WatersTechnology Innovation Exchange Leadership
The Business Strategy and Leadership spotlight will take place on 21, 22 and 23 September 2021 and will unite over 300 experts, practitioners, and industry mavericks from across the globe to focus on business strategy and leadership across capital markets.
Business Strategy and Leadership
Key themes for 2021
Creating interoperability between new technologies and legacy systems
The capital markets in 2031 – how will technology and data shape the industry?
AI regulations – are we fully aware of AI’s ethical implications?
Privacy and data regulations – everything you need to know
Data – how capital markets firms can derive the most value from their data assets
Digital transformation – how to fund your initiatives?
Operations models – how to support business in the post-Covid era?
Cathy Bessant is chief operations and technology officer at Bank of America, and is a member of the company’s executive management team. Since 2010, Bessant has led Global Technology and Operations, delivering end-to-end technology and operating services across the company through a team of 95,000 people in over 35 countries. She also oversees the company’s business continuity and information security efforts.
Since joining the bank in 1982,Bessant has held a number of senior leadership roles. She was president, Global Corporate Banking; president, Global Product Solutions and Global Treasury Services; chief marketing officer; president, Consumer Real Estate and Community Development Banking; national Small Business Segment executive; and president of the Florida market.
Bessant serves as executive sponsor for the company’s Disability Advisory Council. She was formerly the executive sponsor for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride executive board and led the creation of the LGBT Ally program. She was previously named No. 1 among OUTstanding LGBT+ Ally Executives, presented by the Financial Times.
After ranking No. 1 for three consecutive years, Bessant was inducted into the “25 Most Powerful Women in Banking” Hall of Fame by American Banker in 2020. Bessant was named to Barron’s “100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance” and she received WatersTechnology’s 2019 Women in Technology and Data Trailblazer Award. She has also appeared on Working Mother magazine’s “50 Most Powerful Working Moms” list.
Active in the community and region, Bessant received the Distinguished Service Award from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. In addition, she was awarded the North Carolina Order of the Long Leaf Pine, was recognized by the Charlotte Business Journal with the Women in Business Lifetime Achievement Award, and was named to Business NC’s Power 100. She chairs the North Tryon Vision Plan Advisory Committee.
Bessant led the formation of the Council on the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to address ethical and policy issues related to this rapidly evolving technology. In addition, she is a member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).
Bessant serves on the board of directors of Zurich Insurance Group, serves as chair of the USA Field Hockey board of directors, is on the board of trustees for the Urban Institute, and is on the advisory board for the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. As part of a leadership course at Ross, she summited Africa’s Mount Kilimanjaro, the world’s tallest freestanding mountain, in August 2018.
Catherine P. Bessant
Chief Operations and Technology Officer
Bank of America
Sponsors 2021
About Enfusion
Enfusion's investment management software-as-a-service platform removes traditional information boundaries, uniting front-, middle- and back-office teams on one cloud-native system and across one golden data set. Through our industry-leading software, analytics, and middle/back-office managed services, we create enterprise-wide cultures of real-time, data-driven intelligence, boosting agility, and powering growth.
As a Fintech leader and pioneer in developing innovative solutions, Enfusion partners with 600+ investment managers from nine global offices spanning four continents. In 2021, Enfusion was named Best EMS/OMS Provider by the Fund Intelligence Operations and Services Awards and Best Institutional Investment Solution at the FinTech Breakthrough Awards. For more information about its technology and Managed Services capabilities visit: https://www.enfusion.com/.
Google Cloud is widely recognized as a global leader in delivering a secure, open and intelligent enterprise cloud platform. We’re focused on building solutions in five key categories - Infrastructure Modernization, Data Management, Smart Business Analytics, AI and Machine Learning, and Collaboration - and are concentrating our efforts in ~15 global markets. Today, customers across more than 150 countries trust Google Cloud to modernize their computing environment for today’s digital world. We are helping thousands of organizations, including many of the world’s largest companies, transform their businesses.
Rimini Street, Inc. (Nasdaq: RMNI) is a global provider of enterprise software products and services, the leading third-party support provider for Oracle and SAP software products and a Salesforce® partner. In 2005, Rimini Street reinvented enterprise software support to deliver a better support experience and drive significant savings on total maintenance costs. Today, the Company delivers superior service experiences, at scale, centered on client success to enable enterprise software licensees to extract more value from their enterprise software investments, invest in innovation, create competitive advantage and enable growth. Over 3,700 global Fortune 500, midmarket, public sector and other organizations from a broad range of industries have leveraged Rimini Street as their trusted provider for support and managed service solutions.
SmartStream is a leader in financial transaction management solutions and enables firms to improve operational control, reduce costs, build new revenue streams, mitigate risk and comply with regulations. By offering transformative digital strategies, SmartStream provides a range of solutions for transaction lifecycles with artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies embedded. More than 2,000 clients – including 70 of the world’s top 100 banks – rely on SmartStream transaction lifecycle management solutions to deliver greater efficiency to their operations.
