. In government, this practical knowledge has been employed in the analysis and development policies, especially in local content, broadband and financial inclusion.

Professor David-West is a thought leader and active participant in the Fintech (IT, financial services and regulation) and financial inclusion ecosystems. With the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), she leads the Sustainable and Inclusive Digital Financial Services (SIDFS) initiative, a research and advocacy programme dedicated to enhancing financial inclusion in Nigeria. With her technical knowledge and communication skills, she frequently facilitates active discussions in the capacity of technical Master of Ceremony (MC), panel discussion moderator and interlocutor. She has led consulting engagements for organisations including the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), the World Bank Group (WBG) and Microsoft Nigeria. She is the author of several academic papers, technical reports and case studies.

Professor David-West advocates engendering male-dominated industries and mentors young women in STEM. She has featured on the Tech Women of Lagos exhibition, listed among the Leading Women in Nigeria’s Financial Technology Industry, and profiled in FintechTimes as a leading African financial inclusion expert.

Matteo Rizzi is an unconventional entrepreneur with two decades of experience in Financial Services, constantly referred amongst the top executives in the industry. He spent 13 years at SWIFT - where he co-founded Innotribe, the innovation arm of the cooperative, launching the first global startup challenge. Since 2013, he has a FinTech Investor and/or Venture Partner role with global VCs and CVCs (20+ deals, 5 exits). In 2015, he co-founded FinTechStage (now FTSGroup.eu) - a platform for Investors and Innovators to boost FinTech innovation globally. In 2019, Matteo founded Timepledge.org a global initiative to foster financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. The same year he launched Breaking Banks Europe (as the Executive Producer). He is the author of ""The FinTech Revolution"" and ""Talents & Rebels"" and is fluent in 5 languages.

Esigie Aguele is the Co-Founder and CEO of VerifyMe Nigeria. His remarkable journey and unwavering dedication to reshaping the landscape of identity verification and financial inclusion make him a true trailblazer in the field. With over 23 years of expertise in Enterprise Architecture and Business Transformation, Esigie excels in FinTech, Telecoms, and US Federal Government sectors.

Jacqueline Brondberg Aby is a Danish/Ivorian entrepreneur, who moved to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in 2018 to develop a Money Transfer service she had worked for in London since 2013. Taking ATLMoney Transfer from 3 payout partners in Africa, to expand their payout network to over 700 locations in West Africa, with a year on year increase in volume of over 50%. Prior to this Jacqueline founded the first babysitting on-demand service in London, with a live booking and payment system. She excited Day&Night Sitters to pursue the opportunity to eventually move to Africa.

The MAGMA adventure begins in May 2021. Identifying a need and opportunity to be part of the rapidly growing fintech/remittance industry in Africa and eager to bring her knowledge acquired around the world, accumulating 15+ years working and living abroad, including missions in Dominica, London and France to the service of Ivorians and Africa. MagmaTech was founded to streamline the support and payout services for the benefit of money transfer operators and partners operating in the field of digital money transfer and payments. Magma focuses on West and Central Africa, as a service to bring financial inclusion to the proximity of the users.

Stella N. Lugalambi is co-founder of Hamwe East Africa Ltd and the company’s director since 2013. In this role, she has steered Hamwe from a start-up to an award-winning Ag-Fintech enterprise. Under her stewardship, the company has been recognized for its agritech innovations by the National ICT Initiatives Support Programme (NIISP) in Uganda. It has also won the Coffee Value Chain Traceability challenge by UNCDF and been among the top 12 winners of the Disruptive Agricultural Technology (DAT) challenge by the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) and the World Bank. Stella has worked with mobile value-added services (VAS) since 2007 with some of the leading VAS providers and in partnerships with most of the major telecom companies in the region.

Awarded as one of the Top 100 Impactful Change-makers in Africa, Oswald Anonadaga is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of FloodGates Limited and Trustur, Inc. He also serves as Chief Technology Officer of WingiPay, Executive Director of the Ubuntu Development Network, and as the International Director of Membership for the Federation of African Law Students, where he manages a network of over 33,000 law students and young lawyers across 37 countries. As an Entrepreneur, Oswald has received the award for Top Democracy-affirming Startup in Africa and Top 5 Worldwide by the US State Department, Microsoft, and IE University for which he was invited to the White House. With a mission to contribute to the integration and advancement of Africa, Oswald also serves as a leader and speaker in technological advancement, youth empowerment, and Pan-African integration. He has spoken on these topics at events such as the African Union Office of the Youth Envoy Youth Envoy Democracy Event, 3rd African Peer Review Mechanism Youth Symposium, Most Respected CEOs Event, Ghana International Trade and Finance Conference, The Money Summit, the Women Lead Forum and many more.

CEO/Co-founder of Fingo Africa, YC S21 favourite company.

PPE University of Warwick

Raised 4 million dollar seed round

Rich Teo co-founded Paxos in 2012 and currently serves as CEO Asia of Paxos. Paxos is an institutionally focused crypto services provider that counts PayPal, Bank of America, Mastercard and Binance as clients. Prior to Paxos, he served as a Principal at Cedar Hill Capital Partners, overseeing the firm’s investments across the capital structure of various financial services institutions. Rich has more than a decade of experience in analyzing and investing in financial technology, market structure, and clearing corporations. He was also a Financial Analyst at Citi where he worked on mergers and acquisitions involving exchanges, trading technology, banks and brokers. Rich received a BBA from the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business.

Tale Alimi is currently the Co-founder& CEO of Owoafara, a technology for inclusion Company building a digital banking market place to provide financial services for the underbanked in emerging markets. She is an entrepreneurial thought leader who is passionate about Economic freedom for the underserved, Economic development in Africa, Unlocking opportunities that would empower people and using technology to solve impact problems. She is the winner of the Women in Africa, Fintech revelation award and Owoafara was a regional winner of the Global startup awards 2021.

The Company has been featured on major technology publications like Disrupt Africa and Tech cabal and on main stream media like Forbes and Business Insider. Her current focus is finding non-traditional technology driven solutions to expansion funding for MSME's in Africa so that they can successfully scale their business.

Philip is the Co-founder and director of Global operations at AC Group Ltd, a company providing smart transport solutions. Within 9 years of operations, AC Group has been able to digitise public transport payments, provide Wi-Fi on all public buses, and provided visibility for bus operators in Kigali to recover more than 45% of their revenues. AC Group has created more security, efficiency, and convenience for the commuter, transforming public transport.

Being at the forefront of innovation, AC Group today has over 1.8 Million clients in Rwanda. Other clients & partners include; The World Economic Forum, African Union, and Smart Africa. Phillip's areas of expertise include aligning with disruption, discovering jobs to be done, organising for innovation, maintaining a disruptive scope, managing the strategy development process, product development and management, business development, and smart public transport solutions management.

