Speakers

Alain DeSouza is the VP of Product & GTM at J.P. Morgan, where he is focused on bringing new J.P. Morgan products to Canada. Alain has spent nearly 20 years in payments spanning, mobile payments, digital wallets, acquiring as well as B2B & B2C payments. With a background in product, GTM and technology, Alain has delivered on growth for companies ranging from Fintechs to global banks. Prior to joining J.P. Morgan, Alain served as VP, Product & GTM at Clickatell where he brought new products to market and created new indirect channels. He also held leadership roles RBC, Scotiabank and BlackBerry.

Alana Barnes is the Vice President of Digital Policy in the Payments & Digital Division at the Canadian Bankers’ Association (CBA) where she leads the development of the industry’s digital policy positions. She provides strategic guidance and thought leadership on various emerging issues, including on policy initiatives such as consumer-driven banking (open banking), artificial intelligence and digital currencies. Alana is responsible for working with Canada’s banks to effectively advocate on behalf of the banking industry to positively shape policy development with key stakeholders in government.

Antoine Dumortier is a Payments Expert at Desjardins, specializing in electronic payments and leading strategic initiatives to modernize payment architectures and streamline legacy platforms. With over 16 years of experience in financial services—including 8 years in payments and fintech—Antoine has held senior roles in strategy, finance, and transformation at leading organizations such as Barclays, Groupe BPCE, and Boston Consulting Group. His expertise spans Open Banking, digital payments, and change management, combined with a strong focus on innovation and the transformative potential of AI. Antoine is passionate about driving impactful change and shaping the future of payments.

Bernice Cheung is Vice President of Financial Services & Cultural Markets at Environics Research, where she leads groundbreaking studies on fintech, open banking, and consumer trust in financial innovation. With nearly two decades of experience in market research and strategy consulting, she helps financial institutions, fintechs, and policymakers understand how Canadians think, feel, and act toward emerging financial technologies. A frequent industry speaker, Bernice is recognized for translating complex data into clear, actionable insight — guiding the future of consumer engagement, inclusion, and digital finance in Canada.

Brent is a passionate problem solver with 25+ years of experience in the financial services industry, including credit cards, consumer finance, and insurance. He has deep expertise across the entire customer lifecycle, spanning product, marketing, credit, customer experience, fraud, and loss mitigation.

Brent founded Payson Solutions, a boutique consultancy that specializes in credit risk and lending strategies, in 2018. Since then, Payson has helped dozens of companies across the globe transform their business, with a diverse client base that includes top-tier banks, credit unions, fintechs at both start-up and growth stage, collection agencies, credit bureaus, and alternative lenders. Payson provides strategic, data-driven solutions that include: Credit Risk and Lending Strategies, Embedded Finance Solutions, Customer Acquisition Strategies, Data Science & Modelling, among many other services.

Delina is the Director of Growth Data Science at Wealthsimple, where she leads initiatives that leverage data to drive business growth across marketing, sales, and consumer product. With over 15 years of experience across FinTech, AdTech, CPG and banking, Delina specializes in using analytical techniques, experimentation, and modelling to drive user behaviours that result in revenue growth. Prior to Wealthsimple, she was Senior Director of Data Science & Product Analytics at Mistplay, a mobile gaming loyalty platform, where she led efforts to deepen user engagement through personalized experiences and growth strategies. She has also held roles in analytics at HelloFresh Canada and at TD Bank, giving her a diverse foundation in applying data science across industries. Delina is passionate about building high-performing teams and making data both actionable and impactful. In addition to her industry work, she teaches data science at the University of Toronto, University of Waterloo and Schulich School of Business, where she focuses on bridging the gap between technical skills and business application.

Fabio Marrama leads new product development, digital partnerships, and payments innovation to unlock opportunity and advance Meridian’s purpose of helping Members achieve their best lives.

