Eurasia

György H Matolcsy

Governor
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Dr. György Matolcsy serves his second term as the governor of Magyar Nemzeti Bank, the central bank of Hungary. He was nominated to the position in 2013 and his tenure was renewed in 2019 for another 6 years. Since 2013 he is also a member of the Fiscal Council. Prior to his cur-rent position he was minister of national economy between 2010-2013. In 2007 he founded the Hungarian Economic Development Institute, which he headed for 3 years. Between 2000-2002 he was Hungary’s minister of economic affairs. Mr Matolcsy is the author of the Széchenyi Plan, a comprehensive strategy aiming to promote the economic growth in Hungary. He was director of the Institute for Growth (2002-2010) and its predecessor organisation, the Privatisation Research Institute from 1995 to 2000. From the end of 1998 he has been a member of the economic advisory body of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Starting in 1991 he spent 3 years as a member of the Board of Governors at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) representing the Hungarian Government. In 1990 he joined the Office of the Prime Minister and served as the personal economic advisor to Prime Minister József Antall. Acknowledging his efforts in promoting economic development in Hungary, he was awarded the Barankovics Commemorative Coin in 2013. He graduated at Karl Marx University of Economics in 1977 and obtained his Doctorate degree in 1984. Mr. Matolcsy is actively involved in educational activities. He is a frequent lecturer at top foreign and Hungarian universities. He is an honorary doctor at the University of Debrecen and the University of Kaposvár, and honorary member of Fudan Development Institute (FDDI) of Fudan University and of the FDDI International Advisory Board of Shanghai Forum. Mr. Matolcsy is the author of numerous publications, articles, and books. His most recent publications include Olvasó-Napló I.-II., the new English edition of New Sustainable Economics – Global Discussion published by the MNB, and the book titled On the Edge of Times which collects his short thoughts written between 2019 and 2022 as feedbacks for articles of remarkable Western thinkers and journalists. His other books include Economic Balance and Growth, for which the second edition was published in 2021 (first edition in 2015), The American Empire VS. The European Dream - The Failure of the Euro (2019), Bringing Up the Rear (Éllovasból sereghajtó; 2008), American Empire (Amerikai birodalom; 2004), and Our Living Memories (Élő emlékeink; 2003).

Mihály VARGA

Minister of Finance
Hungary

Mihály Varga was born in Karcag on the 26th of January, 1965. He earned his diploma in 1989 graduating in the Budapest University of Economics, specialized in goods-turnover. He worked as an economic auditor at the No. 43. National Company for Building Industry, then in 1990 he took a job as an economist at the Eastern Hungarian Water Management Planning Company. Between 1995 and 1997 he was a lecturer and honorary collage teacher at the University of Economics in Szolnok. Between 1998 and 2001 he became the political state secretary of the Ministry of Finance, then until 2002 he served as the Minister of Finance. Between 2010 and 2012 he worked as the state secretary in charge of the Prime Minister's Office, and later as the Minister Without Portfolio responsible for the relations with international financial organizations. Between 2013 and 2018 he served as Minister for National Economy, then from 2018 and 2022 as Minister of Finance.

Hongbo WU

Special Representative of the Chinese Government on European Affairs

Mr Hongbo Wu is a career diplomat, born in May 1952 in Shandong Province, China, graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University and pursued his postgraduate studies at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand. He is a native of Shandong province, married, father of a daughter. Former President of China International Public Relations Association, and Co-Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development Goals (TUSDG) at Tsinghua University.
2012—2017 - UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs
2009—2012 - Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the Federal Republic of Germany
2007—2009 - Assistant Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2005—2007 - Director-General, General Office of Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2004—2005 - Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of the Philippines
2002—2004 - Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao SAR
2000—2002 - Director-General, Department of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
1999—2000 - Deputy Director-General, Department of West European Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
1998—1999 - Chief Representative, Chinese Delegation, Sino-British Joint Liaison Group
1997—1998 - Counsellor, Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign of the People's Republic of China in the Hong Kong SAR
1995—1997 - Representative, Chinese Delegation, Sino-British Joint Liaison Group
1991—1995 - Director, First Secretary, Department of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Sung-han KIM

Professor
Graduate School of International Studies, Korea University

Sung-han Kim is Professor of International Relations at the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS). He served as the 5th National Security Advisor to the President in 2022-23. He also served as Director of Ilmin International Relations Institute, Korea University. He was Dean of GSIS and DIS from 2017 to 2021. He served as a Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 2012-2013. He was a professor from 1994 to 2007 at the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security (IFANS), Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade. In 2013-2014, Dr. Kim was the Chair of World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction). He also served as the President of the Korean National Committee of CSCAP (Council on Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific); Vice President of the Korean Association of International Studies; President of Korean Association of American Politics (KAAP); and Chairman of the Vision Council for the ROK-U.S. Security Policy Initiative. After the North Korean military attack to the Cheonan naval corvette in March 2010, he advised as a member of the Presidential Commission for National Security Review (May – August 2010) and the Presidential Commission for Defense Reform (July – December 2010). He received Ph.D. in Political Science from University of Texas at Austin. His recent contributed articles to scholarly journals include “Denuclearizing North Korea: Time for Plan B?”, “From Blood Alliance to Strategic Alliance,” “The End of Humanitarian Intervention?” and “The Day After: ROK-U.S. Cooperation for Korean Unification.”

Xuejun CAI

President (CEO)
Silk Road Fund

Mr. Cai Xuejun is the President of Silk Road Fund, as well as a member of the Board of Directors. Before joining the Fund, he worked for the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) Investment Center (Reserve Management Department), and the Investment Company of the People’s Republic of China (Singapore). Mr. Cai received a Master’s Degree in Finance from the Graduate School of the People’s Bank of China and an MBA from the University of Cambridge.

Barnabás VIRÁG

Deputy Governor
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Barnabás Virág has been Deputy Governor of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank since 22 June 2020. Deputy Governor of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank responsible for monetary policy, financial stability, and international relations. From 2015 until his appointment as Deputy Governor he served as Executive Director of the MNB responsible for monetary policy and economic analysis. Between 2013 and 2015 he was Director of the MNB responsible for economic analysis. From 2003 he worked as an Analyst at the MNB. Prior to that he taught at the Budapest University of Economics and State Administration (today Budapest Corvinus University) and was an Analyst at the Ministry of Finance. In 2017 he was awarded the Popovics Prize. He completed his studies at the Budapest University of Economics and State Administration.