He specializes in design thinking, implementation, and smart transport solutions in Africa. From his previous roles as a consultant, Philip has a vast knowledge of the public transport ecosystem which includes, logistics management, route network planning, and operations management of public transport. Currently, Philip is working on creating more value for Tap&Go cardholders and introducing an ecosystem for EV buses in Rwanda. Philip has an academic background in Innovative disruption and has undertaken the Harvard Business school program on disruptive strategy.

Jil-Alexandre N'DIA is the CEO and co-founder of Weblogy, a pioneer and leader in digital marketing and community information systems in Francophone Africa. In 25 years of existence, Daniel AHOUASSA, the co-founder, and Jil-Alexandre N'DIA have strategically led the startup's growth. Present on 4 continents, with Abidjan.net and its network of WAEMU country sites, AfriqueFemme.com, and JobAfrique.com, they have attracted over six million unique daily visitors since 2012. In 2016, Weblogy innovated with electronic payment systems in Sub-Saharan Africa by launching its first Abidjan.net Prepaid Visa Card. This new product allowed the company to position itself as the first prepaid card program manager Fintech in Francophone West Africa in September 2020. Weblogy signed a strategic partnership with Visa and thus proposed a state-of-the-art mobile super app called Visa APaym. This allows the dematerialization of all Visa cards and thus facilitates contactless payment. This application, the first in UEMOA, has been awarded the PCI-DSS Level 1 certification for the third consecutive year since September 10, 2020. The development of this application, its value-added services, and the volume of reloading and transactions of its prepaid Visa cards enabled it to obtain the status of the best Fintech of the year 2021 and the status of Best innovation Technology Finetch in 2023 in Francophone Africa by the region's largest processor, GTP and Visa. It then innovated with the virtual Visa card, the Visa business card, and the Visa platinum card, the first in francophone Africa. In January 2021, Weblogy launched APaym Pro, its acquisition platform that allows all businesses or simple entrepreneurs to get paid easily by all means of payment existing on the market such as mobile Money, Visa, Mastercard, and Visa QR code.

Since November 2018, Weblogy is also the Program Manager for the VTC service application Yango, which currently holds a fleet of more than 10,000 vehicles. This proximity to taxi drivers solves the problem of banking for taxi drivers in Côte d'Ivoire. Jil-Alexandre N'DIA is the winner of the Young Entrepreneurship Excellence Award from the President of the Republic in 2013 and 2nd in the Excellence Award for Communication Development in 2019. He is: Officer of the Order of Merit of Posts and Telecommunications, Officer in the Ivorian Merit Order Officer of the National Order of Côte d'Ivoire. Jil-Alexandre N'DIA holds a degree in Information Systems Management from Indiana University, Kelly School of Business in the United States and was admitted in 2020 to the Stanford Seed transformation program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. President of the NGO "J’aime Jacqueville" for financial inclusion and Vice-President of the Kaydan Foundation for the promotion of entrepreneurship, the co-founder of Weblogy is socially engaged. In January 2022, a book written by Venance KONAN and Faustin EHOUMAN, prefaced by Tidjane THIAM, titled "Abidjan.net, A Story of the Future" was released in bookstores and became a bestseller just on pre-order.

Victor Mapunga is Zimbabwe's leading technology serial entrepreneur having built award winning solutions in Blockchain, Crypto, FinTech & E-commerce. He is the Founder & CEO of FlexID, a blockchain powered digital identity wallet which aims to unlock access to financial, insurance, healthcare & government services to over 400 Million Africans. He's the first Zimbabwean entrepreneur to be inaugurated into the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers in Davos Switzerland, as one of 100 global tech companies in innovation. He is a previous speaker at the Global Technology Governance Retreat in Silicon Valley California, Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Africa Innovate Summit in Boston, Consensus in Austin, Texas, amongst others in Singapore & Italy.

Victor has received training in entrepreneurship & technology from Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology & King’s College, London respectively. Mr Mapunga currently operates his technology group from Harare, Singapore, & South Africa.

Charlotte is an economist with a deep commitment to poverty reduction at scale. During her studies, Charlotte focused on and worked with Microfinance and East Africa, which led her to join PwC in 2014, where she focused on sustainable strategies and market entry. In 2019, Charlotte founded Jamii.one, a technology-driven company dedicated to building financial health and reducing poverty. As CEO and principal shareholder, she also established the Jamii.one Foundation, dedicated to ending poverty through financial inclusion. Charlotte's influence extends beyond Jamii.one. She chairs the board of TechVelopment Denmark, supporting Nordic companies in leveraging technology for business-driven development in emerging markets.

Additionally, she is a three-time elected business representative on the board of Copenhagen Fintech. Charlotte's exceptional contributions to fintech earned her a place in the 'Women in Fintech Powerlist' as a 'Standout 45' in 2021 and recognition as one of the "25 Female Founders You Should Know" by the Danish Chamber of Commerce in 2023. Her dedication and expertise continue to inspire in the realm of financial health and fintech.

José Samo Gudo is the Founder and CEO of Tablu Tecnologias, a company focused on the development of digital solutions for emerging markets. Responsible for the development ROSCAS the largest platform used to digitize savings groups in Mozambique with more than 130,000 active members, as well as MoDI an award-winning open banking solution. He is also a founding member of Fintech.MZ (Association of FinTech’s of Mozambique) and serves as Vice-President of Studies, Projects, Regulation, and Financing.

José led the implementation of the digital onboarding process for SIM registration pioneered by Vodacom Mozambique's while leading its Subscriber Provisioning and Administration department, where he managed the operations that allowed for more that 30,000 daily subscribers to be onboarded. He also led the Business Development and Products/Services teams for Vodafone M-Pesa Mozambique, where led the first interoperability project between a Bank and a Mobile Wallet in the country.

José holds a degree in Computer Science and IT Engineering from the Higher Institute of Science and Technology of Mozambique (ISCTEM), as well as a Master degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from the French University HEC Paris. He also holds many certificates from the Digital Frontiers Institute such as markets marketing in emerging markets, leading digital money markets, mobile money operations, digital identity, digital money, cybersecurity, and others.

Nadeem Shaikh is a globally recognized voice in the Digital Financial Services industry. Having lived and worked globally, built, scaled, and invested in a range of businesses, he has unique insight as an entrepreneur, innovator, venture capitalist, and philanthropist. Over the past decade, he has been at the heart of the "Fintech" revolution.

Recognizing that the fundamental needs of customers were changing and no longer subject to predefined industry silos, Nadeem began exploring the "Financial Wellness" concept and raised one of the first VC funds dedicated to this space. On the same vision, Nadeem co-founded Neem Exponential, an open banking platform to provide Financial Wellness to millions of underbanked people and businesses, launched in Pakistan.

