Authors Page - Trade Finance Global

Veronica is Visa’s Senior Vice President and Regional Head of Visa Commercial Solutions for North America. Visa Commercial Solutions (VCS) enables businesses to thrive through products that provide better cash flow, administrative efficiency, control and acceptance. From small business to large corporate and governments, VCS products cover all forms of business spending, including Small Business, Commercial, and Virtual Cards. Veronica is responsible for the business, strategy and go to market for the U.S. and Canada. Veronica joined Visa in February of 2007, and has led numerous teams across Visa Commercial Solutions, North America Merchant and Prepaid. Prior to joining Visa, Veronica held product management and business development roles at U.S. Bank Corporate Payment Systems in Minneapolis, MN. Veronica earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota. She is passionate about the advancement of underrepresented at Visa and in Silicon Valley. She serves as executive sponsor of Visa Latinx Connect Employee Resource Group. Veronica also sits on the Advisory Board for Latinas in Tech Bay Area. Ms. Fernandez is a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina and lives with her husband and ten-year-old daughter in the Bay Area. Specialties: Business Development, Relationship Management, Sales and Strategic Partnerships. Issuing and Acquiring, Shared Economy, Consumer Prepaid, and Commercial Card and Payable Solutions. Fluent in Spanish and French. Understanding of Italian and Portuguese.

Mariya George is the Co-founder, Chief Executive Officer and Member of the Board of Directors at Cleareye.ai. Before starting Cleareye.ai, Mariya was the Head of Banking and Insurance at UST Global. She was responsible for the industry group’s overall vision and strategy, investment priorities, developing the network of alliance partners and an aggressive revenue growth goal of 70%. She was also responsible for the global P&L, sales, business development, consulting, client relationship management and technology execution. Prior to this, Mariya was the Business Head for East and Mid-west market in North America. She led the global sales organization across North America and primary markets in Asia (India, China) and built a team to lead and manage new Fortune 500 customer acquisitions and doubled her portfolio. She developed a two-year strategic plan that migrated from a transaction-based sale to a relationship-based sale and reduced new customer acquisition time by 75%. She also designed and implemented a sales cluster model that delivered 50% top line sales growth year over year. From 2010 to 2015, she worked with the Innovation, Services & Enterprise Solutions leadership on large scale innovation and digital transformation efforts at UST Global. She implemented the federated innovation model and crafted the go to market strategy and execution plan to position the organization as the innovation partner for multiple Fortune 100 customers.

Patrik Zekkar is the CEO of Enigio, holding an M.Sc in Business Administration & Economics. He has held several senior positions in the financial sector, focusing on business development, and managing products and services in trade and supply chain areas. Additionally, Patrik has significant experience as a board member in commercial blockchain platforms and industry organizations. As of October 1st, Enigio’s Board of Directors appointed Patrik as CEO to lead the company’s business and expansion. He brings valuable experience from the banking industry, most recently as Head of Trade Finance & Working Capital Management at Nordea, and expertise in scaling businesses in trade and supply chain technology. This step is crucial in positioning Enigio as a global leader in digitalised, authoritative document solutions.

Richard Wulff is the Executive Director at ICISA – the International Credit Insurance & Surety Association. With over 30 years of experience as a senior (re)insurance executive, he has led business transformations across Europe, Australia, and East and Southeast Asia, specialising in turnaround management and growth. His expertise spans all areas of non-life insurance, with a focus on trade credit insurance, surety, and political risk insurance. His leadership style emphasizes teamwork, collaboration, strategic and tactical planning, execution, and transparency with both internal and external stakeholders. Key achievements include: Leading successful turnarounds at QBE, Munich Re, and the NCM Group, surpassing market benchmarks for revenue and profit growth.  Expanding business by introducing new products, entering new markets, and ensuring consistent execution of strategic plans. Establishing legal entities to enhance operational efficiency and profitability through improved structure and processes.

Judy Li is the Director, Information, Data Analytics and ISO 20022 at Payments Canada. Experienced technology leader with 20 years’ experience in leading geographically diverse, cross-functional teams to achieve strategic goals. Experience across business intelligence, data analytics and lifecycle around software development and quality. Passionate about technology, especially about leveraging the power of data to help make sound business decisions. 

David Quehenberger started his career in 2012 at Swiss Re’s Credit & Surety division based in Munich. As a member of the Documentary Trade Finance team he was responsible for underwriting and deal origination for trade finance transactions from bank clients in Germany, France and UK. As a senior underwriter he moved to Singapore in 2019, working with banks locally to strengthen Swiss Re’s footprint in the region. In his current role as lead underwriter for trade finance portfolios he is based back in Munich, coordinating the trade finance portfolio underwriting globally. He has a keen interest in innovation and digital solutions, having led the development of Swiss Re’s PULSE credit digital underwriting platform as product owner. David holds a M.Sc. in Economics from Ludwig-Maximilian University, Munich.

