This month, we are excited to host the inaugural UK-Korea Financial Forum. This exclusive event will provide an opportunity to discuss the latest developments in both countries against a backdrop of vast technological, demographic, geopolitical, and climate shifts. It will conclude with a 3-course dinner to solidify the connections made and foster ongoing collaboration. The Forum is designed for senior professionals in the UK technology, financial services, regulation, and policy sectors. To express your interest in attending please complete the registration form here. If the summer sporting schedule isn’t stimulating enough for you, explore our reports and webinars featured below, we promise they will be kinder on your nerves. Cheers to a winning July!
Charlotte Dawber-Ashley (Manager, FS Club) & The Team at Z/Yen

Knowledge Miles: The 695th Lord Mayor's Lectures

Z/Yen Group are delighted that our Chairman, Alderman Professor Michael Mainelli, is serving as the 695th Lord Mayor of the City of London for the year 2023/2024. As part of Michael’s working theme, we are running Knowledge Miles: The 695th Lord Mayor's Lecture Series, an online webinar series exploring the connections of the Square Mile and its role as "The World's Coffeehouse" addressing diverse global challenges. Please see the table below for February's lectures and contact Lucas Djordjevic if you and your organisation would like to get involved:

Investment Opportunities To Use Science To Make Land Use Sustainable, Monday, 08 July 2024

Pan Livery Legacy: From Historical Philanthropy To Modern Rehabilitation With No Going Back, Thursday, 11 July 2024

Unlocking Neurodiversity in Insurance & Investment, Wednesday, 17 July 2024

Insurtech - How It's Transforming Insurance Innovation, Monday, 22 July 2024

London Dispute Resolution: New Goals For The Leading City, Tuesday, 23 July 2024

What Can Neuroscience Tell Us About Leadership?, Wednesday, 24 July 2024

In The Footsteps Of Shackleton – The Next Chapter Of The Endurance Story, Thursday, 25 July 2024
Featured Past Lectures

Stuart Grant, Mikal Netteberg, Michael Walsh & Anuj Kumar:
AI In FS: Whose Responsibility Is It Anyway?

Find our entire library of lectures and webinars on YouTube

Richard Kalas:

GFT Banking Disruption Index

Events & Webinars

• Events

UK-Korea Financial Forum, Wednesday, 17 July 2024

BCS Foundation Certificate in the Ethical Build of AI

• Webinars

GFT Banking Disruption Index, Tuesday, 02 July 2024

Is ESG Dead? An Investigation Of Investor Returns, Tuesday, 09 July 2024

Digital Care – Are We There Yet? A Maturing Market But Innovating Just As Quickly…, Wednesday, 10 July 2024

Is Big Tech Taking Over Our Money?, Tuesday, 16 July 2024

A Blueprint For Resilience In 2035, Thursday, 18 July 2024

All Forthcoming EventsAll Past Events

If you enjoy our webinars and events, and would like to contribute to our content, we would very much welcome your support as a corporate sponsor, please contact Charlotte_Dawber-Ashley@zyen.com to discuss the various opportunities available.

The Esop Centre’s newspad, is a monthly publication providing in-depth coverage of the main international news in the field of employee share ownership. Read this month’s newspad in full.

Guernsey Employee Share Plans & Trustees Conference 2024, Friday, 08 November 2024

PISCES - Employee Share Plans & Incentives, Wednesday, 25 September 2024

Public Reports

Z/Yen publishes reports on its three leading indices: the Global Financial Centres Index, the Global Green Finance Index, and the Smart Centres Index. In addition to this, reports on topics of special interest are also regularly published by Z/Yen.

Charlotte Dawber-Ashley: Economic Crime - Identity, Fraud, Security A Summary Of The Cityforum Summit

Mike Wardle, Professor Michael Mainelli: The Smart Centres Index 9

FS Club News

Busan Finance Center: Busan Metropolitan City is undertaking a strategic initiative to develop itself into a derivatives finance hub through collaborations with the Korea Exchange, the Busan Digital Asset Exchange, and the Alternative Trading System: First, the ATS in South Korea is scheduled to be established next year for the first time. Busan Metropolitan City confers with the ATS, Nextrade, to bring its derivatives and STO trading functions to Busan. Second, the BDX is set to launch in the second half of 2024, with an emphasis on commodity trading. The digital asset exchange is expected to promote various complementary financial innovations, including derivatives. Thirdly, the Korea Exchange(KRX) has announced the 'Busanization 3.0 Initiative' which includes supporting the substantial growth of Busan's local economic and industrial ecosystem and enhancing Busan’s status as a global financial hub by discovering and promoting new businesses in the financial data sector. These collaborative efforts with three pivotal financial institutions are expected to solidify Busan's status as a global financial hub specialized in derivatives finance.