Nadeem is also a former Head of Global Financial Services at Veon (and Jazz), with a deep understanding of Financial Services overall and within Pakistan. He co-founded and served as a CEO at the Anthemis Group, a pioneer venture capital firm in FinTech with over 500 million USD assets under management. Through Anthemis Group, Nadeem has invested in over 80 companies in the US and Europe. Previously, Nadeem served as a President at First Data International, with deep expertise in payments in developed and emerging markets. Nadeem is a Board Member at several impact-driven businesses and charities globally including Access Afya, Prospero World, and CARE Pakistan.

He is also the Chairman of The Future Farm, a global organisation dedicated to bringing emotional resilience, vulnerability, and mental health into the world of entrepreneurs.

Nadeem recalibrates his energy whilst painting, hiking, and exploring new parts of the world, through vibrant conversations and spending focused time with his loved ones.

Sofie is CEO of hiveonline, the sustainable digital finance solution connecting the African informal economy. Prior to founding hiveonline, Sofie built multiple core banking and payments systems for 8 international banks in 60 countries, and led whole business transformations and new bank builds. She has led teams up to 2,000 people and budgets of over $1bn. She holds an MSc in informatics, chairs the Edinburgh Futures Institute's FI and Fintech Industry Advisory Board, is author of Fintech Revolution: Universal Inclusion in the New Financial Ecosystem and advises the UN, Central Banks, NGOS and others on blockchain for impact and sustainability, DLT policy and economic impacts of emerging technology.

Shinichi Takatori convincingly backs his bold claim having successfully raised an eye-popping $120Mn in venture funding so far – all with no prior experience. As Founder and CEO of Kyash, Shinichi calls inexperience his superpower.

In his talk, Shinichi shares authentic insights and inspiration from his incredible journey as a first-time entrepreneur.

Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Code Chrysalis in Japan, Yan Fan is aiming to make Japan a global software leader. In 2016, she co-founded and served as CTO of a coding bootcamp in Jordan helping train and place refugees in engineering careers.

In her talk, Yan introduces the concept of ‘context switching’ for scaling founders, of which she herself is one.

Genri Goto built Japan’s largest online drugstore kenko.com, and led it to a successful IPO. He even sued the government and won! And he is at it again. This time with his multilingual translation service company, Kotozna.

In his talk, Genri boldly states that Japan has been trapped in a state of stagnation over the last 3 years, and that he has decided to disrupt this stillness, and act as a catalyst for change. He not only has the genes but also the guts to achieve that change!

Tim Romero is Head of Google for Startups Japan, and the Founder of Disrupting Japan Podcast. He is deeply involved in Japan’s community as an investor, founder, author, and educator. In his talk, Tim delivers a bold, mesmerising, and authentic untold story of why he decided to call off his start-up all at the 9th hour.

Chiaki Hayashi, co-founder of Loftwork. In her talk, Chiaki speaks from her heart as she boldly shares her own tough recovery from a stroke a few years ago. She believes the future for Japan is rural, and she has been working with woodworkers there to use new technologies such as 3D printing. A café in Shibuya is now the best manifestation of that work. She warmly invites us all to Cafe Espresso Machiawase!

Satoko Ohtsuki is the CEO and Co-founder of Spider Labs, which provides an AI-driven fraud detection tool. In her talk, Satoko says that Japan has not seen a major global success start-up in the last 20 years. She touches upon a very critical aspect which may be unique to Japan.

Jeff Wentworth co-founded Tokyo-based blockchain software company, Curvegrid, in 2017. With their blockchain middleware, building on blockchain becomes simple and affordable. In his talk, Jeff shares his experience of surviving a black swan event that taught him invaluable lessons about resilience, transparency, adaptability, and the power of a strong network.

Tia Haygood is the owner and Principal photographer at TOPTIA Photography. In her talk, Tia shares how we should convert our insecurities into confidence. In this inspiring and heart-warming talk, Tia takes us on a journey on how to create your own cover story. Can a photo make an audience feel that you are very good at your job? Tia knows it can.

Jonathan Hope created Keychain with a vision that every individual, corporate, or government, can manage digital trust independent of big technology. In his talk, Jonathan recalls how he was laughed at for years. People would ask him what ‘digital trust’ even means.

Nalin Advani is the President of TiE Japan. A hands-on investor with 2 IPOs from 20 Seed/Series A investments so far. Wow, impressive!

Naotaka Nishiyama is the Founder of Tech Japan, and strongly believes in the importance of achieving both economic growth and a society that promotes emotional well-being. His personal mission is to provide opportunities for individuals to make them shine. Today, Nishiyama is dedicated to providing opportunities for individuals to excel in both non-monetary and business fields through his work at Tech Japan.

Jim Weisser is a builder. He founded his first company back in 2000. His second was acquired by Cisco. Jim joined Cisco as part of the acquisition. But he returned to his entrepreneurial roots in 2019 starting SignTime. He for sure knows a thing or two about building successful and effective start-up teams.

Fumiko Inada is the Co-founder & CEO of ENTREBITION by Bee Informatica, who is spearheading the launch of an innovative online platform designed to empower entrepreneurs by providing a comprehensive network for finance and knowledge sharing.

Dr. Masahiro Fukuhara is the CEO and Founder of Institution for a Global Society Corporation. In his talk, Masahiro talks about how he pushes the boundaries of innovation, striving to create a brighter, more equitable world.

Jun Yamadera, founder of Eyes, JAPAN co. ltd., established the company in 1995, making it the first IT startup from the University of Aizu, Fukushima.

Over the past 20 years, he has spearheaded numerous cutting-edge projects, including exporting Fukushima rice through the web in 1995 and creating the world's first virtual pottery system.

Mack is the world's youngest person ever to circumnavigate the globe solo in a microlight aircraft at age 17 years, and two-times Guinness World Record holder.

In this talk, Mack shares moments from his incredible 54,000-km journey flying to over 30 countries across 4 continents in 142 days. Showcasing the best of human endurance, Mack tells us what determination and raw courage is about!

Dr. Julian Hosp is the CEO and Co-Founder of Cake DeFi. Cake DeFi is a fully transparent, highly innovative fintech platform dedicated to providing easy access to decentralised financial services and applications by enabling users to generate returns from their crypto and digital assets. Julian is widely regarded as a leading influencer in the crypto space, with over one million followers across all his channels globally. His ideas, knowledge and influence have been conveyed in numerous articles, and through keynote engagements at leading industry conferences. Julian was a professional athlete and a medical doctor previously. Today, he lives in Singapore with his wife and three sons.

In this talk, Julian tells us about his near-death experience that gave him extreme fire, extreme motivation to build a billion-dollar business - and the power of having a “no” list which ultimately determines your focus.