Sir John O’REILLY

President
Khalifa University of Science and Technology

Sir John is currently President of Khalifa University of Science and Technology in UAE. He was Director General of Knowledge and Innovation with policy and funding responsibility for higher education, research and innovation for UK government, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of Cranfield University, Chief Executive of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Chair of Telecommunications at University College London. He has experience in government t research and in industry (Royal Radar Establishment, Ultra Electronics Ltd., Post Office Research Centre, BT Laboratories, NICC Ltd) including in the SME sector with IDB Ltd and CAST Ltd and served as a Board member and Chairman of ERA Foundation Ltd. In the international arena he has had various advisory roles for the European Commission and more widely around the world, including chair of the external review committee for the Carnegie-Mellon University Portugal Program and currently serving as Chairman of the Science and Engineering Advisory Council of the Agency for Science Technology and Research (A*STAR) and as a panel member for Quality Assurance of Universities, both in Singapore. Active in the profession, he is a Fellow and former member of Council of the Royal Academy of Engineering, an Honorary Fellow and former President of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, Honorary Fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers and a past President of EUREL (confederation of European Electrical Societies). His personal research has been in ICT with emphasis on telecommunications and networks. He received the IEE J J Thompson Medal for contributions to electronic engineering, the Sciencia ((science) Medal from the government of Portugal, is an International Member of Académie Hassan II des Sciences et Techniques and of Academia das Ciencias de Lisboa, he received a knighthood in UK for contributions to science and Honorary Citizenship in Singapore for contributions to science and engineering.

Huiyao WANG

Founder and President
Center for China and Globalization

Dr. Henry Huiyao Wang is the Founder and President of Center for China and Globalization (CCG) and former Counselor to China State Council. In addition, he is Vice Chairman of China Association for International Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce; Vice Chairman of China Public Relations Association; a Director of Chinese People’s Institute of Foreign Affairs and a Director of China National Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation, both organizations under the supervision of Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Currently, he is a Steering Committee Member of Paris Peace Forum and also sits on the Advisory Board of Duke Kunshan University and Richard Ivey Business School. Dr. Wang pursued his PhD studies at University of Western Ontario and University of Manchester. He was a Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School, a Visiting Fellow of Brookings Institute, and a Senior Fellow at the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada. As a thought leader on global relations, international business, global governance, talent migration, global investment and trade, Chinese Diasporas and Chinese think tanks etc., he has published nearly 100 works, including CCG Global Dialogue Series, China and Globalization Series etc.

Jeffrey SACHS

Director
Center for Sustainable Development, Columbia University

Jeffrey D. Sachs is a world-renowned economics professor, bestselling author, innovative educator, and global leader in sustainable development. Sachs is widely recognized for bold and effective strategies to address complex challenges including the escape from extreme poverty, the global battle against human-induced climate change, international debt and financial crises, national economic reforms, and the control of pandemic and epidemic diseases. Sachs serves as the Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, where he holds the rank of University Professor, the university’s highest academic rank. Sachs was Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University from 2002 to 2016. He is President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, Co-Chair of the Council of Engineers for the Energy Transition, academician of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences at the Vatican, Commissioner of the UN Broadband Commission for Development, Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah Honorary Distinguished Professor at Sunway University, and SDG Advocate for UN Secretary General António Guterres. From 2001-18, Sachs served as Special Advisor to UN Secretaries-General Kofi Annan (2001-7), Ban Ki-moon (2008-16), and António Guterres (2017-18). Sachs has authored and edited numerous books, including three New York Times bestsellers: The End of Poverty (2005), Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet (2008), and The Price of Civilization (2011). Other books include To Move the World: JFK’s Quest for Peace (2013), The Age of Sustainable Development (2015), Building the New American Economy: Smart, Fair & Sustainable (2017), A New Foreign Policy: Beyond American Exceptionalism (2018), The Ages of Globalization: Geography, Technology, and Institutions (2020), and most recently, Ethics in Action for Sustainable Development (2022). Sachs is the 2022 recipient of the Tang Prize in Sustainable Development and was the co-recipient of the 2015 Blue Planet Prize, the leading global prize for environmental leadership. He was twice named among Time magazine’s 100 most influential world leaders. Sachs has received 42 honorary doctorates, and his recent awards include the 2022 Tang Prize in Sustainable Development, the Legion of Honor by decree of the President of the Republic of France, and the Order of the Cross from the President of Estonia.

Dániel PALOTAI

Executive Director
International Monetary Fund

Dániel Palotai is an economist. He earned his Master’s degree at the Corvinus University of Budapest. He began his professional career at Magyar Nemzeti Bank, the central bank of Hungary, then from 2007, he went on to work at the European Central Bank. From November 2010 he was Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department of the Ministry for National Economy and was actively involved in the development of Hungary’s Structural Reform Program. In March 2013 Dániel Palotai re-joined the Magyar Nemzeti Bank to become Executive Director and the Bank’s Chief Economist. In 2015, he received the Popovics Sándor award, which is a prestigious recognition awarded to young economists under the age of 45. He was a member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the European Central Bank and a member of the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC) of the European Union. In October 2020 Dániel Palotai was elected to serve as an Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In his capacity as a Member of the Executive Board, he represents the Constituency of the Central and Eastern European countries.

Jun MA

President
Beijing Institute of Finance and Sustainability

Dr. Ma Jun is the Founder and President of Institute of Finance and Sustainability, Chairman of Sprinkles (HK) Charity Foundation, Chairman of Green Finance Committee of China Society for Finance and Banking, Chairman of Hong Kong Green Finance Association, Co-Chair of the Steering Committee of the Green Investment Principles for the Belt & Road, and Co-Chair of IPSF Taxonomy Working Group. In the past years, Dr. Ma served as Co-Chair of G20 Sustainable Finance Working Group (SFWG), and chairs of two workstreams of the Central Banks and Supervisors’ Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS). Between 2018 and 2020, Dr Ma was the Director of Center for Green Finance Development at Tsinghua University. During 2014-17, Dr. Ma served as the Chief Economist at the People’s Bank of China (PBOC)’s Research Bureau. Between 2018-21, he was a member of the PBOC’s Monetary Policy Committee. Before joining the PBOC, he worked for 13 years at Deutsche Bank, where he was Managing Director/Chief Economist/Investment Strategist for Greater China. During 1992-2000, he worked as a senior economist and economist at the World Bank and the IMF. From 1988-1990, he was a research fellow at the Development Research Center of China's State Council. Dr. Ma is a globally renowned policy advocate and effective practitioner for green and sustainable finance and has received numerous awards for his research and policy advocacy. He led the drafting of China’s green finance guidelines and its first green bond taxonomy during 2015-16; he initiated and facilitated a range of global consensuses on scaling up green finance under the G20 framework during 2016-22; he initiated and led the drafting of the Green Investment Principles for the Belt & Road in 2018; he initiated the idea and then co-led the effort to develop the Common Ground Taxonomy under the International Platform for Sustainable Finance (IPSF) in 2019-2023.