With 14+ years in the co operative financial sector, he’s built a reputation for turning vision into scalable execution. Fabio has worn many hats in his career. Early on, he was recognized as one of Canada’s Top Financial Bloggers (2014) by the Toronto Star, Globe and Mail and Wealthsimple. He has spearheaded community partnerships such as the sponsorship of Meridian Hall in Toronto (2019), co-led Meridian’s Open Banking strategy, and today focuses on building modernized digital products and services and enabling embedded finance ecosystems.

Geetha Premraj is the Head of Global Product Delivery for Real-Time Payments at JPMorgan Chase & Co., overseeing strategy, development, and execution of instant payment solutions worldwide. With over 20 years in the payments industry, she has held leadership roles at Chime, Visa, and Western Union, driving product innovation and digital transformation across multiple payment rails and platforms. Her expertise spans Digital Payments, Cards, ACH, Instant Payments, Risk, Compliance, FX, and Settlement. Geetha holds a Master’s in Computer Science and is passionate about delivering customer-centric solutions, building high-performing teams, mentoring future leaders, and advocating thoughtful innovation in financial services.

Ivan Welsh is Head of Product Strategy & Development at Symcor, where he leads the vision, strategy, and delivery of innovative products that strengthen Canada’s financial ecosystem. With nearly two decades at Symcor, Ivan brings a rare blend of hands-on technology depth and enterprise-level product leadership — spanning software development, enterprise architecture, and executive IT roles.

Ivan has launched and scaled market-defining solutions for highly regulated industries, including Policy Assist Central, which streamlines the delivery of regulated communications for financial institutions, and next-generation fraud and document-intelligence platforms designed to modernize operations and protect Canadians from financial crime. His work continues to shape the future of payments and financial services in Canada.

Throughout his career, Ivan has built and led a 250-person technology team, modernized core payment infrastructures, and introduced leadership systems that strengthened culture, capability, and performance across the organization.

Jodi Chambers is Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer at Cornerstone Credit Union, leading strategy and digital transformation. She partners with boards and executives to build data-driven organizations with a member-centric vision and purpose. Jodi has led core and digital banking platform conversions, built multi-source data warehouses and real-time dashboards, and is championing GenAI and automation to streamline operations. She brings experience collaborating with fintechs to pilot, launch, and scale new member solutions. Jodi has served on national committees advancing modernization, balancing innovation with strong risk and vendor governance.

Joyce Wong is Vice President of Payments and Open Banking Products at Symcor, where she leads the strategic development of solutions that empower financial institutions to modernize infrastructure, enhance operational efficiency, and scale securely in a rapidly evolving ecosystem.

With deep expertise in payments and financial services, Joyce previously held progressive leadership roles at Visa Canada, spanning product strategy, commercialization, and enterprise transformation. In her most recent role as Senior Director, Global Sales Strategy & Transformation, she spearheaded initiatives that accelerated revenue growth, improved client enablement, and drove market adoption. Her career began at BMO, where she contributed to the advancement of digital and payments capabilities.

At Symcor, Joyce is passionate about unlocking value within established ecosystems and driving the evolution of trusted payment infrastructure to support the next wave of financial innovation.

KASHIF SIDDIQUI is the Head of Innovation for Bank of America’s Global Payments Solutions unit. In his role, Kashif leads the team responsible for managing the payments innovation pipeline, strategic analysis of emerging payment capabilities, and delivering transformative solutions across Consumer, Small Business, Business Banking, Merchant, Corporate and Large Corporate Business lines.

Kashif has over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry in payments, digital product management, strategy, corporate development/partnerships, and execution. Some of the transformative industry projects he has been able to contribute to include the formation of Zelle, piloting and launch of Square and the creation of Apple Pay.

He began his career at JPMorganChase leading a variety of restructuring, JV, and Emerging Payments initiatives across the bank. Kashif then joined Silicon Valley Bank where he helped to start the bank’s payments business and was responsible new product development and oversight. Subsequently, Kashif joined Cross River Bank as the Head of Payments product management supporting the creation of new products and payments access points for FinTech challengers. Kashif joined Bank of America in 2019.