Vineet K. Singh is a seasoned entrepreneur with 25+ years of work experience in sectors across Payments, PropTech, E-commerce & Classifieds. He was part of the Management Team of Info Edge as a CBO for 15 years. He built and scaled Naukri, 99acres & Mobikwik from scratch to be market leaders. Vineet’s current endeavour, Castler, is building India's First Digital Escrow Banking product for both domestic and cross-border transactions. They have become market leaders in a short span of 18 months.

From building and scaling India’s first job site to amazing heights, to launching his own e-commerce company only to have to shut it down within 20 months - Vineet has experienced some high highs and low lows - all with amazing grit and perseverance.

You could say that Alice Chen took a scenic route to becoming a Fintech entrepreneur, after practising law in multiple jurisdictions around the world with firms such as Skadden Arps and DLA Piper, she co-founded InvestaX, a Singapore-licensed investment and trading platform for digital securities and security tokens in 2015, with a focus on providing a turn-key tokenization and security token trading platform to b2b clients. She continues to draw on her legal experience as the firm's general counsel as well as helping the community stay abreast of the latest in the industry as Chair of the Singapore Fintech Association Digital Financing Subcommittee, and through teaching as a guest lecturer on the topic of Digital Assets and Blockchain at Singapore Management University.

In this talk, Alice opens up about her biggest fears as an entrepreneur and how she defused them with drive and purpose.

With over three decades of diversified global experience in the financial services, Suresh is a practitioner in the space of financial inclusion. He has worked extensively towards shaping the digital and mobile payments space in India by leveraging fintech and digital-led innovations. As the founder CEO & MD of India Post Payments Bank, he established the largest inter-operable banking infrastructure by reimagining the role of the ubiquitous Postman to become a catalyst for financial transformation. Suresh is currently the MD & CEO of Protean eGov Technologies Ltd., an iconic organisation that has been a significant contributor to India’s population scale e-governance stack. Protean is now poised to power the next era of digital transformation through creation of open ecosystems across diverse sectors.

In this talk, Suresh shares his deepest learnings from when he led the transformation of one of the largest legacy public sector organisations in India.

Victor is a seasoned venture builder, tech entrepreneur, and corporate innovation leader with over 20 years of experience in managing product teams, digital innovation, and business building initiatives spanning across multiple industries and continents. During his career he has brought over 20 products from idea to commercialization, working closely with multi-cultural and cross-functional teams. A trained expert in Decision Sciences and Agile Product Management, Victor is a sought-after advisor, mentor and board member.

In this talk, Victor tells us about the interplay between chance and choice - how choices are something you control and make consciously, guided by your objectives. While chance is everything else - the unknown, the uncontrollable, and the risk. He made them both work in his favour!

Konstantin Richter is the CEO and Founder of Blockdaemon, the leading institutional-grade blockchain infrastructure building a full suite of staking, node, API and custodial products connecting institutions and developers to leading networks. His curiosity about new digital monetization and payment processes led him to a stint at Nokia before he became an entrepreneur successfully building out SaaS/marketplace platforms (Audiotube, Lookbooks, Wiredrive), with his last successful exit in 2017. He has been active in the blockchain ecosystem as an advisor and contributor since 2015, with entities like Gem, Po.et, and MadHive, before creating Blockdaemon towards the end of 2017.

In this talk, Konstantin talks about Web3 start-ups and shares insight into Silicon Valley. He shares with us, first-hand, what it truly takes to build a successful multi-billion dollar global business.

Arvin is the co-founder of hoolah, Southeast Asia’s first Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) payment provider that empowers consumers to afford the things they want through flexible payment options while helping merchants grow their payment capabilities. With combined experiences in both the corporate and startup world, he currently leads ShopBack’s Partnerships team in scaling its Financial Services offerings while also leading the BNPL subcommittee for the Fintech Association of Malaysia.

In this talk, Arvin tells us about 2 lessons that made his transition easier - eliminating self doubt and making lifestyle changes.

FinTech Entrepreneur, Investor and Product Builder with 25 years in leadership roles in Technology, Banking & Investment Management Industry across Asia and the UK. Founder of Bento, SaaS Wealth Tech (acquired by Grab).

In this talk, Chandrima shares a part that founders often draw a veil over - the detrimental impact of their single-mindedness towards their venture on their families, friends and particularly on their children. Now, Chandrima is working hard on her personal reclamation project.

Florian is a seasoned finance professional with a 25-year career in finance spanning across Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong. He has directly managed U-Reg since the company was incorporated. In his previous roles as regional head of sales Florian managed teams across Asia and has led large infrastructure projects as either a sponsor or as a senior stakeholder. He is an expert in regulatory processes.

In this talk, Florian shares how he came to change his perception of age and experience when building a high-performance team in a startup.

Gavin is the CEO and co-founder of Brick, the leading Open Finance API provider in Southeast Asia. Gavin likes to think of himself as a modern data and payments plumber. He is a fintech enthusiast deeply involved in fintech products, operations and regulatory strategy. A lawyer by training, Gavin helped scale high growth fintechs across SEA, including Aspire (YC W18) - the 1st SME Neobank for SEA.

In this talk, Gavin shares that facing big things with zero clue may sometimes leave us tense, but somehow, not knowing the answers could give us 3 superpowers that contribute to our success.

Katrina Cokeng is the CEO & Co-Founder of Xen Capital, a B2B2C alternative investment platform offering wealth advisors and asset managers an easier way to access capital at scale. Previously, Katrina co-founded and scaled Oriente, a leading digital finance platform in Southeast Asia. She brings over 20 years of global experience in strategy, investment banking and private equity from McKinsey & Co, Merrill Lynch and Pomona Capital. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

In this talk, Katrina shares her journey from corporate to start-up founder, and how she is still overcoming her imposter syndrome! Her talk transcends all age groups and is simply timeless.

Mohit is a man of many talents. From being a Corporate Business leader & Banker for more than 2 decades,to being an Entrepreneur marrying off his Love for endurance sports & fitness with an E Commerce Health & Wellness company. Post an unsuccessful culmination, he pivoted to Ed-tech & turned around the fortunes of an ailing K 12 company. He is a 3 times Full Ironman finisher, besides a Ted X speaker and turned author during COVID times, coming out with 2 best selling books, one of which is the first in the Trilogy of Leadership & its resonance with Endurance sports. He currently is a Co Founder in an Ed-techm besides being a mentor to 3 Fin-tech Organisations.

In this talk, Mohit compares successfully running a marathon to running a startup. Both require diligence, commitment, work ethic, and strategy. And most importantly, they require patience, and pacing.