Andrew CROSS

Chief Financial Officer
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank

Andrew Cross was appointed to the position of Chief Financial Officer of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) on January 1, 2020. His primary responsibility is to provide strategic and technical leadership in financial and treasury management to ensure AIIB’s sustainable financial strength and steady growth in financial resources. He also prioritises the safeguarding of AIIB’s Triple A credit ratings in support of the Bank’s overall mission. Mr. Cross joined AIIB in May 2019 and served as the Assistant CFO before his appointment. Prior to this, Mr. Cross was the Deputy Treasurer at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. He supported the IFC Treasurer in providing leadership and oversight for IFC treasury hub operations in London and Singapore. He joined IFC in January 2006 as a Principal Financial Officer and was a member of the funding team. He was also involved in IFC’s market borrowing operations and its emerging market local currency issuance program. Mr. Cross was an investment banker at Merrill Lynch International from 1993 onwards, initially based in London. He worked as a Director in Debt Capital Markets with responsibilities spanning sovereign, corporate and financial institution clients in the Europe, Middle East and African regions. From 2000 to 2002, he was based in Johannesburg at Merrill Lynch International with responsibilities for Southern Africa debt capital markets. Mr. Cross has an undergraduate degree from the University of Waikato, New Zealand and an MBA from the University of Cranfield, United Kingdom.

Kilhwa JUNG

Chairman
Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange

Jung Kilhwa currently serves as the President of the Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange (KOFICE). For over 30 years, he has primarily produced documentary programs related to history and culture at MBC, a major South Korean broadcasting company. In 1986, he produced a documentary program titled "Homeland of Masterpieces" in Hungary to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of Liszt Ferenc. This event took place before the establishment of diplomatic relations between South Korea and Hungary in 1989.
For three years from 2011, he worked as the Director of MBC's Latin America Branch as well as a foreign correspondent. Afterward, he pursued a doctoral degree at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies on the topic of the Korean Wave fandom in Central and South America. Since 2021, he has been working as the President of KOFICE, focusing his efforts on promoting international cultural exchange and the Korean Wave. He is also the co-author of the book "Squid Game and the Content Revolution.

Csaba KANDRÁCS

Deputy Governor
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Mr. Kandrács was appointed as Deputy Governor of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank (the Central Bank of Hungary) in October 2019. In this capacity he is responsible for financial institutions supervision – including credit institutions, insurance and pension funds and capital markets – and consumer protection. While his responsibilities include leading the work on green finance within the central bank, Mr. Kandrács is also a member of the Presidential Committee for Sustainable Development of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In addition to that he also serves as a member of the Monetary Council. Since 2015 he is a member of the European Banking Authority’s Board of Supervisors and from 2023 a member of the European Banking Authority’s Management Board.
Prior to his current role Mr. Kandrács served as Executive Director of the Central Bank of Hungary from 2016, where he was responsible for the supervision of financial institutions. He is also a member of the Financial Stability Council. In 2013 he was appointed as a member of the Monetary Council, then he became the Chairman and CEO of MARK Ltd., the asset management company established by the Central Bank of Hungary. Before joining to the Central Bank of Hungary, Mr. Kandrács was appointed as a Deputy State Secretary of the Hungarian State Treasury at the Ministry for National Economy in 2012 and later that year he became the President of the Hungarian State Treasury. He started his professional career as a financial expert at the Hungarian Ministry of Finance in 2003, after which Mr. Kandrács joined the Budapest 5th District Local Government in 2009 as Head of the Financial Unit.

Shadab TAIYABI

President
Singapore FinTech Association

Shadab Taiyabi is the President of the Singapore FinTech Association (SFA), the national industry association and a cross-industry initiative designed to facilitate collaboration between all market participants and stakeholders in the FinTech ecosystem. SFA brings together a strong community to foster collaboration, innovation and partnerships among members and the industry at-large, with the goal of strengthening Singapore’s position as a global FinTech hub. As the elected President since March 2021, Shadab leads the SFA Executive Committee, which sets the strategic direction for its activities related to representation and advocacy, fostering business growth, facilitating access to capital and opportunities as well as growing the FinTech talent pool. He recently started a new position at HSBC (Singapore) as Partnerships & Ecosystems Lead, Office of the CEO. Shadab has over 17 years of experience working in the financial services industry with over 14 years at FinTech companies. He has a strong track record of growing businesses in the fintech space and is a thought-leader across multiple diverse fintech segments such as wealthtech, insurtech, payments, digital financing as well as web3.0 applications in financial services. Shadab also sits on the MAS Payments Council as an Observer. The Payments Council convenes key providers and users of e-payments in Singapore, to collaborate on strategies to drive the adoption of e-payments, promote interoperability among e-payments solutions, and advise MAS on payments-related policies. He is also a member of the Advisory Board for the Point Carbon Zero Programme which is launched by Google and MAS to drive the innovation, incubation and scaling of climate FinTech solutions in the region.

Christian H. M. KETELS

Principal Associate
Harvard Business School

Dr. Ketels is a global expert on economic competitiveness and strategy. He recently returned to Harvard Business School, where he serves as a faculty member and Principal Associate at Prof. Michael Porter’s Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness. He is a Director and Co-Chair of the Innovation Fund Denmark and chairs the Advisory Board of the TCI Network and the Scientific Advisory Board of Orkestra, the Basque Institute for Competitiveness. He is a research fellow at the Stockholm School of Economics and a member of the Senior Economic Advisory Board of PIF, Saudi Arabia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund. Dr. Ketels served as Chief Economist of the Boston Consulting Group in 2018-2019, where he was heading the Center for Macroeconomics at the BCG Henderson Institute. Dr. Ketels has been an advisor to the World Bank, IMF, European Commission, the Nordic Investment Bank, and a range of national governments. He has held visiting positions at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (National University of Singapore), BI Norwegian School of Management, and the European Business School (Oestrich-Winckel, Germany), and has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Lappeenranta University of Technology (Finland).

Xin WANG

Director-General
People's Bank of China Research Bureau

Mr. Wang Xin is currently the Director General of Research Bureau of People’s Bank of China (PBC),Co-chair of the G20 Sustainable Finance Working Group. He served as Director of policy research at the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Deputy Director General of the Financial Research Institute of the PBC, Head of the PBC Representative Office in Frankfurt, Germany, Deputy Director General of the Research Bureau, President of the PBC Nanchang Provincial Branch, Director General of the Currency, Gold and Silver Bureau and Director of the State Council’s Joint Conference on Combating Currency Counterfeit. His research focuses on Sustainable Finance, International Finance, Financial System Reform, Fintech, and Social Security. One of his paper was awarded Sun Yefang Best Economics Paper. Dozens of his academic papers and articles have been published on domestic and foreign journals, such as Journal of International Political Economy, China and World Economy, Journal of Financial Research. Mr. Wang received his M.P.A. from Harvard Kennedy School and was honored for his contribution to the Edward S. Mason Program. He earned his M.A. in economics from the Graduate School of People’s Bank of China and B.A. from Peking University.