As the Chief Digital & Marketing Officer (CDMO) at Meridian, Matthew Seagrim leads marketing, IT, data and analytics, product development, digital platforms, and cybersecurity. He is driving development and execution of strategic initiatives to transform the business and achieve its purpose.

Before joining Meridian, Matthew spent seven years leading Scene+, where he revitalized the company by reshaping its brand and value proposition, forged new strategic partnerships, and developed digital-first technology and infrastructure. His career comprises progressive leadership roles in Financial Services, Marketing, and Loyalty sectors, including eight years at AIMIA, where he held executive positions driving strategy, product development, and innovation across Canada, Mexico, and Southeast Asia.

Matthew holds a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Engineering from Queen’s University. His ability to leverage his combination of technical knowledge with business acumen has resulted in a track record of transformative leadership and positioned him as a thought leader and a sought-after speaker at industry engagements.

Matthew currently serves on the Board of Directors of Give a Mile, a registered charity dedicated to providing flights for final visits for loved ones facing palliative illness. He also serves as a strategic advisor to several startups focused on innovation in technology-driven customer engagement.

Oscar Roque serves as Chief Product & Innovation Officer at Beem Credit Union, where he leads strategy, innovation, product, delivery practices, and brand engagement. His work focuses on strengthening Beem’s impact, deepening member value, and creating the conditions for empowered teams to do their best work. Oscar brings a career grounded in collaboration, curiosity, and purpose. Before joining Beem, he held senior leadership roles at Interac Corp. and BMO, where he worked across strategy, innovation, product development, and enterprise transformation. Known for connecting ideas across technology, financial services, and public-good ecosystems, he is recognized for building teams that thrive in complexity and deliver meaningful outcomes. Passionate about financial wellness and responsible innovation, Oscar is motivated by creating products and experiences that genuinely improve people’s lives. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from Queen’s University and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management.

Open Banking executive and COO at Banfico with over a decade transforming financial services across Europe, Brazil, India, and Saudi Arabia. As founding member of MyBank and former head of service management at Open Banking Europe, he brings deep expertise in regulatory frameworks, open banking standards, and global Verification of Payee (VoP) solutions. An internationally recognized keynote speaker on open banking, payment verification, fintech strategy, and digital transformation, he regularly addresses industry leaders on regulatory modernization and innovation. Educated at Sciences-Po Bordeaux, University of Coimbra, and IE Business School Madrid.

Ron Morrow was appointed Executive Director of Payments, Supervision and Oversight, effective January 2024.

In this role, Mr. Morrow is responsible for the supervision of retail payment service providers (PSPs) and the oversight of financial market infrastructures (FMIs). As well, he oversees the banking and payment services provided by the Bank of Canada. He also supports the Bank’s work on the evolution of payments in Canada.

The Bank’s supervision of PSPs focuses on building Canadians’ confidence in the safety and reliability of their services while protecting end users from specific risks. The Executive Director also serves as an independent reviewer of enforcement actions by the Governor of the Bank of Canada on the evolution of risks related to PSPs and the retail payments landscape.

The Bank’s oversight of FMIs focuses on ensuring that Canada’s critical financial infrastructures, which include payment systems, central counterparties and securities settlement systems, are resilient to a wide range of risks.

Mr. Morrow first joined the Bank in 1992 and has worked in several different areas across the Bank’s monetary policy, financial stability and funds management functions. In 2010, he became Managing Director of the Funds Management and Banking Department and then Managing Director of the Financial Stability Department in 2013. Mr. Morrow became an Advisor to the Governor in 2018, focusing on advancing the Bank’s strategic objectives related to retail payments, financial market infrastructure issues and the efficiency of the Canadian financial system.

Born in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Mr. Morrow earned an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in economics with a minor in mathematics from the University of Waterloo. He also holds a Master of Arts degree in economics from Queen’s University.