Evan Ivanov is a Director of Global Trade Solutions at BNP Paribas’ Global Banking division in the Americas, where he has served for the past 12 years. With a career spanning the United States and Canada, Evan has more than 25 years of banking and financial-services experience in trade finance, commodities, risk management, corporate bankruptcy and insolvency, and liquidity-advisory roles. He earned an M.B.A. and a bachelor of applied science in civil engineering from the University of Toronto.

Lauren Jones is Director, Market Development at Open Banking Exchange, a leading advisory practice in open banking delivery. Here she supports the growth of OBE both in the EU and globally. Open Banking Exchange is part of the Konsentus Group, an organisation wholly focused on open finance delivery. Lauren has over 13 years’ experience in banking and payments. Formally, Head of Standards at Payments UK (now Pay.UK), she was responsible for the UK’s standards policy on behalf of banks, the government, and the wider industry. She was also involved in the early-stage development of Open Banking data standards in the UK. She has represented the UK market at ISO, European Payments Council and various groups within the European Central Bank, Berlin Group and SWIFT and has long-standing experience in industry development activities and responding to the regulatory agenda. Since 2017 she has been working in various advisory roles for fintechs, market infrastructure companies and hardware manufacturers on their payment strategy and product development.

Michele Sancricca is the co-founder and CEO of Secro Inc. He is the AWS Worldwide Head of Technology for Supply Chain and Logistics. Previously he worked as Head of Supply Chain Products for Amazon Global Mile and led the Digital Transformation Division of Mediterranean Shipping Company (second largest ocean carrier in the world) while in the capacity of Director, Business Transformation for MSC USA. A retired Lieutenant Commander, Michele spent 12 years in the Italian Navy as Telecommunication Officer and Commanding Officer onboard aircraft carriers, destroyers and frigates. A Harvard Business School graduate and a Six Sigma Black Belt, Michele holds also an MBA in Shipping and Logistics from the Middlesex University and a MS in Naval Science from the Italian Naval Academy, as well as a Port Terminal Management Diploma. Formerly Vice President of the New York City Young Shipping Professional Association, he still works on the side on pro bono consulting and mentoring project within the shipping industry.

Nick is a Policy Adviser at European Banking Federation (EBF) covering political and regulatory policy implications for financial services organisations active in European markets. He holds a Masters in International Law and Economics, with distinction, from the University of Bern and a Masters in International Political Economy, awarded in the First Class, from the University of Cape Town. His working interests and skillset are suited to consulting, policy analysis, research and strategy related to global trade (climate, semiconductors / tech, subsidies / industrial policy, and financial markets); international political economy; political / country risk analysis for capital markets research, fixed income, and foreign exchange markets; and public policy. Research and Working Interests: Climate Transition | Commodities | Comparative Politics | Economic History | Emerging Markets | Energy Policy | Financial Markets | Fiscal / Monetary Policy | Foreign Policy | Geostrategy / Geoeconomics / Geopolitics | Industrial Policy / Development | International Affairs | International Political Economy | International Trade | Macroeconomic Regimes and Growth Models | Macroeconomics | Macro Finance | Political Philosophy and Theory | Political Risk Analysis | Public Policy | Trade Policy

Soorya Rajesh Balan is a dedicated and ambitious LLM student at the University of Leeds, specialising in International Banking and Finance Law, graduating in 2023. With an outstanding academic background, she has achieved First Class Honours in LLB from Middlesex University.  Building on her academic achievements, Soorya has gained valuable practical experience in corporate law, as a legal assistant at a prominent firm in Dubai, UAE.   Driven by her passion for the intersection of law and finance, Soorya’s current research interests revolve around the dynamic areas of International Trade Finance Law and Financial Crime. By immersing herself in these specialized subjects, she seeks to contribute to the ever-evolving landscape of the legal and financial sectors.

Olivier Saint-Raymond, Tinubu’s Solutions Expert Olivier joined Tinubu in 2016 as Chief Product Officer to drive the Tinubu platform evolution. Today, as Solutions Expert, he supports Tinubu and its customers in identifying and defining new initiatives to expand the capabilities of the Tinubu Credit Insurance platform, especially in the MLT credit insurance or Trade, Receivable & Export finance sectors. Olivier has over 15 years of experience in the software industry. He started his career in 2006 as a Technical Account Manager at GL Trade Hong Kong and then moved to various product management roles in the electronic trading industry at Fidessa, SunGard, and Société Générale, both in Hong Kong and in Paris.  Olivier holds an MSc in Engineering in Computational Fluid Dynamics from Grenoble INP – UGA.