Márton UGRÓSDY

Deputy State Secretary
Head of the Office of the Prime Minister’s Political Director Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister of Hungary

Márton Ugrósdy, PhD has been serving in the Hungarian government since June 2022. In his current role, he is responsible for preparing analytical and background briefing materials pertaining to the most recent developments of geopolitics, the internal dynamics of the European Union, as well as the activities of various key players in foreign affairs. Before joining public service, Márton was working at the Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Hungary’s eminent foreign policy think tank from 2015 till 2022. He joined the Institute as a part time research fellow, covering transatlantic relations and Central Europe with a special focus on the Visegrád Four. In 2017, he was appointed as one of the deputy directors of IFAT, and in 2018 he assumed the post of director. In these roles, he appeared frequently in the Hungarian and foreign print and broadcast media, and spoke at various events from the United States to Japan on Hungarian foreign policy. Prior to his assignments at IFAT, Márton was the editor-in-chief of Kitekintő.hu, Hungary’s number one foreign policy news portal for seven years. During his tenure from 2009 until 2016, he oversaw the daily operations of the site, editing, proofreading and on many occasions, writing articles on different topics. During his time at Kitekintő, he led the Central Europe and Americas columns as well. Márton is a graduate of Eötvös Loránd University, with a major in political science. In addition to have served as an elected student leader, he was awarded the Republican Scholarship for academic excellence twice during his studies. After graduation, he was awarded the Hungarian-American Enterprise Fellowship Fund’s grant to work with the Center for Strategic & International Studies in Washington, DC. Later on, Márton earned his PhD from Corvinus University of Budapest in political science, with a specialization in public management. He also lectured mostly international students at Corvinus for six years in the Public Administration and Management Masters program.

Liping ZHANG

Deputy Director-General
Financial Research Institute, Development Research Center of the State Council

Zhang Liping is Deputy Director-General of Financial Research Institute in the Development Research Center of the State Council (DRC) of PRC. Her main research fields include international finance, international trade, international investment and international economic cooperation. Ms. Zhang received her Bachelor's Degree in economics from Nankai University in 1994, her Master's Degree in economics from University of Foreign Economics and Trade in 1999, and her economics PhD from Beijing Normal University in 2010. She has participated in many research projects, such as "China's financial reform and financial security", "RMB regionalization", "China's foreign trade transformation and Upgrading Research under the new situation", "Sino US strategic and economic dialogue and related issues research", and "financial science and technology development". Ms. Zhang has plenty working experience: from September 2006 to March 2007, she visited the Institute of International Studies (IIMA) in Japan to study the regional monetary and financial cooperation in East Asia; from October 2011 to January 2012, she visited the Peterson Institute of International Economics (PIIE) in the United States to study the investment of Chinese enterprises in the United States; from July 2017 to January 2018, she visited the Kennedy School of Harvard University in the United States.

Anikó SZOMBATI

Executive Director
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Economist, graduated from Corvinus University, Budapest. Joined the central bank in 2001. She is responsible for promoting digital transformation in the financial sector as well as within the central bank, including the implementation of cutting-edge technologies and research on CBDC. She is member of the Financial Stability Council.

Nameer KHAN

Chairman
MENA Fintech Association

Nameer Khan, Chairman of the MENA Fintech Association (MFTA) and Founder and CEO of Fils, the region's leading sustainability-focused fintech, has been recognized as MENA's Future Fintech Leader by the UAE Central Bank for his outstanding contributions to industry-wide growth and collaboration. Under Nameer's exceptional leadership, MFTA has achieved a ranking as the 4th best global fintech body. His unwavering passion for green fintech innovation continues to inspire a brighter, sustainable, and prosperous future.

Chris LECK

Group Chief Technology Officer
S&TPPO, Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore

Chris Leck is Group Chief Technology Officer at the Public Sector Science & Technology Policy & Plans Office (S&TPPO), a department of the Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore, and Senior Adviser, Innovation & Enterprise, at the Agency for Science, Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore. He is also an adjunct Senior Fellow at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He was recognized in the Apolitical and World Economic Forum Global Future Council on Agile Governance’s 2021 Agile 50 List, as one of the world’s 50 most influential people navigating disruption. Chris joined the Singapore Public Service in 2001. Prior to his current roles at S&TPPO and A*STAR, he was the Deputy Executive Director of the national space office, the Office for Space Technology & Industry. Other senior appointments he held in the past included Deputy Group Director of the Technology & Industry Development Group at the Land Transport Authority, Director for Futures & Transformation at the Ministry of Transport, and Director for Strategic & Political-Military Planning at the Ministry of Defence.

Zsolt KUTI

Executive Director
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Mr Zsolt Kuti is Executive Director for Monetary Policy, Financial Analysis and Statistics in the cen-tral bank of Hungary since 2021. He and his team have an essential role in supporting the decision-making of the monetary policy strategy, analysing the latest financial market and macro-financing developments of the Hungarian economy. He completed his studies at the Budapest University of Economics and Public Administration and the University of Otago in New Zealand. He received his master's degree from the Central European University. He started his career at Citibank in 2001. He joined the central bank of Hungary in 2008 as a senior analyst in the Financial Analysis Department. In 2014 Mr. Kuti became the Director of Monetary Policy and Financial Analysis Directorate. In 2021 he was appointed Executive Director responsible for Monetary Policy, Financial Analysis and Statistics. He also researched at the Basel-based Bank for International Settlements during his career. In addition, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Budapest Stock Exchange since 2014 and a member of the Board of Directors of KELER Central Depository Ltd. since 2020.

Taehyoung CHO

Director General
Economic Research Institute, Bank of Korea

Taehyoung Cho, who holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Korea, is currently the Director General of Economic Research Institute at the Bank of Korea. Since beginning his career at the Bank in 1995, after graduation from Seoul National University, Dr. Cho has worked in the areas of the Korean economy, the international commodity markets, global economic issues, producers’ prices, national accounts statistics, capital measurement and productivity analysis, North Korean economic studies, etc. Especially he was a major developer of the official Korean national balance sheet including financial and non-financial assets during 2008 to 2017. He also produced in-depth papers on the North Korean economic growth during the last several years. At present, he is doing research, above all, on decomposing Korea’s past economic growth, forecasting its long future growth, and drawing key strategies to maintain its growth potential. He has a priority interest in reviving the economy under the declining and aging population, and reallocating industries and investment domestically and globally under the new demographics. Additionally, he also deals with the issue of how the US-China economic gap will evolve in the coming years and what risks and opportunities will arise during the progress.

Zoltán POZSÁR

Founder and CEO
Ex Uno Plures

Zoltán Pozsár is the Founder and CEO of Ex Uno Plures, a macroeconomic advisory firm specializing in funding and interest rate markets. Prior to establishing Ex Uno Plures in 2023, Zoltán held key positions in the private and public sectors. From 2015 to 2023, he was a managing director, the Global Head of Short-Term Interest Rate Strategy, and a member of the Investment Committee at Credit Suisse based in New York. During this time, he made significant contributions to his field and became a trusted advisor to the world’s top investors. Before his tenure at Credit Suisse, Zoltán was a senior advisor at the U.S. Department of the Treasury and worked as a visiting scholar at the International Monetary Fund. During the Great Financial Crisis, he played a pivotal role as the Head of Market Intelligence for Securitized Funding Markets at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY), where his work involved liaising with senior officials at the White House, the Treasury, and the Federal Reserve Board, and making the case for, designing and operationalizing the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) to stabilize ABS markets. Zoltán’s expertise and insights have had a lasting impact on policymakers and investors worldwide. In 2009, while at FRBNY, he created the map of the shadow banking system, which prompted the G20 to initiate regulatory measures in this area. Today, Zoltán is widely recognized as one of the most influential investment strategists globally, with a substantial following among industry professionals.