Samantha is VP & General Counsel at Borrowell, one of Canada’s largest consumer fintech companies that helps people feel confident about money. Borrowell has over 3 million members and was the first company in Canada to offer credit scores for free. Borrowell also offers Rent Advantage, the first program to let renters build credit with rent payments without their landlord’s involvement.

Prior to this, Sam was legal counsel at President’s Choice Financial and a corporate lawyer at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP in the Financial Services Group where she advised financial institutions and fintechs on a broad range of corporate commercial matters including payments, privacy and regulatory compliance.

Santiago Duro is the Director & Head of Open Banking at Scotiabank, where he leads and drives the Open Banking/Open Finance global strategy and platforms across Scotiabank.

Santiago is an experienced leader with 25+ years of experience in the Financial Services and Technology areas, managing established operations as well as launching new businesses, across America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

Santiago was previously the Chief Product Officer at Fintech Galaxy, where he guided the development of the FINX Open Finance platform. Before that he was the Group Chief Technology and Operations Officer for Y9 Bank where he led the Technology, Product and Operations organizations and launched a Digital Bank in Tanzania. He also led a Digital Wallet in Myanmar, growing to over 8 million customers in 2 years. Previously, he deployed and managed global digital platforms at ING from concept to launch of new products and services as well as he led EU product localization for Amazon.

Santiago holds an MBA from Anderson School of Management (UCLA), an MSEE from Universidad Politecnica de Valencia, Spain and a Master in Business Innovation from Universidad Catolica de Chile.

Sonia Bakshi is a highly accomplished banking professional with over two decades of experience in Treasury and Trade solutions, Digital Platforms and Payments. Her expertise lies in optimizing global cash management systems, ensuring compliance, and driving innovation in financial services. She is recognized for her strategic relationship building, delivering measurable results, and providing forward-thinking leadership. Throughout her career at Citibank Canada, Sonia has held progressively senior roles, consistently exceeding expectations. As Senior Vice President and Product Head for Canada Digital Services, she spearheads the management and commercialization of digital platforms. Her leadership in optimizing client relationships and driving initiatives like Digital platforms re-innovation, Regulatory enhancement and various modernized Payment methods has been instrumental in the company’s success.

Prior to her current role, Sonia excelled in various positions at Citibank, including Client Readiness Head and Client Service Senior Specialist, where she demonstrated her expertise in compliance, client satisfaction, and process improvement. Sonia’s commitment to professional development is evident in her certifications and training in Lean methodology, project management, and leadership.

She is also an active advocate for diversity and inclusion, serving as a Global Mentor for Women in Payments, Mentor for Asian community and leading initiatives supporting Multicultural Women Circle and the LGBTQ+ community at Citi. Sonia is winner of Distinguished Women in Payments 2025 Award.

Stephanie is an experienced financial services executive with over 20 years of experience in Payments and Treasury product development & management, sales business development, and operational, technology and financial crimes risk management.

Stephanie has earned an MBA, a Masters of Laws, a Bachelor of Science and certificates in Cyber Risk Management and Information Security Management.

Stephanie has contributed to Industry, Employment, and Community Boards including Payments Canada as a Board Director, as well as serving as the Chair of the Human Resources Committee and on the Industry and Financial Risk Committees. She was a Board Director for Citi Cards Canada Inc., Procuron, and Mondex, Youth in Motion (now Plan Canada), and is the former Board Chair of Mackenzie Health.

Wini is an Engineering Director at Scotiabank with a strong background in the IT industry and extensive experience driving digital transformation across the banking sector. She specializes in open banking, digital identity, authentication, fraud prevention, and consent management, and is deeply committed to advancing customer security, trust, and transparency within modern financial ecosystems.

Throughout her career, Wini has led major digital banking initiatives and delivered scalable Authentication and Access Management frameworks, strengthened identity assurance capabilities, and enhanced customer control over data sharing. She is known for translating complex technical and regulatory requirements into practical, secure solutions.

Wini holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and a Master’s degree in Computer Science, providing a strong technical foundation for her leadership in digital banking initiatives.