Central bank digital currency (CBDC) and the future of finance


Part of the Innovations in central banking and the future of financial services webinar series

Central bank digital currency (CBDC) and the future of finance webinar | May 19, 2022




Speaker
Shonte Eldridge, Executive Government Advisor, AWS

Key takeaways

  • What does a strong digital transformation culture look like?
  • How do I establish a strong digital culture?
  • What are the five methods to drive culture change?

When

May 19, 2022 | 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM ET

 

About the webinar

Join Amazon Web Services (AWS) for this invitation-only webinar to learn about, discuss, and dissect how central banks have leveraged CBDC to reinvent the global financial systems. You can also expect to learn different CBDC approaches and designs that have been piloted in addressing the variety of needs and situations of each country. This webinar is part of the Innovations in central banking and the future of financial services webinar series.

These discussions are in collaboration with the Reinventing Bretton Woods Committee (RBWC)—a nonprofit organization that orchestrates open dialogues among stakeholders committed to redefining the global financial architecture and monetary system to better respond to the changing economic landscape.
 
 

Who should attend

Financial regulators, central banking executives and senior managers, technology partners, and thought leaders
 

Agenda

Introduction and opening remarks | 9:00 AM – 9:10 AM ET
What will the future of financial services look like? Specifically, how is CBDC shaping that future? Join AWS and RBWC as we set the stage for a discussion on digitalization and its transformation of the payments landscape.

Speakers
Anastasia "Tracy" Raissis, Director, Worldwide Financial Risk and Economic Development, AWS
Marc Uzan, Executive Director and Founder, RBWC

CBDCs: Prospects and challenges | 9:10 AM – 10:10 AM ET
Monetary digitization has drastically changed the operation of payment systems across the globe. Join this session as we dive deep into the payments industry in Latin America. You can expect to learn how the payments systems have changed with more central banks adopting CBDCs or fast payment systems (FPS), how these technology-driven solutions aid in the missions of central banks, as well as lessons learned from their experiments.

Speakers
Rodrigo Cubero, Former President, Central Bank of Costa Rica
• Andrés Tahta, Managing Director for Public Sector Latin America, AWS
Marc Uzan, Executive Director and founder, RBWC
• Fabrizio Zampolli, Head of Economics for Latin America and the Caribbean (ELAC), Monetary and Economic Department, Economics for Latin American and the Caribbean, Bank for International Settlements (BIS)
Xiaochen Zhang, Principal Manager, AWS (moderator)

Mapping CBDC policy objectives with technology options | 10:10 AM – 11:10 AM ET
In this session, technology, policy, and finance experts will provide best practices for aligning CBDC objectives with design principles and technical design choices. Our panel of experts will also provide guidance for evaluating market impact of specific design choices.

Speakers
Ricardo Correia, Global Head of Digital Currencies, R3 
Larissa De Lima, Senior Fellow, Oliver Wyman Forum
David MacKeith, Principal Business Development Manager, AWS
Alberto Naudon, Board Member, Central Bank of Chile
• Yoav Soffer, Advisor to the Deputy Governor, CBDC Project Manager, Bank of Israel
Xiaochen Zhang, Principal Manager, AWS (moderator)

The future of finance: challenges and opportunities | 11:10 AM – 12:10 PM ET
In this final session, we go back to the pressing question, “What does the future of finance look like?” We will look at how emerging technologies have influenced new financial services systems, to better understand where the trajectory of finance and digital payments is heading. We will also discuss how financial regulators have responded to challenges and opportunities, giving us a better view of potential regulation changes ahead.

Speakers
Daniel Acosta, Head of Crypto, Blockchain, and Commercial Products, Latin America and the Caribbean, Mastercard
Ligia Lopes, Head of Financial Services Public Policy LATAM, AWS (moderator)
• Manuel Ramos-Francia, Director, Center for Latin American Monetary Studies (CEMLA)
James Wallis, Vice President of Central Bank Engagements, Ripple
Xiaochen Zhang, Principal Manager, AWS

Concluding remarks | 12:10 PM – 12:30 PM ET
We'll close out the webinar with a recap of ideas, best practices, and lessons learned from our expert panelists, giving you clear takeaways and potential action items as you evaluate CBDC and their effect on the changing payments landscape.
 

