Financial Sector’s Governance and Risk Management To remain Key Focus at GRC Summit, Dubai

Disruptive technology has been named as one of the determinants of the new paradigm witnessed in Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) within financial sector organisations. More than ever, stakeholders are witnessing an unprecedented generation of data, the novel nature of competition, increasing regulatory demands and new consumer preferences, thereby creating fresh opportunities and presenting new threats.

On the back of this, the GRC Today Summit, taking place at the Habtoor Palace Dubai, LXR Hotels & Resorts, on Wednesday, November 23, 2022 will provide companies and individuals with a platform for knowledge and information exchange on key issues surrounding the future of risk management, governance and compliance.

The GRC Today Summit will bring you a day full of forward-looking discussions on the state and transformation of governance, risk and compliance, which the financial services industry must strive to adopt to thrive.

Aside from external factors such as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the finance sector and surges in inflation triggered by geopolitical factors, the industry has been dealing with issues surrounding cybersecurity, the evolution of payment gateways, a space for cryptocurrency and so on internally.

With information flowing at a lightning speed unchecked, any risk event can be catastrophic to an organization with perhaps irreversible damage. These have further pointed emphasis on decision-making and the management of risk and compliance as critical drivers of progress toward the growth and sustainability of the industry in an ethical way.

How will stakeholders revolutionize the ecosystem navigating through a crypto economy, ESG risk, regulatory compliance, corporate change management, the ever-evolving fintech outlook, in addition to the external factors that will shape long-term value?

The Agenda of the Summit seeks to dialogue and proffer solutions to these topics holistically, and in a way that can be adapted as a blueprint for transformation during different panel sessions at the event.

Speaking on the relevance of hosting the GRC Today Summit at such a time, Mohamed Daoud, Director – Territory Business Development – GRC, Moody's Analytics said: “Moody’s Analytics Middle-East is pleased to participate in GRC Today Summit on 23 Nov 2022 in Dubai. This annual event provides an opportunity to connect to the regional compliance communities and raise awareness of effective approaches to fighting financial crimes.

Recent US and International sectorial sanctions imposed on individuals and entities include the search for the ultimate Beneficial Owners and seriously affect KYC and Due Diligence of corporate customers. To comply with the new sanctions regime, you must search for the ownership and control of the corporate customer. This includes indirect ownership/control that can be difficult to determine without a specific source of data. Identifying such information can be complicated and time-consuming if you lack the proper systems and data. During this event, Moody’s Analytics team delivered cutting-edge insights and guidance on how to deploy this directive to keep the pace of compliance.”

To buttress this point, Elias Kokaly, Deployment Strategist, TRM Labs also added: “As the UAE continues to focus on the growing crypto-economy, TRM is excited to take part in the GRC Today Summit to connect with the leading minds in the UAE’s crypto ecosystem and ensure illicit activity such as fraud and financial crime don't hinder the potential for blockchain ecosystems to thrive.”

GRC Today Summit will host industry leaders including Mohamed Shalo, Director of Communication and Strategic Partnerships, Executive Office of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Finance, Ian Johnston, Chief Executive of Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), Mohamed Daoud, Director – of Territory Business Development -GRC at Moody’s Analytics,  Safeya AlSafi, Director of the Anti-Money Laundering Department Monitoring & Following Up Sector at the Ministry of Economy(UAE), and Gaurav Dubey, CEO of TDeFi - Crypto Incubator and Advisory, to lead discussions that will dissect the issues.

The Summit will also host Bhavin Shah, MD and Head of MEA, Forensic Risk Alliance, Peter Smith, Managing Director, Head of Strategy, Policy and Risk, Dubai Financial Services Authority, William G. Rich, Chief Sanctions Officer, EMEA Emerging Markets, Citibank N.A., Bhaskar Dasgupta, Head of Strategic Development – MENA, Apex Group Ltd and Dr. Ryan Lemand, Co-Founder and CEO, Neovision Wealth Management among other thought leaders. 

“Governance is the most critical aspect for the crypto economy to position itself as a future and discussions like these help take the industry forward,” said Gaurav Dubey, CEO, TDeFi - Crypto Incubator and Advisory

Kalin Metodiev, CFA, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, NEXO stated that “At Nexo, we’re thrilled to be participating in the 2022 GRC Today Summit, as this year’s event and topics correspond precisely with what our company has identified as cornerstone needs and challenges for the industry. Governance, asset and risk management, and regulatory compliance will only have an increasing impact on the entire digital assets space, evident from the developments in crypto over 2022. It’s a privilege for me personally to join fellow panelists and trigger discussions, shed light on our efforts and start paving a new path forward to enhance cryptocurrency adoption in coordination with state regulators. We firmly believe that these events are fundamental to establishing good industry practices, as it’s those that will attract new generations to digital markets while fostering trust among current crypto adopters.”

The GRC Today Summit is set to be held over a series of interactive sessions, networking breaks and engagements; which would present an opportunity for all stakeholders to be involved in the governance, risk and compliance sphere, as well as those who