Nurkhat KUSHIMOV

Chief Executive Officer
Astana Financial Services Authority

Mr Kushimov was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of the Astana Financial Services Authority on 17 March 2022. Mr Kushimov has extensive experience in senior positions in the area of financial market regulation. Prior to this appointment, Mr Kushimov served as Executive Body member in charge of FinTech regulation and company registration at the AFSA. He started his career at the AIFC in 2018 at the Astana International Exchange (AIX), where he oversaw matters relating to the regulation of issuers and IPOs of Kazakhstan’s and international companies. Over the years, he has held various leadership positions in the civil service, including ministries of justice and interior. A Bolashak graduate, he holds LLM degree from the University of Cambridge, Faculty of Law (2013).

Norbert CSIZMADIA

President of the Board of Trustees
PADME

Norbert Csizmadia is a geographer, his field of study includes economic strategy, geostrategy, geoeconomics, and geopolitics. Former State Secretary in charge of planning coordination for the Ministry for National Economy, from March, 2013, former Executive Director of the Central Bank of Hungary. Since 2016, President of the Board of Trustees of the Pallas Athene Domus Meriti Foundation, and Chief Editor of Hungarian Geopolitics Magazine (HUG). He is member of International Advisory Board of Fudan Institute of Belt and Road & Global Governance, and independent Director Of Bank of China Hungary. President of the International Advisory Board - BC4LS (Budapest Center for Long-Term Sustainability). Co-chair of the Geopolitical Department of the Hungarian Geographical Society. Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the János Neumann University Foundation. Author of the book titled: Geofusion - The Power of Geography and Mapping of the 21st Century (Pabooks Publishing, LID Publishing - London, and World Scientific Publishing - Singapore) and Geofusion 2.0 - Towards a long-term Sustainable Eurasian Growth (Pabooks Publishing)

Renhe ZHANG

Vice President
Fudan University

Professor Renhe Zhang is the Vice President of Fudan University. He also serves as Dean of the Graduate School, Fudan University. Since 2016 he has been professor and chair/dean of Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences/Institute of Atmospheric Sciences (AOS/IAS), Fudan University. Before joining Fudan University, he acted as the deputy director-general of Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in 1999-2001 and the president of Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences (CAMS) in 2001-2012. He was the vice-chair of the Science and Technology Committee of the China Meteorological Administration, the vice-presidents of the Chinese Meteorological Society and the China Society on Tibet Plateau. His main research interests are tropical air-sea interaction, Asian monsoon and Tibetan Plateau meteorology. He has been the leading scientists for more than twenty research projects in national and ministerial levels in China, including the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, the National Science Fund for Creative Research Groups, the National Key Program for Developing Basic Sciences, and the Major Project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. He has published more than 300 research papers, among which more than 170 papers were published in SCI(E) journals. He worked as members for a number of international scientific organizations/programs, such as the Scientific Steering Group (SSG) of the international program “Climate Variability and Predictability” (CLIVAR), the Air-Sea Interaction Committee of the American Meteorological Society, and the Steering Committee (SC) of the international program “Global Climate Observing System” (GCOS).

Mariann GECSE

Director of Public Affairs and Communication
Huawei Technologies Hungary – West Balkan

Mariann Gecse joined Huawei Technologies Hungary in 2011 as media manager. In 2012 she took over the public affairs in Hungary as well. Since May 2020 she is responsible for 6 countries’ public affairs and communication, led by the Hungarian-Western Balkans Representative Office. The representative office of Huawei Technologies covers Hungary, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia. Beside government affairs and corporate communication she is managing the company’s corporate social responsibilities as well as the corporate’s largerxie business ecosystem.

Chong-En BAI

Dean
School of Economics and Management at Tsinghua University

Professor Chong-En Bai is Mansfield Freeman Chair Professor, Dean of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University. He earned his Ph.D. degree in Economics from Harvard University. His research areas include Institutional Economics, Economic Growth and Development, Public Economics, Finance, Corporate Governance and Chinese Economy. Professor Bai is Vice-Chairman of the 13th All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce. He is a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the “14th Five-Year Plan” National Development Planning Expert Committee, the Chinese Economists 50 Forum, the China Finance 40 Forum, and Chinainfo 100. He is also Chairman of Academic Committee of China Wealth Management 50 Forum. He was a member of the monetary policy committee of the People’s Bank of China from 2015 to 2018. He served as Adjunct Vice-President of Beijing State-Owned Assets Management Co., Ltd. from August 2011 to December 2012. He was a non-resident Senior Fellow of the Brookings Institution from 2006 to 2007.>

Gábor GYURA

Sustainable Finance Consultant
United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative

Gábor Gyura is an international expert supporting banks globally to manage their sustainability impacts in line with the UN’s Principles for Responsible Banking. Besides his current consultancy role for the UN, he also teaches sustainable finance in the Florence School of Banking & Finance of the European University Institute. He is a Member of the Sustainability & Corporate Governance Committee of the Budapest Stock Exchange and also serves on the advisory boards of several sustainability related international organizations and research projects. Previously he spent 15 years in financial services regulation in various positions and was founding head of the Sustainable Finance Department at the Central Bank of Hungary. He has a masters degree in Economics and also holds a PhD in Earth Sciences.

Raekwon CHUNG

Board Director
Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future

Ambassador Raekwon Chung served as the First Climate Change Ambassador of Korea, Principal Advisor for climate change for UN Secretary-General, Director for Environment and Development of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Professor Emeritus Incheon National University, Recipient of Personal Copy of Nobel Peace Prize 2007 of IPCC as lead author of IPCC special report on technology transfer and Honorary Doctor from Moscow State University. Pioneered the concept of Green Growth since 2005 as a new paradigm to present climate change as an opportunity for economic growth and job creation. Published “Low Carbon Green Growth Roadmap’ in 2012 as a manual for operationalizing the concept of Green Growth with best practices. Now promoting PDC movement; a voluntary carbon payment by all the individual consuming goods and services that emitted CO2 as an option for consumers to share the responsibility of the Government and the Business, tasked as primary drivers of NDC of Paris Climate Agreement. Now serving as Board Director of Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a better Future, Chairman of International Award Committee of Global Energy Prize.