Dataiku is the world’s leading AI and machine learning platform, supporting agility in organizations’ data efforts via collaborative, elastic, and responsible AI, all at enterprise scale. Hundreds of companies use Dataiku to underpin their essential business operations and ensure they stay relevant in a changing world, including models driving fraud detection, customer churn prevention, predictive maintenance, supply chain optimization, and much more.
Dataiku is built for companies looking to democratize AI across their organization, bringing agility and preparedness to the business through the use of data by everyone from analysts to data scientists.
Encompass transforms regulatory compliance and customer onboarding for firms with Know Your Customer (KYC) automation. Our advanced technology, unrivalled data coverage and industry expertise help clients to safely grow their businesses and fight financial crime.
The Encompass platform reduces the cost of KYC and improves time to revenue by providing KYC due diligence on demand, powered by intelligent process automation.
Our customers include regulated clients across the globe, including Wolfsberg Group members, Magic Circle law firms and FTSE 100 corporations, and we have strategic alliances with a range of trusted data, technology and service providers.
Encompass was founded in Australia and has offices in London, Glasgow, Belgrade, Stockholm, Singapore and Sydney.
Chartis Research is the leading provider of research and analysis on the global market for risk technology. Our goal is to support companies as they drive business performance through improved risk management, corporate governance and compliance. We also help clients make informed technology and business decisions by providing in-depth analysis and advice on virtually all aspects of risk technology.
Chartis is focused solely on risk and compliance technology, giving us a significant advantage over other market analysts. Our analysts and advisors have decades of hands-on experience of implementing and developing risk management systems and programs for Fortune 500 companies and leading consulting houses.
EDM Council is the global non-profit association created to elevate the practice of data management and analytics as a business and operational priority. The Council advocates for the development and implementation of data standards, best practices, and comprehensive training and certification programs. With more than 350 organizations from multiple industries across the Americas, EMEA, and Asia, and more than 25,000 data management professionals as members, EDM Council provides a venue for data professionals to interact, communicate, and collaborate on the challenges and advances in data management and analytics as critical organizational functions. Visit https://edmcouncil.org/.
Testimonials
I enjoy collaborating with other technology leaders to share ideas to achieve common goals and specifically, in this case, how we have invested in next generation analytics to develop and support a client centric model at RBC. I’m particularly excited to showcase our strategy and to learn how other key technology experts are exploring how emerging technologies are changing the industry.
Kim Prado, MD, global head of client insight, banking & digital channel's technology, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS
Really looking forward to another insightful session of the WatersTechnology – Innovation Exchange. It has been a challenging, unprecedented year with the pandemic. This is one opportunity I am looking forward to engage and learn from my peers and thought leaders across the industry. My go-to forum to deal with the new normal.
Brijesh Ammanath, CIO Trade and Working Capital, Barclays
Waters Technology Innovation Exchange brings in a wonderful opportunity to share our ideas with and learn from other data and technology professionals. I have learned so much from others. I have been attending Water Technology events for many years and I am looking forward to this year’s event as well.
Sumanda Basu, Director Data Governance & Data Management Technology, Societe Generale
Waters Technology Innovation Exchange has been, and continues to be one of the outstanding, ‘must attend’ events for the data management professional. The topics are timely, the participants are industry thought leaders. The team behind the scenes are dedicated and organized, and conduct a very professional and well run event every year. I would make sure to add this to your 2021 event list.
John A Bottega, President, EDM Council
Usefulness of identifiers and reference data standards, especially the Legal Entity Identifier (LEI), is a particular focus of GLEIF to drive innovation for digital commerce and the digital economy. WatersTechnology – Innovation Exchange is an effective platform to promote awareness and dialogue on timely and relevant topics.
Karla McKenna, Head of standards, GLEIF
I’m looking forward to the WatersTechnology – Innovation Exchange events as team always comes up very relevant and interesting topics with a great line up of speakers. I highly recommend these events to learn and network with industry leaders. I wish WatersTechnology best wishes for upcoming events.
Sachin Tonk Director Data, Advanced Analytics & Privacy, Standard Chartered Singapore.
I am so grateful that in spite of the coronavirus we are able to gather to share our experiences with each other on the data topics that challenge us every day. Thank you to WatersTechnology for inviting me to join all of you at WatersTechnology Innovation Exchange on the topic which is part of my every day, data governance.
Doris Brophy, Managing director, data governance & standards, Société Générale
What we are facing in capital markets today is a multi-dimensional global problem. WatersTechnology - Innovation Exchange offers a unique angle for us to explore and push forward innovations in the intersection between technology, data, business and operations. Super excited to connect with industry leaders around the globe, and share my perspectives in rapidly changing dynamics
Tinsley Zhu, Analyst, BlackRock
WatersTechnology Innovation Exchange is a priceless opportunity for industry leaders to learn from others without having to go through the expensive cost of the cycle of learning themselves.
Imrankhan Mulla, Global head of GIA analytics & insights, UBS
Get in touch with one of our team
Sponsorship enquiries
Kelvin Andrews
Senior regional director, Asia