Vipul has a taste for filter coffee, a wildlife junkie, ask him to sing a song next time you meet him, and he will not hesitate. Co-founder at Kaleidofin and an in-house customer network specialist. For the day job, Vipul is responsible for customer discovery, acquisition and distribution design spread across India covering 12 million platform users and 1.7 million + customers across Kaleidofin products – Ki cash, Ki credit and Ki score. In other times, the go-to man for solving problems and carving out innovative financial solutions! Keywords that relate to Vipul: Customer acquisition strategy, Customer behaviour, Financial solutions for informal customers, Nat-Cat risk, Credit, Savings, Insurance.

In this talk, Vipul shares that embracing ambiguity is the only way to deal with ambiguity… and perhaps even conquer it. He says that it is in temporary times that one learns permanent lessons.

Wei Shi Khai is the General Partner and Chief Operations Officer at LongHash Ventures. In 2021, Shi Khai was awarded Forbes 30 Under 30. He was previously a management consultant at McKinsey, with a focus on digital transformation and analytics across the financial and telecommunications sector in Southeast Asia. Shi Khai holds a Bachelor of Science from Imperial College London.

In this talk, Shi Khai talks about Web3 and the incredible potential it holds for us to create a future of freedom and possibility. And about creating a world we envision that doesn't exist yet.

Florian is a seasoned finance professional with a 25-year career in finance spanning across Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong. He has directly managed U-Reg since the company was incorporated. In his previous roles as regional head of sales Florian managed teams across Asia and has led large infrastructure projects as either a sponsor or as a senior stakeholder. He is an expert in regulatory processes.

In this talk, Florian shares how he came to change his perception of age and experience when building a high-performance team in a startup.

Ms Poh was appointed Managing Director of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) on 4 October 2021. She was previously Deputy Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office Strategy Group, which leads and organises the Public Service to develop and implement the strategic priorities of the Government. She also oversaw the National Population and Talent Division and the Centre for Strategic Futures. Ms Poh was the founding Chief Executive of the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech), and was previously the Managing Director of the Infocommunications Development Authority (IDA). She has also held key positions in the Ministry of Manpower, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Defence. Ms Poh is an alumnus of Oxford, Cambridge, INSEAD (MBA) and Stanford. She has three teenagers and more patience than before she had them.

In this talk, Jacqueline shares why Singapore is a choice location for founders to base themselves at, whether it is to grow their startup to achieve greater impact for a better future, or to build a fulfilling life with their families in one of the world’s most liveable cities.

Being a disruptive digital explorer, Viktor is the CEO and co-founder of WOGI, the fastest-growing incentive payments provider across South East Asia. Viktor is also a co-founder of a Frankfurt-listed, Allterco, an award-winning company specialising in IoT smart home automation devices.

In this talk, Viktordigs deep into why co-founder conflicts happen in the first place, and how founders, no matter how different from each other, have the same things in common.

Sonam is an Indian engineer, innovator and education reformist. He is the founding-director of the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), which was founded in 1988 by a group of students who had been in his own words, the 'victims' of an alien education system foisted on Ladakh. He is also known for designing the SECMOL campus that runs on solar energy and uses no fossil fuels for cooking, lighting or heating.

In this talk, Sonam talks about the merits of growing up in a natural environment and how he did not have to go to any schools till 9 years of age. And while many people thought that was perhaps an unfortunate thing for a child, Sonam later learned that he was actually very lucky to not have schools.

Recognised as a NFT OG and a pioneer in the fields of Blockchain, Crypto Currencies and Augmented Reality. Morten is a regular speaker around the world on those topics and board member of the Nordic Blockchain Association and holds several advisor positions. Morten has the rare skill of being able to combine creative thinking with financial acumen and the key driver behind Reality + hugely successful sustainability platform. This Danish Viking is known for sharing his knowledge and experience to help leading brands moving from web 2.0 into web 3.0 and becoming their brand guardian.

In this talk, Morten truly wears his heart on his sleeve and talks to us about the impossible dilemmas every founder faces…which require making some hard choices which often have consequences.

Ladi Delano is a British-born Nigerian entrepreneur and the co-Founder and co-CEO of Moove, a global mobility fintech democratising access to vehicle financing for mobility entrepreneurs. He has previously founded and exited several businesses in Africa and Asia, and holds a Master’s degree from Oxford University and an MPA from the London School of Economics.

In this talk, Ladi shares his lessons from his extraordinary entrepreneurial journey, and how he realised the importance of building a company that fosters shared value.

Life is a precious opportunity for unlimited progress through unending education” – this is the philosophy of Gitanjali, a multi-hyphenate, who believes in constantly reinventing herself through lifelong learning. A social entrepreneur turned educator, Gitanjali is currently heading the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL) as its Founding CEO. HIAL is an alternative Institute for mountain development that believes in a curriculum that is contextual, pedagogy that is experiential, approach that is trans-disciplinary and problem solving methodology that blends indigenous wisdom with modern technology. Gitanjali is also a ballerina, an Odissi dancer, a Black belt in Karate and a World Champion in the 2009 World Karate Championships in Pittsburg!

In this talk, Gitanjali tells us how one becomes a master of oneself. She says the first step is to have a vision larger than yourself. The second step is to then constantly live for this idea.

Mr. Aswin Phlaphongphanich is the Co-founder and CEO of DeeMoney - Thailand’s leading and fastest-growing fintech specializing in cross-border payments. Born in Thailand, in a Sikh family, Aswin is the epitome of a self-made person, who started his first business from the basement garage, in his apartment, at the age of 21. Coming from a prominent real-estate and hotelier family that saw its fortune collapse during the 1997 Tom Yum Kung crisis, during his formative years, Aswin’s goal was to ensure survival for his family and himself. An enigmatic and charismatic leader, Aswin’s grit and perseverance has been shaped largely by the experience of hitting rock bottom and the journey back up. His resilience has taken him through multiple successful ventures during this entrepreneurial journey.

In this talk, Aswin shares incredible untold stories of his flavorful founder's journey, and shares the 3 critical ingredients that took him from trying to just survive to heroic success.

A tech visionary and a serial entrepreneur, Anish is the Co-founder and CEO of the world’s fastest-growing digital banking enterprise, Open Financial Technologies. With over 17+ years of experience in the fintech industry, Anish launched OPEN - Asia’s first SME neobanking platform to solve the business banking challenges faced by startups, small businesses and freelancers. Then, he set up Zwitch, an embedded finance platform with no-code and low-code capabilities that allows both fintechs and non-fintechs to launch their own fintech verticals. Further, he started BANKINSTACK, a cloud-native fintech OS that empowers banks in their digital transformation journey.

In this talk, Anish talks about how an entrepreneur has to start somewhere without waiting for that perfect moment.

Amrish Rau is the CEO of Pine Labs. He leads the company's growth and expansion in Asia and beyond. He has over two decades of experience in the fintech space, having run his own startup and built large organisations. Prior to Pine Labs, Amrish co-founded Citrus Pay which was acquired by Naspers FinTech, PayU in 2016. Post the acquisition, he was made the CEO for PayU India and later took over as head of Investments for Naspers where he was responsible for increasing the company's footprint in the financial technology sector.