Lorenzo TAVAZZI

Partner and Responsible for the International Department
The European House Ambrosetti

Lorenzo Tavazzi is Partner and Head of Intelligence and Scenarios Department at The European House - Ambrosetti. He is responsible for the international development for the Group. He works on projects involving Top Management, Strategy and Internationalization for large and multinational companies. He manages international Think Thanks and Advisory Boards and high-standing working communities involved in the issues of growth and competitiveness, including: innovation and the digital economy, infrastructure andmobility, the public sector and regulation authorities, educational and training systems, cooperation for development and international relations, and tourism. He has in-depth expertise in advisory and policymaking activities, advocacy and public affairs. Starting in 2006, he has been working with a number of African and ASEAN countries governments in drawing up industrial and economic development strategies. He has overseen and authored over 100 publications and studies on themes involving macro-economics, strategy and sector development. He graduated cum laude in Banking, Financial and Insurance Economics, specializing in the Economics of institutions and financial markets. He holds a Master in Business Strategy and Management, awarded cum laude.

Kamran KHAN

Head of ESG for Asia Pacific
Deutsche Bank

Kamran Khan is Deutsche Bank’s Group-level Head of ESG in Asia Pacific. He established and heads Deutsche Bank’s ESG Centre of Excellence (COE) in Singapore. The COE works with coverage and product teams to engage clients and execute ESG transactions which meet global ESG standards while addressing the unique challenges in APAC. The COE houses cross-divisional expertise covering all areas of sustainable finance, including ESG-linked and aligned bonds, loans and derivatives as well as ESG due diligence for M&A transactions. Mr. Khan is a member of Deutsche Bank Group’s Global Sustainability Steering Committee. Prior to joining Deutsche Bank, Mr. Khan established Infra-Tech Capital, an impact fund investing in companies utilizing technology to provide infrastructure services and achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals. He was previously appointed by the Obama White House to serve as the head of global investments and operations at the US Millennium Challenge Corporation, where he led a USD 1.5-2bn annual investment program globally with responsibility for returns as well as impact. Mr. Khan previously held senior executive roles at the World Bank and helped establish the World Bank Group regional hub in Singapore, comprising the World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Multilateral Insurance & Guarantee Agency (MIGA). Prior to his time at the World Bank, Mr. Khan worked on M&A transactions and advisory mandates at JP Morgan and LEK. He also served as a US Foreign Service Officer with the US Agency for International Development (USAID), where he led operations for the project finance and guarantees facility. Mr. Khan served as an Advisor on Infrastructure Finance to APEC, ASEAN, and the G-20. He has also served on the Board of Advisors at a variety of market-leading companies using technology to achieve ESG goals. He is a frequent speaker at events such as World Economic Forum, UNFCCC Conference of Parties (COP), APEC Summits, and in major international media. Mr. Khan holds an MBA from the Booth School of Business at University of Chicago, and an MS in Applied Economics and Master of Government Administration from the University of Pennsylvania. He received his BS in Economics from George Mason University.

Gergely BAKSAY

Executive Director
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Gergely Baksay is an Economist at Magyar Nemzeti Bank (Central Bank of Hungary) and Executive Director responsible for Economic Analysis and Competitiveness. In 2003, he graduated from Corvinus University in Budapest, and later obtained an MBA degree from there. His first job was at the Central Statistical Office, and since 2007 he has been working at the Hungarian National Bank. First, he dealt with budgetary matters and then with competitiveness. In 2020, as managing director, his scope of responsibility was expanded to include economic analysis. He was awarded the Popovics prize by the central bank in 2020. He is the head of the Competitiveness Department of the Hungarian Economic Society.

Cyn-Young PARK

Director
Regional Cooperation and Integration Department of the Asian Development Bank

Dr. Cyn-Young Park is Director of the Regional Cooperation and Integration (RCI) and Trade in Climate Change and Sustainable Development Department of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). In her current capacity, she is responsible for managing ADB operations and knowledge on RCI and trade. She leads a team of experts to develop strategies and approaches to support RCI and to provide guidance in design and implementation of ADB RCI and trade projects. During her progressive career within ADB, she has been a main author and contributor to ADB’s major publications including Asian Development Outlook (ADB’s flagship publication), Asian Economic Integration Report, Asia Capital Markets Monitor, Asia Economic Monitor, Asia Bond Monitor, and ADB Country Diagnostic Study Series. She has also participated in various global and regional forums including the G20 Development Working Group, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), ASEAN+3, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), and Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM). She has written and lectured extensively about the Asian economy and financial markets. Her work has been published in peer reviewed academic journals including the Journal of Banking and Finance, the Journal of Financial Stability, the Journal of Futures Markets, the Review of Income and Wealth, and the World Economy. Prior to joining the ADB, she served as Economist (1999-2002) at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), where she contributed to the OECD Economic Outlook. She received her Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University. She holds a bachelor degree in International Economics from Seoul National University.

Elena ROVENSKAYA

Program Director
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis

Elena Rovenskaya is Program Director of the Advancing Systems Analysis (ASA) program at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Laxenburg, Austria. She has background in applied mathematics. Her scientific interests lie in the fields of optimization, decision sciences and mathematical modeling of complex socio-environmental systems. As the ASA Program director, Rovenskaya is leading a team of more than a hundred scientists who work on new systems analytical methods, which enable higher levels of agility to support policy and societal decision making. Among many other projects and activities, Elena Rovenskaya led a project on Challenges and Opportunities of Economic Integration within a Wider European and Eurasian Space (2014-2020), which focused on plausible futures of economic cooperation in the Greater Eurasian space and interplay between different integration processes in the region.

Paul KIM

Chief Technology Officer & Associate Dean
Stanford Graduate School of Education

Dr. Paul Kim is the Associate Dean and Chief Technology Officer of the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University where he leads initiatives in learning technology design, educational research and community development. Prior to this, he founded Seeds of Employment, a non-profit global education incubator that leverages mobile technologies for social innovation. Under his direction and leadership, Stanford undergraduate and graduate students carried out mobile-social educational research and development in real-world classrooms and virtual learning environments. Dr. Kim is also dedicated to international development through education and information technology strategies. He has advised on national online education initiatives in Saudi Arabia, the national evaluation of Uruguay’s One Laptop Per Child project. He also served on various boards and advisory committees, including the Asian Development Bank, the National Academies of Science, and the National Science Foundation’s Education and Human Resources Directorate.

Benjamin CASHORE

Professor and Director Institute of Environment and Sustainability
Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore

Benjamin Cashore holds the Li Ka Shing Chair in Public Management at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore and is Director of LKYSPP’s Institute for Environment and Sustainability (IES). He specialises in global and multi-level environmental governance, comparative public policy, and transnational business regulation/corporate environmental social governance (ESG) innovations. His substantive research interests include climate policy, biodiversity conservation/land use change, and sustainable environmental management of forests and related agricultural sectors. His geographic focus includes Southeast Asia, North America, Latin America, and Europe. Mr. Cashore’s theoretical interests include the potential of anticipatory policy design for identifying path dependent policy mixes capable of ameliorating “super wicked” environmental problems; the legitimacy and authority requirements of non-state market driven (NSMD) global governance; and the influence of economic globalisation on domestic environmental policies.