Speakers

Daniel-Acosta
Daniel Acosta, Head of Crypto, Blockchain, and Commercial Products, Latin America and the Caribbean, Mastercard
Daniel currently serves as vice president, head of crypto, CBDC’s, and blockchain for Mastercard in Latin America. He has more than 10 years of experience in the payments industry, where he has served in various roles in technology, products, and operations, both at a regional and market level. Daniel is passionate about driving innovation and holds degrees in the fields of aerospace engineering, business administration, and innovation.
  
Ricardo-Correia
Ricardo Correia, Global Head of Digital Currencies, R3
Ricardo is the head of digital currencies at R3, with a focus on CBDCs and stablecoins. He and his team work with central banks, commercial banks, and payment service providers around the world developing the next generation of money. He initially served as head of Asia-Pacific (APAC) and spent three years as global head of strategic alliances and partnerships, building a network of over 300 partners who build solutions and offer services on Corda. Prior to joining R3, Ricardo worked with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Accenture, and Avanade in senior technology positions. He has co-founded two high-tech startups and has spent the last 15 years commercializing early-stage, emerging technologies.

Rodrigo-Cubero
Rodrigo Cubero, Former President, Central Bank of Costa Rica
Rodrigo Cubero, Oxford Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in economics, was appointed President of the Central Bank of Costa Rica in August 2018. Previously, he worked for over 12 years at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), where he occupied several positions as economist, senior economist and deputy division chief for three different departments. His private sector experience includes working at Oxford Analytica and KPMG. He received his PhD in economics from Oxford University, where he was also a university lecturer for three years. He also has a postgraduate diploma in economics and a Master's of Arts (MA) in international economics from Essex University, a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree in law from the Universidad de Costa Rica, and a Bachelor's of Arts (BA) in business administration from Universidad Autónoma de Centroamérica.

Larissa-De-Lima
Larissa De Lima, Senior Fellow, Oliver Wyman Forum
Larissa de Lima is a senior fellow with the Oliver Wyman Forum and co-leads the Future of Money initiative. The Oliver Wyman Forum is the consultancy’s think tank, committed to bringing together business, public policy, and social enterprise leaders to create innovative solutions to the world’s toughest problems. Larissa leads research on digital assets and their impact on the future of financial systems, and meets regularly with policy makers to discuss those issues. In prior roles, she worked on advising financial institutions and policy makers on adapting to innovation.
 
Ligia-Lopes
Ligia Lopes, Head of AWS Financial Services Public Policy LATAM, AWS
Ligia Lopes is the AWS financial services public policy manager in the Americas region. She has over 20 years of experience in financial sector supervision, policy, and regulation. Before joining AWS, Ligia was a senior financial sector specialist at the World Bank Group (WB), within the finance, competitiveness, and innovation global practice (FCI), and spent 13 years working for the Central Bank of Brazil. Earlier in her career, she spent over six years in auditing and assurance at KPMG, with a keen focus on financial institutions. Ligia is Brazilian and has a Master's in finance and a Bachelor's of Science (BS) in business administration.
 
David-MacKeith
David MacKeith, Principal Business Development Manager, AWS
David MacKeith leads business development for AWS government financial services for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). He has over 20 years of experience helping government and financial services organizations all around the world transform their operations to better serve their respective customers and markets. Prior to joining AWS, Mr. MacKeith worked in the City of London as a commercial transaction lawyer. He holds a degree in physics from the University of Cambridge.
  
Alberto-Naudon
Alberto Naudon, Board Member, Central Bank of Chile
Alberto Naudon is a board member of the Central Bank of Chile since March 2018. Before his appointment to the board, he was director of the research division of the Central Bank of Chile since September 2014. He is a commercial engineer from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, where he received the Raúl Iver award as the best graduate among his 2000 classmates, and holds a Master's Degree and PhD in economics from the University of California at Los Angeles.

Tracy-Raissis
Anastasia "Tracy" Raissis, Director, Worldwide Financial Risk and Economic Development, AWS
Tracy Raissis joined Amazon.com in August 2012. She is currently the director of global cybersecurity and regulatory policy in worldwide public sector at AWS. Tracy was most recently the director of payments compliance at Amazon.com leading teams of compliance professionals responsible for global and regional compliance and oversaw compliance risk management programs for Amazon's operations including payment processing and money transmission and gift cards. Prior to joining Amazon, Tracy held compliance roles at American Express and Citibank and has led compliance programs at other small financial institutions. Tracy earned a BA from New York University, where she studied politics and economics, and a Master's Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Auburn University. Tracy is also a certified risk professional (CRP) certified by the Bank Administration Institute.
 
