CYPRUS FINTECH SUMMIT 2023 Speakers

Christian Sarafidis

Chief BDO Worldwide Financial Services at Microsoft

Conny Dorrestijn

Fintech Entrepreneur and Non-Executive Director of BankiFi

Conny Dorrestijn

Fintech Entrepreneur and Non-Executive Director of BankiFi

Named one of the ‘2021 Top Ten Voices in European Fintech’ Conny Dorrestijn has a focused career in innovation for the international financial technology sector, previously at Clear2Pay/FIS and as Founding Partner/Advisor at BankiFi: a developer of technology ‘putting banks at the heart of business’. She is also Chair of the Supervisory Board at Blanco Services, a Non-Executive Director to the Board of Augmentum Fintech, an Associate of the Digital Insurance Agenda (DIA) and a Global Innovation Awards Judge at BAI (US). She is a co-host/producer of the regular Fintech Cappuccino podcast.

With empowerment high on her agenda, she actively engages and collaborates with young people to help them build 'social capital'. She is a mentor for Women in Payments (WIP) programme and acted as Advisory Board Member and mentor for Money2020 Europe Rise Up programme. She actively supports the Global Give Back Circle: Mentor, Educate, Empower & Employ HER for girls at risk.

Conny is a frequent speaker at international conferences (EBA, Money2020, Global Wealth, BAI, Betaalcongres, Citi Fintech events, Techleap, MeConvention, e.g.) on the topics of purpose, building a new financial era, payments, fintech and ‘femtech’. ‘Experience coupled with curiosity is wisdom’ is a key driver in her life, which led her from bringing the very first internet bank’s technology from the US to Europe, the first payment hub company to a successful exit as well as working on a wide range of individual positioning issues and companies, often in unconventional ways. Giving space to her team whilst working with top leadership, she enjoys being and bringing the voice to the industry through all stakeholders involved with a clear business target in mind.

Alessandro Hatami

Founder of Pacemakers.io, NED, Author, Speaker, Investor, Mentor

David Gyori

CEO at Banking Reports Top 10 Global Thought Leader in FinTech

Matteo Rizzi – Moderator

Co-Founder at FTSGroup.eu PA “Fintech Revolution” and “Talents & Rebels”

Matteo Rizzi – Moderator

Co-Founder at FTSGroup.eu PA “Fintech Revolution” and “Talents & Rebels”

Matteo has been actively engaged in the FinTech space for over 20 years and has deep connections amongst global banks executives, startups and investors. He knows how to bridge traditional banking with new or disruptive technologies, because he understands both.
A true multicultural European executive, he conducts business in Italian, English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

In his 13 years role at SWIFT, Matteo covered various activities in sales and global account relationship.

In 2008 he cofounded Innotribe, the innovation arm of SWIFT. This is where Matteo launched the Innotribe Startup Challenge, the first global challenge for FinTech entrepreneurs, as well as the Enablers group, a crossindustry group mentoring Innotribe and SWIFT on strategy and financial trends.

In 2013, Matteo became a Partner in SBT Venture Capital, one of the first funds (100m USD) solely dedicated to FinTech investment (Series A). SBT Venture Capital has made some ten investments in promising startups to date.

In 2014, Matteo co-founded FinTechStage, a community platform holding events and conferences on FinTech around the world, and late 2015 he also joined Omidyar Network, Pierre Omidyar's organisation, with an advisory role for the Financial Inclusion division.

Financial News has nominated Matteo as one of the “40 most influential FinTech executives in Europe” in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and Bank Innovation named him one of the “30 Innovators to watch shaping the industry” in 2014.

Matteo holds a University degree in Computer Science (University of Genova) and a Postgraduate in Financial Transactions (Solvay Business School).

James Varga

CEO & Founder of DirectID

James Varga

CEO & Founder of DirectID

James Varga is the CEO & founder of DirectID, a global credit & risk platform providing open banking data to decision-makers.

Having worked with open banking data for over a decade, he saw that financial assessments were based on data that was often inefficient, backwards-facing and largely biased. With open banking now a global trend, James sees a unique opportunity to provide the world's first financially inclusive global credit score.

Since 2010, James has relentlessly pursued this - the opportunity to use open banking as the foundation for a streamlined, fairer process. James sees financial services as a global trust network – a network he has used to passionately address issues such as identity, credit & risk and financial inclusion.

James is an active board member of Fintech Scotland, the Scottish Government Ministerial Trade Board, Trust in Digital Life (TDL), as well as a founding member of FDATA, Innovate Finance and Open Banking Excellence. Notably, James was part of the working group that lobbied the government for PSD2 – DirectID went on to build the UK's first AISP integration.

As a Canadian-born serial startup founder and the earliest pioneer of open banking, James loves solving problems – taking a first principles approach to innovation and believes in the infinite mindset.