Xufeng ZHU

Professor and Dean,
School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University

Xufeng Zhu is Professor and Dean at the School of Public Policy and Management (SPPM) and Executive Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development Goals, Tsinghua University (TUSDG), Director of the Science & Technology Development and Governance Center, Tsinghua University (TUSTDG), Editor-in-Chief of China Public Administration Review, and Director of the Think Tank Research Center of the SPPM. He has won many national academic awards including the China National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of China (2016), the Youth Award of Management Science in China (2014), the National Program for Support of Top-notch Young Professionals (2012), and the National Outstanding Youth Fund (2013). He was also selected as Harvard Yenching Scholar by the Harvard Yenching Institute in 2008. He was nominated by UN Secretary-General António Guterres and appointed by the Economic and Social Council as a member of the Committee for Development Policy (CDP). He serves as Vice President of the China Association of Administrative Management,General Secretary of the China Public Management Association and Executive Council member and Co-Chair of the SDG working committee of the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA).

Márton SCHŐBERL

Chief Executive Officer
Hungarian Institute of International Affairs

Ambassador Márton Schőberl completed his university studies at the Pázmány Péter Catholic University, where he graduated in 2007 with a degree in communication and history. Following that, he worked in the world of business information systems and from 2010 in the central administration in various positions in the field of higher education and state asset management. He led the Hungarian think tank Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (IFAT) between 2014 and 2018, then served as a Deputy State Secretary responsible for cultural diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in the fourth Orbán government (2018 2022). Since 2015, he has been the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Hungary. Márton returned to IFAT in July 2022, starting his second directorial term. After the reorganisation of the institute, he serves as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs (HIIA) from April 2023.

Bernard YEUNG

Emeritus President
Asian Buerau of Finance and Economic Research

Professor Bernard Yeung is Chair Professor, and China’s Ministry of Education appointed Changjiang (Yangtze River) Scholar, visiting the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) (Aug 2023 - ). He is also the Emeritus (Inaugural) President of the Asian Bureau of Finance and Economic Research and an emeritus professor at the National University of Singapore Business School. Professor Yeung was the President of the Asian Bureau of Finance and Economic Research (2013 to 2023). He was also the Stephen Riady Distinguished Professor in Finance and Strategic Management at the National University of Singapore Business School (Jun 2008 – Jun 2023). He was Dean of NUS Business School from June 2008 to June 2019. Before joining NUS, he was the Abraham Krasnoff Professor in Global Business, Economics, and Management at New York University (NYU) Stern School of Business and the Director of the NYU China House. From 1988 to 1999, he taught at the University of Michigan and the University of Alberta from 1983 to 1988. Professor Yeung has published widely cited work in top-tier academic journals covering Finance, Economics, Strategy, and International Business topics. He has more than 30,400 citations. He was awarded the Public Administration Silver Medal (2018) in Singapore, the Irwin Outstanding Educator Award (2013) from the Academy of Management, and is an elected Fellow of the Academy of International Business. Professor Yeung was a member of the Economic Strategies Committee in Singapore (2009), a member of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) in Singapore (2016-2018), and a member of the Financial Research Council of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (2010 -2013). Professor Yeung sits on the Advisory Committee of the Institute of Economics, Academia Sinica. Professor Yeung also serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director of the Bank of China (BOC) Aviation Limited since 2016 and the Advisory Board of Healthway Medical Corporation Ltd (2018-2022). Professor Yeung received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Western Ontario and his MBA and Ph.D. degrees from the Graduate School of Business at the University of Chicago.

Ronit GHOSE

Managing Director and Global Head
Future of Finance at Citi Research

Ronit Ghose is the Global Head, Future of Finance, Citi’s think tank for the future of money and technology. Ronit’s current areas of focus include Digital Assets, the Metaverse, Web3, the appli-cations of AI to Finance and other frontier topics. Previously, Ronit was Global Head of Banks and Fintech Research for Citi. Ronit is an Advisor to various Governments, Universities, VC investors and tech firms in the UK, UAE and Africa. Prior to joining Citi, he worked at the British Bankers’ Association and was a re-search assistant in the UK Parliament for a former Prime Minister. He has an undergraduate de-gree from the University of Oxford & a postgraduate diploma from the University of London.

Bruno LANVIN

President
Smart City Observatory

In addition to his thirty years of international experience as an economist in the United Nations and at the World Bank, Dr Bruno Lanvin has been teaching and leading research projects in various first-tier universities in the US and Europe (Michigan State University, INSEAD, IMD e.g.). Initially a mathematician and a specialist of international trade, his research and publications have focused on information technology, innovation and talent strategies. He has over forty years of experience in advising governments and large corporations. During his ten years at the World Bank, he held various high-level positions, in which he contributed to assisting a large number of organizations and governments in designing their knowledge and high-level education strategies. He also worked with the European Commission on various aspects of Europe’s skills and re-skilling policies and strategies. Since 2001, Dr Lanvin has been co-authoring four major indices: the Global Information Technology Report (NRI), the Global Innovation Index Report (GII), the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI), and the Smart City Index ‘SCI), as well as the award-winning book ‘Sixteen Shades of Smart’. Over the last decade, his research has very much focused on education and talent policies as a tool to accelerate growth. Through his responsibilities as a board member of various private and public organizations, he was able to heighten interest for education and talent strategies, and to promote the strategic formulation of knowledge strategies. He holds a BA in Mathematics and Physics, an MBA (HEC, a PhD in Economics (Paris I)-La Sorbonne) and is an alumnus of INSEAD (IDP-C) and MIT (Beyond Smart Cities Certificate). A frequent speaker at high-level meetings, he has been a member of numerous boards for many years, including those of ICANN, IDA-Infocomm, GovTech, IP-Watch, AAID, Kazakhstan’s Presidential Board on ICT Strategy, and the Bin Rashid Foundation for Government Innovation. He has also been a frequent speaker at the World Economic Forum and chaired the Forum’s Global Advisory Group on ‘Future of Government’. His most recent book (The Future is Young) was released in July 2022. It is an optimistic analysis of how younger generations have the power to change the world to make it a better place.

Ayham FAYYOUMI

Education & Skills Director
PwC Middle East, Education & Skills Practice

Dr. Ayham Fayyoumi is an advisor to top leadership in different governments in the middle east region. He is an experienced management consultant in strategic transformation and worked on nationwide transformational projects in the region and helped government entities bring their strategy to execution. Ayham leads the education and digital transformation work as part of the Education & Skills Practice in PwC Middle East. He focuses on higher education, technology-based learning, and research & innovation and how educational institutions can leverage emerging technologies their institutions. Moreover, starting his career as a researcher and university professor, he conducted various research activities in the area of education technologies and e-learning, online assessment, and programs evaluation and effectiveness, and have more than 25 published research articles in scientific journals and conferences.