In this talk, Amrish shares what one needs to put in place before turning entrepreneur.

Amit is an entrepreneur now on his third successful venture – with a rewarding corporate career with leadership roles squeezed in as well! Amit believes in the power of democratisation and his two most recent ventures are Ecosystm - a next generation Technology Research & Advisory company, and Kampd – a platform for professional communities and content. He’s a firm believer in giving back, and is the Chair of TiE Singapore, and is also among the current Global Board of Trustees of TiE – the world’s largest entrepreneur and investor focused on fostering entrepreneurship. He sits on numerous boards and has also supported the New Zealand start-up ecosystem as an advisor to the New Zealand government.

In this talk, Amit tells us about the 6 mighty P’s of his entrepreneurial journey.

Diana Paredes is the CEO and Co-founder of Suade, a software platform that enables financial institutions to understand and deliver their regulatory requirements. Prior to founding Suade, Diana had a successful career in investment banking, covering all asset classes at Barclays and Merrill Lynch, across sales, trading & structuring. Whilst working in the industry, she saw an opportunity to innovate and launch her current Fintech/Regtech startup. She believes that a data-driven approach to regulation is the key to preventing the next financial crisis.

In this talk, Diana tells us her secret to becoming a successful founder, which is finding balance. She tells us about the realities of bootstrapping, and how she applied the Japanese concept of Ikigai (which means life’s purpose) to her entrepreneurial journey.

Gaurav Hinduja co-founded axio (formerly Capital Float) in 2013. Under his direction, the company has grown to become India’s leading digital finance company with over 7 million credit customers. As the Managing Director of axio, he continues to drive leadership in the Fintech space through numerous strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Amazon. Gaurav holds an MBA from Stanford University and graduated from Christ University in Bangalore with a distinction in commerce. Having completed the Ironman 70.3 in France and Dubai, Gaurav is deeply passionate about fitness and dedicates time to train rigorously for triathlons.

In this talk, Gaurav opens up about how he fought through some of the darkest and most difficult few months of his life after a business deal fell through. He turned his life and his business around - starting by taking on the Ironman Triathlon, aligning his business goals with his endurance goals.

Wealth manager turned entrepreneur and digitalisation evangelist, Keith Tan’s passion for good coffee and technology kicked off Crown Coffee’s meteoric journey in 2016. Through astute observations, Keith quickly recognised gaps in the labour, service, and quality market that could be enriched by adopting industry-disrupting technology. Leveraging on robotics, AI and data, Keith started Crown Digital and created Ella, one of the world's most successful robot barista, with a renewed focus to empower traditional businesses through automation, with a vision to be the largest coffee beverages operator powered by AI and robotic technology.

In this talk, Keith tells us about how his passion for good coffee and technology kicked off his adventurous entrepreneurial journey.

Eric Barbier is a serial entrepreneur who has built and scaled multiple payments companies globally. This includes TransferTo (now Thunes and DT One) and Mobile 365 (acquired by SAP). Today, he is the CEO and founder of TripleA, the first cryptocurrency payments gateway to be licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). TripleA empowers more than 15,000 businesses across 120+ countries to make and accept payments in digital currencies, building towards his vision of greater global financial inclusion. With over 17 years of experience in mobile and payments, Eric Barbier is also a board member of global companies such as AMEEX, STC pay and Sleek.

In this talk, Eric digs deep inside his wealth of entrepreneurial experiences through his journeys.

Deepti is the CEO & co-founder of Kodo, India's fastest-growing corporate card and spend-management platform for startups and scaled businesses. Kodo has raised ~$14M in equity capital from a group of investors led by YC Continuity and Brex. Deepti brings strong domain expertise in India's fintech and financial services ecosystem. Before launching Kodo, she headed Partnerships at MoneyTap (backed by Sequoia & NEA) where she played a key role in launching and scaling a consumer credit card and app-based credit line. Deepti began her career as an investment banker at SBI Caps (investment banking division of the largest bank in India – SBI) and Edelweiss (a publicly-listed financial services group in India) where she worked on M&A and PE fundraising transactions for financial service companies in India.

In this talk, Deepti talks about how she successfully navigated through the turbulent times of the last two pandemic years - with empathy. Her goal is to convert every moment of financial anxiety into delight for her customers as she believes the most successful companies are those that can practise empathy for all their stakeholders.

Jason Thompson is the Chief Executive Officer of Partior, the trusted global network for value exchange. He is responsible for steering Partior as it charts its growth strategy to disrupt the payments industry and for formulating strategies for the firm’s expansion and product offerings. With over 20 years of leadership experience in the financial services sector under his belt, Jason is known for shaping some of the region’s notable unicorns, Grab Financial Group and OVO. When he’s not in the office, Jason enjoys spending time with family and friends, travelling, keeping fit and improving his cooking skills.

As someone who runs boot-strapped joint ventures, Jason says that the unicorn is not a destination. What matters is the core business, the strategy, the industry position, and above all culture. In this talk, Jason tells us how to create that culture starting from a bold entrepreneurial vision.

Ang Xing Xian is the CEO and Co-Founder of CapBay, a leading Supply Chain Finance platform that helps businesses obtain smarter financing. Under his leadership, CapBay has provided more than USD 500 million in digital financing to businesses in Southeast Asia. Xing Xian has extensive experience in management consulting as a management consultant with Accenture Strategy, advising multinational companies on technology and analytics. He was also an in-house management consultant for Creador, a private equity firm. Xing Xian graduated from Oxford University with a Master’s in Computational Finance, following his Mathematics Bachelor's degree from Imperial College London.

In this talk, Xing Xian explains that given the outcomes entrepreneurs are aiming for are distant, measuring progress can be hard. He introduces the concept of elevated periods of growth in the journey of a startup, and periods where the company painfully grinds forward, and he explains how to measure progress for each and what happens in between them.

Derrick is the Chief Technology Officer and Co-founder of Accredify. He oversees the entire process of Accredify's new products and features from ideation, to development and release. He is responsible for the firm's technical roadmap, policy, operational processes, and the growth of Accredify's tech team. Derrick began his career in tech at the age of 12, founding a series of multiple entrepreneurial ventures focused on tech solutions, including developing an online marketplace for website templates, app development, and a platform to facilitate Initial Coin Offerings. Together with his Co-founders, Derrick was recognised in Forbes 30 Under 30 Class of 2022.

In this talk, Derrick speaks about the four principles that Dr. Richard Wiseman wrote about in his book ‘The Luck Factor’. Derrick reflects upon how luck played a pivotal role in his journey to where he is today.