Fintech Lab Seoul: Seoul Financial Hub, managed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, is currently inviting esteemed overseas financial institutions to join our global financial epicenter in Yeouido, Seoul. Benefit from exclusive office space, expert consultation on market entry, and unparalleled networking opportunities. Stay ahead with insights into the Korean Financial market. For further details about Seoul Financial Hub, click here.

Financial Services Commission Mauritius: The robust banking landscape of Mauritius: The banking system in Mauritius is robust, well regulated and plays a pivotal role in the country's economic growth and stability. With strong focus on adherence to international standards, Mauritius positions itself as a reputable financial hub compliant with all the 40 FATF recommendations and attracting global investors through its sound banking system. The vibrant banking industry is home to a diverse set of banking business models, serving both the domestic as well as regional economies. The sector remains competitive on a global scale, with prominent emphasis on digitalisation and innovation. The dynamic regulatory environment enables banks to respond to global market developments and offer competitive products and services. Mauritius at the forefront of the digital banking era: The banking sector in Mauritius has firmly embraced digitalisation, providing wide-ranging financial services through digital banking to domestic as well as cross-border customers. The enabling and evolving ecosystem in the country – including both technology and regulation – fosters innovation by operators. Several ongoing initiatives will further enhance the digital banking experience. The recent roll out by the central bank of a comprehensive cyber security strategy along with stringent prudential requirements have strengthened the resilience of the banking system against cyber risks. The establishment of a fintech innovation hub, a centralised digital Know Your Customer system and the Central Bank Digital Currency are some of the projects in the pipeline.

Bridgeworks: Why WAN Acceleration Is Vital for Financial Services Transformation: With the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in financial services, FinTech is undergoing somewhat of a transformation. While they might not be in some circles as popular as they were, both play a crucial role in the innovation of the industry. One that’s not to be scoffed at, either. For example, AI and ML can enable traders to reduce their risks and pick the right investments - increasing their profitability. The market for AI and ML is still quite healthy. In 2020, the market for AI and ML was projected to be US$158 billion in 2020 with a compound growth rate (CAGR) of 18% per annum. By 2030, the market value will have reached a staggering $528 billion by 2030. Both technologies can improve the processes, increase the gains and reduce the risks of financial institutions, including banks as well as the efficiency and performance of cryptocurrency or FOREX traders. See their full news item here.

GFT Financial Ltd: GFT’s latest Banking Disruption Index highlights mounting debt worries for UK consumers: British consumers on average are almost £2,700 in credit card debt, and more than a third either already have or contemplated taking out a payday or short-term loan to cover rising debt costs in the last 12 months, according to new research. The increased cost of living and high inflation means Brits are struggling to stay on top of their finances, with 39% admitting to not having any method of tracking their spending. This data comes from GFT’s latest Banking Disruption Index, a bi-annual assessment of consumer banking habits. Download the full report here. Salt, GFT and Engine by Starling set new digital banking benchmark in Europe: A new digital bank in Romania’s financial landscape, has launched less than one year after the project was kicked off. Salt Bank is the first neobank using Engine by Starling’s core banking system outside of the vendor’s parent company, Starling Bank. It was implemented in partnership between GFT, Salt Bank and Engine by Starling. This continues a transformative trend GFT sees in financial services and beyond. Organisations are reinventing their technology capabilities, adopting a ‘platform of platforms’ approach. This involves consuming ready-made capabilities from the wider industry. Read our success story here. Best in SaaS Awards: Awards for GFT and PPM Software Engenion: At the Best in SaaS Awards, GFT was recognised as ‘Best Company’ for its outstanding performance in the field of task management software. The Engenion software product also received the ‘Best New Product’ and ‘Most Innovative Solution’ awards. These awards acknowledge both the advanced features of Engenion and GFT's expertise and innovative spirit in SaaS solutions and products. Read our press release here. Register now for our FinTech North Webinar on ‘Creating real business value from AI’: This webinar follows on from GFT’s successful event with Google Cloud earlier this year, which explored the latest trends and practical applications of AI in the Financial Services sector. During the event, industry experts from GFT and Google, along with client practitioners, shared insights on generating real business value from AI – moving beyond the hype and proof-of-concept stages. Register for this webinar here. Our latest blog: GFT Engineering blog on Medium from Lu Mao on GFT intelligent banking assistant – LINK.