Vinay is responsible for setting and executing HSBC’s growth strategy for its trade, receivable and supply chain finance business. HSBC is the world’s largest trade bank facilitating more than USD800 billion of trade annually through 5,000 trade specialists in 56 markets. Vinay and his team work with the largest global corporates and FIs and their buyer/supplier ecosystems to structure solutions and programmes that facilitate commerce across the globe. Under Vinay’s leadership, HSBC is driving the digitisation of trade to facilitate more resilient and agile supply chains. HSBC is forging public and private partnerships to accelerate digitisation, embed Trade as a Service on new venues and platforms and to develop sustainable trade finance solutions. He has over 20 years experience in transaction banking, leading global roles in sales & product management, deal structuring & implementation, platforms & partnerships, strategy, sales practice and business management. He has expertise in trade finance and cash management with leadership credentials in creating and developing successful teams. He has multicultural work experience having worked in India, The Netherlands, Hong Kong and United Kingdom, besides leading teams in several key markets across the world.

Matt leads LGIM’s Alternative Debt team, having joined in 2018, and is also a Fund Manager of LGIM’s Short Term Alternative Finance Fund. He runs origination and asset management across alternative debt within private credit for LGIM clients. Prior to LGIM he was responsible for corporate securitisations at HSBC following positions in debt advisory and leveraged finance. Matt qualified as a Chartered Accountant at EY.

A multi-award-winning digital transformation leader with over 20 years of experience driving the next generation of digital innovation across various industries. Renowned for her technical vision and empathetic leadership, Raja has a proven track record of cross-functional management and successfully transforming and bolstering businesses, contributing significantly to the UAE’s thriving economy. Serving as the current CEO of Etihad Credit Insurance, Raja plays an instrumental role in actualising ECI’s vision and mission, driving the strategy to support UAE exporters, fortify national economic growth, and further position the UAE as a global trading powerhouse. Raja began her career with an MBA in Global Leadership and Management from the United Arab Emirates University in 2005. Since then, she has held executive positions in several distinguished organisations, including the Higher Colleges of Technology, Dubai Holding, National Bonds Corporation, and Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). During her tenure in DIFC as the Executive Vice President, Raja played a pivotal role in advancing the UAE’s national innovation agenda by establishing The FinTech Hive, one of the region’s most successful FinTech hubs and ecosystems. Raja’s proactive collaboration with diverse stakeholders has contributed to the UAE’s thriving digital economy, fostering the growth of over 500 financial technology startups, and earning the FinTech Hive recognition as one of the world’s top financial innovation labs by Global Finance Magazine. Over the years, Raja has further expanded her credentials by completing executive education programs at Harvard Business School, London Business School, University of California at Berkeley, and Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance. Recently, she completed the Singularity Executive Program, a leadership transformation program focused on the potential of exponential technologies for building a better world. Beyond her core responsibilities, Raja serves on various boards, including the Harvard Business School MENA Advisory Board, Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government, Zand Digital Bank, Al Masraf Arab Bank, Al Ansari Financial Services, and Ittihad International Investment. Raja‘s leadership is defined by her unwavering commitment to leveraging technology and innovation for a positive impact in various sectors. She is driven by a deep commitment to shaping the future of trade and the economy, constantly seeking opportunities to elevate community life and prosperity. By nurturing innovative mindsets and executing scalable strategies, Raja strives to contribute to the UAE’s position as a global hub for innovation and trade, reflecting her profound dedication to inspiring change and progress.

Karin Oszuszky is Senior Investment Manager in the Private Sector and Trade Finance Operations Department at the OPEC Fund for International Development, with a special focus on trade and commodity finance. Previously, she has held management positions in commercial banks in Austria and abroad Karin Oszuszky is a seasoned banker with long-term experience in trade finance, structured commodity finance as well as corporate finance and risk management. During her work she has travelled extensively, especially in Africa.

Saurav is a senior associate at Neupane Law Associates, a leading corporate law firm in Nepal. He is an associate at the firm. He specialises in corporate and commercial law with a special focus on laws affecting the technology sector. He has assisted clients in connection with corporate compliance and foreign investment. He also assists in research and drafting work for dispute resolution matters. He has extensive experience in banking and financial law, trade finance and project finance, mergers and acquisition, joint ventures, dispute resolution and arbitration, financial technology law, and general corporate and commercial law. He is currently pursuing International Business Law LLM at the University of Leeds and is set to graduate in 2023.    

With more than 18 years of management experience in diverse financial institutions, Mosa Tshabalala has substantial experience in the banking sector in Sub-Saharan Africa. Coupled with an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the international market dynamics and key players in the FI Trade and Risk Distribution space, Mosa has a proven record of integrity, results, productivity, and quality.