Arvin is the co-founder of hoolah, Southeast Asia’s first Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) payment provider that empowers consumers to afford the things they want through flexible payment options while helping merchants grow their payment capabilities. With combined experiences in both the corporate and startup world, he currently leads ShopBack’s Partnerships team in scaling its Financial Services offerings while also leading the BNPL subcommittee for the Fintech Association of Malaysia.

In this talk, Arvin tells us about 2 lessons that made his transition easier - eliminating self doubt and making lifestyle changes.

Yunus is the co-founder and CTO of Almond FinTech. His work centres around promoting equitable access to technology across a breadth of fields. Prior to Almond, Yunus held leadership roles in early-stage ventures commercialising cutting-edge medical research, and devised low-tech approaches to poverty alleviation in rural Southeast Asia. He is the author of several patents and scientific papers across medtech, additive manufacturing and robotics. Yunus holds a MS in Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University and an MBA from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has recently been named among the 30 and Under Fintech Leaders in Singapore.

In this talk, Yunus tells us what he learned through the great writings of the Roman and Greek thinkers and philosophers, that may be relevant for entrepreneurs. For example, anticipating obstacles and thinking of them as part of the journey.

Joshua is one of SUNRATE's co-founder and is responsible for driving the sales and marketing strategy of the organisation. Prior to co-founding SUNRATE in 2016, Joshua has more than 16 years of experience in global financial and corporate services. As a co-founder, Joshua had to make countless unpopular decisions that he believed were right. While the majority of those decisions have proven to be right, Joshua hopes his experience and insights will help his fellow co-founders follow their heart (and mind) and never be peer-pressured nor “FOMO-ed” into making popular decisions.

In this talk, Joshua shares his approach to making such decisions that has helped him grow his business more successfully.

Nirav Choksi is the Co-founder and CEO of CredAble, India's largest working capital technology platform that enables more than USD 3BN in working capital and has witnessed 500% year-on-year growth. He co-founded CredAble with the aspiration of building an enterprise that empowers the business ecosystem with a seamless flow of credit. Today, CredAble caters to large, mid-sized, emerging corporates, MSMEs and Financial Institutions with its pioneering technological platforms. Nirav is a veteran of the Indian business ecosystem. Prior to CredAble, he had also co-founded and led Equentia Natural Resources Pvt. Ltd. a multi-commodity trading and structured finance company. A seasoned entrepreneur of more than 28 years and an Angel Investor himself, Nirav has incubated and scaled several businesses, raised debt and equity financing, and built multidisciplinary global teams in the areas of technology, private equity, and international commodities.

In this talk, Nirav tells us that startups often build products that clients don’t really need. But still we think what we’ve created is a ready gold mine. A lesson amongst others that he shares is not about where an entrepreneur should invest and how much, but when to stop investing when things don’t seem to be working out.

Edmund is a serial entrepreneur, founder of 3 start-ups, one of which grew to $20m valuation in 2 years. A military soldier turned technologist, he has contributed significantly to Singapore’s tech ecosystem, pioneering mainstays like the self-service SAM kiosks and financial and procurement networks behind the scenes. His experience culminates in Doxa Connex, the Collaborative Trade Platform that connects and unifies upstream and downstream procurement, payments and financing among banks, buyers, and suppliers.

In this talk, Edmund tells us that having co-founders is recommended because starting a company alone is very hard. You need at least one person to fight alongside you.

Pratik is the Co-Founder and COO at Nium, a leading fintech company that provides banks, payment providers, and businesses of any size with access to global payment services. As Co-Founder and COO at Nium, Pratik leads the Global Finance, Compliance, Operations & Customer Service teams. Pratik brings over 25 years of leadership experience into Nium, having worked for companies such as Arthur Andersen, Xerox, PepsiCo and Telstra before specialising in banking in the last 15 years. He was the Regional CFO for the Consumer Finance business at Citibank and then CFO & Head of Portfolio Management at SCB Singapore.

In this talk, Pratik tells us how taking tough calls, which may include doing something diametrically opposite of what you started with, can yield unexpected and better, even exceptional outcomes.

Dhruv Arora is the Founder and CEO of Syfe, Asia’s leading digital wealth management platform with a mission to empower people to build their wealth for a better future. Having pursued a career as a trader with a leading investment bank, Dhruv realised that he had a different calling. Having seen the impact of offering wealth management services to high net-worth individuals, Dhruv founded Syfe to offer the same access to wealth management services and financial literacy to the masses. Today, Syfe serves customers in 65 countries from Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia offices.

In this talk, Dhruv passionately explains three things that are common between free soloing, and starting a business… knowing your terrain, knowing about safety nets and why starting alone does not mean you have to do it alone.

Debbie has lived in Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Singapore over the past 20 years, and worked in 30 additional countries throughout Africa and Asia. Her focus for this entire period has been technology-enabled inclusive finance - mobile products and services, business and strategy consulting and management - building multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teams in a number of countries. She is now the CEO and co-founder of Lucy– a mobile banking and business-building services app built to help entrepreneurial women who are overlooked, underestimated, and underbanked become unstoppable.

In this talk, Debbie tells her amazing story of how she has learned what women in smaller and emerging countries need - education, access to finance, and a safe space to pull themselves out of poverty and into economic growth and prosperity.

Michele is the Co-Founder and CEO of StashAway, the largest digital wealth manager in SEA and MENA. Michele spent half of his career in and around financial services, as a consultant to large financial institutions at McKinsey & Co., and as a Private Equity investor. He then spent the second part of his career building consumer internet companies, as Managing Director at Rocket Internet in Italy, Pakistan and South East Asia, and then as Group CEO of ZALORA, where he was responsible for it growing 15x. Michele holds a BA from Bocconi University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

In this talk, Michele reminds us that you should not stop doing difficult things because you think you might not succeed.

David is the CEO of 11:FS and since his dream of being a sportsperson was crushed (along with the ligaments in his knee!) and he had to get a proper job, he has worked in pretty much every angle of the financial services industry never losing that competitive desire to drive forwards and win. Having pitched, established and run billion-pound transformations for some of the biggest FS companies on the planet the realisation that Digital Financials Services Is Only 1% Finished has spurred his desire to establish an organisation that can actually support the industry through its greatest challenge.

In this talk, David explains why attitude and effort are the two primary catalysts which when applied consistently end up powering real success.

Feng-Yuan is Vice-President of Business Development of Aicadium, Temasek’s AI centre of excellence. Feng-Yuan is a serial entrepreneur and intrapreneur, with a passion for applying data-driven methods and artificial intelligence both in the service of the public good and launching new ventures. He successfully co-founded and exited an early stage Sequoia-backed startup building technology to enable enterprises to build AI software responsibly. Before that he was responsible for launching Singapore government’s data science and artificial intelligence team from zero to one out of the Prime Minister’s Office. He believes in the power of multidisciplinary teams and how technology-native organisations can accelerate their rate of learning.