Ramos-Francia
Manuel Ramos-Francia, Director, CEMLA
Manuel Ramos Francia currently serves as the director of CEMLA. Previously, he has been the director of the Center for Analysis and Economic Research at the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM). He has also held several positions at the Ministry of Finance as deputy minister (for revenues), chief economist, and chief adviser to the Minister of Finance. He joined Banco de México in 2001, first serving as a senior adviser to the board, then as director general for economic research (chief economist), and as vice governor and member of the board. He was given the Professional Merit Service Award from ITAM in 2009.

Yoav-Soffer
Yoav Soffer, Advisor to the Deputy Governor, CBDC Project Manager, Bank of Israel
Yoav Soffer has been with the Bank of Israel for 18 years. He has served in various positions, including as a research economist, advisor on behalf of the Bank of Israel at the executive board of the World Bank, and a member of the Bank of Israel's Office of the Spokesperson and Economic Information, before becoming the Bank of Israel spokesperson in 2014. He stepped down from this position in 2020 to become an advisor to the deputy governor and the CBDC project manager. Since then, he has been coordinating the Bank of Israel's work on the digital shekel. Yoav has a BA in economics and geography and an MA in economics, both from Ben Gurion University in Israel. He has taught various courses in economics in academic institutions across Israel.
 
Andres-Tahta
Andrés Tahta, Managing Director for Public Sector Latin America, AWS
Andrés is a seasoned executive with international business, marketing, and sales experience in Latin America and the United States. As managing director for AWS Latin America public sector, Andrés supports government, education, non-profit, and healthcare customers to accelerate innovation and enable them to better serve their constituents. Prior to joining AWS, he worked for the Argentina Investment and Trade Promotion Agency, Telefonica and Movistar, McKinsey & Co, and Telecom Argentina with varies positions. Andrés holds a BA in government and international relations from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
 
Mark-Uzan
Marc Uzan, Executive Director and Founder, RBWC
Marc Uzan is the executive director and founder of RBWC. Since January 2022 he has also joined the Center for European Policy Network as the director of the Paris offices. Mr. Uzan holds a Masters Degree in international economics and finance from the Université de Paris IX Dauphine. He has been a visiting scholar at the Department of Economics of the University of California, Berkeley and a visiting fellow at Harvard University.
 
James-Wallis
James Wallis, Vice President of Central Bank Engagements, Ripple
James has over 20 years of financial technology (FinTech) experience, with deep expertise in payments, transaction banking, and blockchain. He leads Ripple’s team that builds and implements solutions for digital currencies, CBDCs in particular. Additionally, he is an executive advisor to start-ups looking to leverage blockchain technology for economic and social good. Previously he was a co-founder of blockchain and general manager of the global payments industry at IBM.

Fabrizio-Zampolli
Fabrizio Zampolli, Head of ELAC, Monetary and Economic Department, Economics for Latin American and the Caribbean, BIS
Fabrizio Zampolli has been head of economics for Latin America and the Caribbean (ELAC) since February 2018 and a member of the team since September 2016. Before working for the BIS, he was a policy adviser in the External Monetary Policy Committee Unit of the Bank of England. He also worked in the External Development Division and the Monetary Policy Strategy Division of the European Central Bank. He holds a PhD from the University of Warwick and a Laurea in Economia e Commercio from the Catholic University of Milan.
 
Xiaochen-Zhang
Xiaochen Zhang, Principal Manager, AWS
Xiaochen is a principal manager with AWS. In this role, he brings digital solutions to public sector financial and multilateral institution customers and helps them to achieve their missions of sustainable development and economic inclusion across Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Prior to AWS, Xiaochen worked with many portfolio companies in launching new offers, entering into new markets and building transformative collaborative initiatives on central bank digital currencies, sustainable development, and blockchain. Xiaochen built strong collaborations with government agencies, multinational organizations, and financial institutions through work with the World Bank, United Nations, Inter-America Development Bank, Astana International Finance Center, FinTech4Good, and many other international platforms in the past 20 years.

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