i2 Group: i2 Group is a world leader in intelligence analysis software. For more than 30 years we have empowered intelligence analysts and investigators to discover, create, and exploit actionable intelligence to identify the perpetrators of criminal activity. This blog demonstrates how i2’s iBase product was used to manage supplier risk for a Billion-Euro Construction Project. iBase was used to prevent and identify potential issues with subcontractors, ensuring timely project completion, high quality standards, and cost savings. The tool is used regularly in risk assessments to help prevent money laundering activities and to classify risks for ongoing projects. Read the article in full here.

Compass Plus: Are legacy systems truly on their last legs? 🕰️ Our latest collaboration with Consult Hyperion delves deep into why FIs need to change their mindset when it comes to #payments ecosystem modernisation. Instead of fixating solely on the front-end, it's time to invest more in your core technology and embrace a future-proof strategy. In our latest white paper, we dissect the payment system architectures that #FIs, #banks and #processors utilise today, highlighting their benefits, disadvantages, and where they should sit in your tech stack. This white paper is a must-read for C-level execs and payments professionals seeking to break free from the chains of the past.

Heart of the City : Ready to start your net zero journey but not sure where to begin? Join Heart of the City for an online Lunch and Learn: How to Get Started on Your Net Zero Journey, on 7 August, hosted by Climate Programme Officer, Katie Rogers. This free online session is specifically tailored for small to medium-sized enterprises with an interest to learn how to measure their carbon footprint and navigate through the complexities of achieving net zero. Find out more and secure your place here. The Minority Business Matters 'Creative and Cultural Industries (CCI) Freelancer Directory' is now live! The Directory is free to use for any London-based ethnic minority freelancer and will help to make their services more visible. Click here to find out more!

C2Zero: Roger Cohen – CEO and Founder of C2Zero will be in London from July 1 to July 15. To arrange a meeting or to find out more, reach out on LinkedIn or email. C2Zero’s Carbon Cancellation Service (C4S) is a platform giving customers the power to prevent - not remove, not offset - CO2 (carbon) emissions from some of the world’s largest polluters. C4S helps businesses neutralise their unavoidable carbon footprints, or it can be seamlessly added as an “ingredient” to products, services, activities, events and more. Part of the Lord Mayor’s Connect to Prosper program, C4S enables businesses to make a positive environmental impact while fostering engagement with customers, employees, and other stakeholders. For a deeper understanding of how carbon cancellation works, follow this link or email the team. You can also purchase your first carbon cancellation certificate online at https://carbon.uk.c2zero.net/. Carbon cancellation with C4S adds value to your business and to the environment.

Z/Yen Launches Ethical AI Course with CISI Register Here

The Chartered Institute For Securities & Investment, in collaboration with Z/Yen Group and The Rt Hon The Lord Mayor Professor Michael Mainelli, have launched a Certificate in Ethical Artificial Intelligence.

The short online course deals with the core definitions and global developments in the field of AI, associated ethical dilemmas, and the implications for financial services.

Find Out More

Pamphleteers Blog

The Pamphleteers Blog features considered thoughts – somewhere between a knee-jerk editorial and a full-blown piece of research. "Write for today and not for tomorrow."

Made Me Think
Chris Yapp:

The Impact Of AI On Jobs

Of Great Interest
Patricia Lustig & Gill Ringland:

Are Digital Systems Fit For Purpose?

Read More

FS Club Bulletins - Keep Track Of Your Commercial Interests

FS Club provides up to 1,000 weekly bulletins on a variety of topics from Inflation, to Inter-Bank Lending, to the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine. Register here.

Markets & Instruments

Robo-advisor

Best Of The Finanser

Stirred My Thoughts:

So you think digital banking is done?

Grabbed My Attention:

AI is a huge mistake (if you don’t understand what it’s for)

Read More

Membership & Sponsorship

FS Club is the premier global executive knowledge network for technology and finance professionals. Great events, research, and social functions build a buzz for Members and a valuable partnership for Sponsors. Membership of the FS Club is a great way to enhance your professional development, grow your network and profile, and get backing for your ideas, contact: Charlotte_Dawber-Ashley@zyen.com