In this talk, Feng Yuan tells us that the ability to regulate your emotions as an entrepreneur, to keep your calm, is one the most scarce and precious resources entrepreneurs can have. So treat your emotional energy as a strategic resource, one that you spend very carefully.

Naveen, one of the most prominent faces of India’s fintech industry, is the Co-founder & CEO of Paisabazaar – the country’s largest marketplace for lending products and free credit score platform. In less than 9 years, Paisabazaar has served over 33 million consumers from 823 cities. Naveen has 2 decades of deep experience in the fintech and financial services markets of Europe and Asia with stints in Citibank, Capital One and Aviva. Naveen believes the next decade of fintech revolution belongs to India, with rapid digitization, technology and data innovations as the key catalysts.

In this talk, Naveen shares his take on how he successfully harnessed learning's from being a marathon runner into his business.

Jonathan Levin is Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Chainalysis, the blockchain analysis company, where he is regularly called upon to testify for the U.S. Congress and other government hearings on the emerging risks and opportunities in cryptocurrencies. Jonathan is also a mentor for the Techstars Alchemist Blockchain accelerator. Prior to Chainalysis, he was the CEO of Coinometrics, which provided the first dashboard of blockchain intelligence. He was also a postgraduate economist at the University of Oxford, where he researched cryptocurrencies. Jonathan holds a BSC in Economics from Bristol University and Master of Philosophy in Economics from the University of Oxford.

In this talk, Jonathan talks about how he went about building trust in this thing called Blockchain technology.

Michael Shaulov is the CEO and co-founder of Fireblocks, a secure digital asset infrastructure company. He is a serial cybersecurity entrepreneur and investor. He pioneered mobile security in an elite military technological unit (8200) where he received the Israeli Presidential Excellency Honor, prior to co-founding Lacoon Mobile Security, which was acquired by Check Point.

In this talk, Michael shares how back in 2018 he built a company from the ground up to now servicing over 1600 clients globally with a team of 600 employees - all in just 4 years!

Serey Chea is Assistant Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia. She is passionate about financial inclusion and women economic empowerment. Achievements under her leadership include the establishment of Credit Bureau Cambodia in 2012 that propelled Cambodia's Ease of Access to Finance to number 7 worldwide in 2017 by the World Bank, the introduction of Bakong, a national backbone payment system using DLT allowing interoperability amongst all financial service providers making financial services more accessible and affordable, and the introduction of financial literacy into the general education program. Serey holds a PhD in economics and is a member of the Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum.

In this talk, Serey talks about her experiences of being a regulator, not a typical entrepreneur - but she identifies many commonalities and even contrasts between both. She speaks about the risk of failure in the public eye and what the wider repercussions of any such can potentially be.

Phase #0: 15 year intra-preneur, with many firsts in corporate life.

Start-up #1: RedPill, pioneered Analytics revolution, exited to IBM

Stupidity Gene #2: Crayon Data, go bolder with AI, build a platform - maya.ai.

Uppers: sparky daring people, purpose & values-driven journeys: deadly cocktails - of data & intuition; right & left brain; long term persistence & short term impatience.

AI Podcaster, check out #SlavesToTheAlgo.

As someone who has successfully sold a company, what he calls a high, to then having to let go a part of his team on his current and 2nd journey, in this talk, Suresh talks about how both these extreme experiences share the same space in an entrepreneur's mind at the same time. And how entrepreneurs should harness these best.

Sean Lam was the co-founder of Jewel Paymentech which was acquired by Fintech unicorn Advance Intelligence Group in 2022. His passions include imagineering solutions to complex fraud and security problems that impact the whole of society. He previously served as a risk director at the world's leading payment network and prior as a security consultant with a Big 4 accounting firm. Outside of work, Sean sits on the Singapore Standards Council and volunteers as a police officer with the SPF.

In this talk, Sean offers solutions and ideas on how entrepreneurs can increase their chances of getting the timing right.

Jenny is a strategy focused and results orientated finance leader, with more than 15 years’ experience in improving financial governance, working in and advising multinational business to high growth start-ups undertaking rapid change and growth. Jenny co-founded AsiaVerify in 2019, a Singapore incorporated regtech company empowering global businesses to verify businesses in Asia, in real time, so that people can engage with Asia with confidence and ease. Jenny is passionate about speaking in celebration of the social, economic and cultural achievements of women in innovation and how we can foster a more inclusive and diverse ecosystem.

In this talk, Jenny speaks about wonder women and how a group of a few created something that is now meaningfully helping female founders to achieve exactly what they want from their entrepreneurial journeys. Jenny shares how movements start, and gain momentum.

Ilya was a professional esports player and captain who successfully sold his team to NaVi, one of the biggest gaming organisations in the world. After playing for more than 12 years Ilya decided to switch his career path and move to FOM Capital, a VC firm investing in groundbreaking technology companies. Using the knowledge from FOM Capital and his degree from the London School of Economics Ilya started Inovat, a digital Tax Free refund service that helped travellers save millions on tax refunds when shopping abroad.

In this talk, Ilya talks about the pressure of playing e-sports in front of 20000 people when he was just 18 years old. But his lessons on team building, resilience, and something he calls META are truly worth on-boarding.

Coen Jonker is the Chairman and co-founder of Tyme, a multi-country digital banking group operating in Asia and Africa. Tyme launched its flagship bank, TymeBank, in South Africa in 2019 with over five million customers, making it one of the fastest-growing digital banks worldwide. Following a successful legal career, Coen joined Standard Bank as its Director of Inclusive Banking in 2005. In 2011, he joined Deloitte as a Partner where he incubated and spun out Tyme prior to its acquisition by Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) in 2015. In 2017, CBA appointed him as Group Executive for international retail banking and insurance. However, in 2018, Coen along with controlling investor African Rainbow Capital, bought Tyme from CBA and re-launched the business as a global digital banking group. Coen chairs the Board for Tyme Group, is CEO of TymeBank, and represents Tyme on the GOtyme and Tyme Pakistan boards . Coen is an active investor and supporter of startup entrepreneurs.

In this talk, Coen tells us how he dealt with what he calls 'the dark night of the soul' - something every entrepreneur needs to learn to encounter more than once in their journey.

Walter de Oude founded Singapore Life in 2014 and grew that business both organically and inorganically to a value of S$3.2bn by 2020. Walter's new venture, Chocolate Finance aims to deliver best in market cash savings returns for almost anyone, almost anywhere. Based on his entrepreneurial experience, Walter has also established Chocolate Ventures, an early stage VC through which Walter invites investors to co-invest with him on opportunities where he feels he can add value.

In this talk, Walter shares his most valued learning's from what he calls 'the simple, yet hard and complicated art of capital raising'