Yiqiang ZHAN

Vice Dean of School of Information Science and Technology
Fudan University

Dr. Yiqiang Zhan is Deputy Dean and full professor in the School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. He obtained his Ph.D. in physics on the topic of "organic electronics" from Fudan University, China in 2005 before moving to ISMN-CNR bologna, Italy as a postdoc. From 2007, he continued his research in Linkoping University, Sweden initially as a postdoc and then as an assistant professor. He joined Fudan University as an associate professor at 2011 and has been promoted to Professor at 2016. He has published more than 100 research papers in Science, Joule, Adv. Mater., ACS energy letter, Light: Sci. & appl. and other journals, which were cited over 3000 times. Prof. Zhan was selected into the Pujiang talent plan of Shanghai in 2012 and won the second prize of 2013 Shanghai Natural Science Award. He has been invited by Nature, Adv. Mater., JACS and other international academic journals as reviewers for many times. He was also invited to serve as an expert in the international appraisal of the US Department of energy's scientific research projects, the Romanian National Development and innovation Commission, National Science Centre Poland, the University of Macau and the Hong Kong research funding Bureau.

Attila KOVÁCS

Dean
Budapest Metropolitan University

Dr. Attila Kovács, PhD. is the Dean of the Faculty of Business, Communication and Tourism at Budapest Metropolitan University, where he also works as an associate professor. Previously, he was an associate professor at Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico and at Kuwait College of Science and Technology in Kuwait City. He also held the same title at Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church. He held various positions in the public and academic sector, including a senior research fellow position at the Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade in Hungary. Since 2020, he has also been working as Director of European Union Affairs at the Centre for Fundamental Rights in Budapest.

Ying RONG

Vice President
China Institute of International Studies

Dr. Ying Rong is Vice President and Senior Research Fellow at China Institute of International Studies (CIIS). He had previously served as Director for International Strategic Studies and American Studies. He had previously served in the China Embassy and was a visiting scholar at the Bush School for Government and Public Service, Texas A & M University, U.S. Dr. Rong got his MA from Beijing Normal University and his PhD from Peking University. Dr. Rong’s main areas of research include China’s neighborhood diplomacy and South Asia politics and security.

Zoltán CSÉFALVAY

Head of Center for Technology Futures, School of Economics
Mathias Corvinus Collegium

Prof. Dr. Zoltán Cséfalvay is head of the Centre for Next Technological Futures at Mathias Corvinus Collegium, Budapest, where he gives lectures and conducts research on the economic, social and geopolitical impacts of digitalisation, robotisation and artificial intelligence in Europe. Previously, he worked as senior researcher at the Joint Research Centre of European Commission in Seville (2019-2020), he served as ambassador of Hungary to the OECD and UNESCO in Paris (2014-2018) and as Minister of State for Economic Strategy in Hungary (2010-2014). He was a professor of economic geography at Andrássy University Budapest (2002-2010) and has been a professor at Kodolányi János University in Hungary for more than two decades. As a research fellow he worked in Budapest, Vienna, Munich, Heidelberg, and Cardiff. Recently he has published his latest book - TECHtonic Shifts - on the current industrial revolution.

Deepak OHRI

Chief Executive Officer
lebua Hotels & Resorts

Deepak Ohri is a name that has become synonymous across the globe with the ‘luxury experience’. By drawing on his unique vision of hospitality, Ohri has made lebua Hotels and Resorts a global luxury brand in just 14 years - The world’s finest five-star hotels and restaurants including Two Michelin-starred restaurants in Bangkok. Ohri, recognized globally as a visionary hospitality industry leader and luxury marketer, is a sought-after speaker at international conferences and top business schools worldwide. He was named as one of the International Hospitality Institute's Global Top 25 Most Inspirational Executives in Travel and Hospitality 2022, among others. In May 2022, Deepak Ohri joined the World Happiness Foundation as an Advisory Board Member and created a Happiness Office at lebua assuming additional responsibilities as a Chief Happiness Officer (CHO). In October 2021, Ohri became Executive in Residence in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Florida International University, creating the Luxury Incubator MBA Project. Deepak Ohri is an inventor of Ohri Luxury Index, a tool that measures emotional experience in luxury and how such knowledge can elevate a value of a luxury brand. He is the president of Luxury Atelier Maison Happiness (LAMH), a luxury consulting company that prepares and delivers executive-level training courses in luxury marketing and management, one-on-one well-being sessions, and executive retreats for the global business leaders, companies, and students. "Deepak Ohri authored 'A Bridge Not Too Far: Where Creativity Meets Innovation,' a book that explores how his modest beginnings ignited his innovative entrepreneurial drive and shaped his profoundly human-centric approach to both business and life. This book has earned acclaim as one of the Top 25 Best Global Marketing books, along with numerous international awards, and it continues to receive recognition."

Géza SEBESTYÉN

Head of the Center for Economic Policy
Mathias Corvinus Collegium

Géza Sebestyén is the Head of the Center for Economic Policy at Mathias Corvinus Collegium, and an associate professor at Corvinus University of Budapest. He has Master’s degrees both in mathematics and economics, and a PhD in economics. His main fields of interest are monetary policy, fiscal policy, macrofinances, corporate finance and valuation. Besides Hungary, he gave lectures in France, Germany, Austria, Slovakia, and Azerbaijan. Géza wrote hundreds of articles and is a regular media contributor. He has worked for some of the top Financial and Energy companies in Hungary. Géza is the mastermind and main organiser of the Math Challenge Championship, part of the MCC's Secondary School Programme.

Péter FÁYKISS

Director
Magyar Nemzeti Bank

Péter Fáykiss has been the Director of Digitalization Directorate of Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB), the central bank of Hungary since 2019. From 2017 until his appointment as Director, he served as Director of Macroprudential Directorate at the MNB. Between 2014 and 2017, he was appointed as the Head of Macroprudential Policy Department of the MNB. In 2013 he became the Deputy Head of Division for Financial Regulations of Ministry for National Economy, where he was mainly responsible for the domestic implementation of the European regulatory package CRD IV and for the preparation of the new Hungarian Banking Act. Between 2009 and 2013 he worked at the MNB, where he was the member of a group analyzing domestic effects of the European implementation of Basel III regulation. Mr. Faykiss graduated in 2009 from Corvinus University of Budapest and he received his PhD in Finance from Corvinus University of Budapest.

Levente HORVÁTH

Director of Eurasia Center
John von Neumann University

Levente Horváth is the founder and the Director of Eurasia Center of the John von Neumann University, Hungary. Levente Horváth is a China expert, has been dealing with China from 2005 onwards, he was doing his bachelor’s and master’s degree in tourism management in China, at the Fudan University in Shanghai, and graduated with rector’s award. From 2016 he is the Vice-President of the Fudan University Alumni. In 2017-2021, Levente Horváth was doing his PhD studies at the University of Pécs, his research field focused on the Chinese geopolitical thinking and on the One Belt, One Road initiative. Between 2015 and 2017, he was the Consul General of Hungary in Shanghai and in this position, he was responsible for deepening the Sino-Hungarian relations. In 2017-2019 he served as the Head of Educational Department in the Magyar Nemzeti Bank, the central bank of Hungary, from 2019 he became the Chief Advisor to the Governor of the central bank of Hungary. In 2021 he was given the Shanghai Silver Magnolia Award acknowledging his contribution to Shanghai’s development with respect to its economy, trade, finance, education, and culture.