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About WFIC

About WFIC

Join more than 500 industry peers from 40 countries at the 15th biennial World Financial Information Conference, the only global event that focuses on the sourcing, compliance and delivery of financial information.

Lifetime Achievement Award Dinner

Lifetime achievement award

FISD has established a Lifetime Achievement Award to recognize the people who have contributed to the major developments and accomplishments of the financial information industry over the past 30 years.

Sponsorships

Sponsorships

WFIC provides sponsors opportunities to connect with the most valuable global audience in the financial information business.  Most WFIC sponsors return cycle after cycle. Typically sponsorships sell out in advance of the conference.  For more information, please contact Tracey Shumpert.

Conference Schedule

Time Saturday
8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. iPad Scavenger Hunt & Brewery Tour
Enjoy a full day of networking with colleagues as you experience the culture and history of Prague!
Time Sunday
8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Prague City Tour
Join fellow conference attendees as you are guided through the fascinating sights of Prague!

Note: Certain portions require some walking. Lunch is NOT Included.
8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Jewish Quarter Tour
Join fellow conference attendees as you are guided through the fascinating sights of the Prague Jewish Quarter!

Note: Certain portions require some walking. Lunch is NOT Included.
4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Sponsor and Consumer Only Cocktail Party
This exclusive gathering between WFIC sponsors and consumer* delegates at the Hilton Prague will give sponsors extra exposure to customer firms.

*Consumers planning to take advantage of the consumer travel stipend program must attend this reception.
6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Welcome Reception Sponsored by Refinitiv
Meet and confer with colleagues at the Hilton Prague. The welcome reception also provides an excellent opportunity for networking.
Opening Remarks by Stuart Brown, Group Head of Enterprise Data Solutions, LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group)
Time Monday
7:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. Breakfast sponsored by SIX
8:50 a.m. - 8:55 a.m. Welcome & Introduction
Tom Davin, SVP and Managing Director, FISD
8:55 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. Host Sponsor Welcome
Kristin Hochstein, Global Head of Pricing and Reference Services, LSEG
9:00 a.m. - 9:35 a.m. Keynote: Anything to Anything: Future opportunities for data and information provisioning
The keynote will invite participants to think of a future time when all assets will trade in a complex central limit order book call the DeFi matrix. We will explore what the DeFi matrix means and how data and information sets, structures, and protocols might change in the coming years.

Catherine Clay, Executive Vice President, Global Head of Data and Access Solutions, Cboe Global Markets
Introduced by Manon Amyot-Lake, Head of Global Market Data Services , BMO Capital Markets / Member, WFIC Program Working Group
9:35 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. The Financial Information Industry Post (?) Pandemic
The financial information industry responded swiftly and successfully to changes wrought by the onslaught of Covid-19, but the pace of change hasn’t yet slackened, and really, will it ever? In this panel, senior executives will discuss the breadth of challenges their organizations are meeting, including everything from the impact of hybrid work models to technology trends, managing ever more data, and data vendors newly under the eye of regulators.

Moderator: Mark Haraburda, CEO, Barchart
John Chappell, Global Head of Market Data, Goldman Sachs
Ivette Collazo, Managing Director, Enterprise Market Data Product Strategy, State Street Corporation
Mark Heckert, Chief Product Officer, ICE Data Services
Janelle Veasey, Group Head of Real-Time, LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group)
Rich Winter, Global Head, Market Data and Information Analytics, Fenics
10:30 a.m.- 11:00 a.m. Break
11:00 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. NextGen Data for NextGen Investors
As the typical investor profile shifts from Baby Boomers to Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z, the data industry is transforming to accommodate new investment habits and foster the growth of wealth for younger generations. This session will look at the retail boom driven by wider access to data and analytic tools, and the emergence of influential communities in online platforms like Reddit.

Moderator: Tim Baker, CFA, Director, Blue-Sky Thinking
Dr. Elliot Banks, Chief Product Officer, BMLL
Jonathan Bloch, CEO, Exchange Data International (EDI)
Matt Fuchs, Executive Vice President – Market Data, OTC Markets Group
Anders A. L. Rodenberg, CEO, Denominator
Garrick Stavrovich, VP Product Management Investment Intelligence, Nasdaq
11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Keynote: The Benefits of Exchange
Dr. Alireza Dorfard will give an outline on the upward trend in data partnerships between data content providers and vendors and how this affects the creation of new and unique data sets as well as analytical products. Furthermore, he will address how the changes in connectivity shape new data distribution and consumption patterns and will include his thoughts on how blockchain technology could impact the current environment.

Dr. Alireza Dorfard, Head of Market Data + Services, Deutsche Börse
Introduced by Trip Wadleigh, Head of Relationship Management, TRG Screen / Vice-Chair, FISD Executive Committee
12:15 p.m. - 01:45 p.m. Lunch
Meet and confer with colleagues in a relaxing atmosphere during the networking lunch.
Constituency Group Lunches
By Invite Only
01:45 p.m. - 02:30 p.m. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
What does AI/ML really do for us right now?

Tremendous development continues in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), but the theoretical and academic still outpace practical use cases. Determining how to integrate AI/ML into current processes is often more challenging than the technology itself. This educational session will review where AI and ML have already been successfully deployed in the financial information space, the current limits of AI/ML, tools and accessibility, risks, challenges, best practices, and where these efforts are coupling with creativity and problem solving.

Moderator: Jonathan Neitzell, Founder and Managing Partner, Anduril Partners
Tony Berkman, Managing Director, Two Sigma
Harald Collet , CEO/Cofounder, Alkymi
Sylvain Forté, CEO, SESAMm
Stathis Onasoglou, FSI Senior Customer Engineer, Google Cloud
Vera Silver, Chief Information Officer, Bitvore
Let’s Go to the (Consolidated) Tape: Global Approaches
Market participants have long appreciated that a consolidated view of all the trading activity and interest for a single financial instrument is very desirable, but in practice this is a complex project requiring industry cooperation and forward-thinking regulation. Briefings about the state of play in different regions, will be followed by a panel focused on questions like:
• What can ESMA learn from what the SEC has already done?
• How might unique market conditions necessitate a specialized approach?
• Competing consolidators - Are they feasible? What are the potential effects on pricing?

Moderator: Will Cowling, Consultant
Liz Carter, Managing Director, Tradeweb
Paola Cereghino, Executive Director, Goldman Sachs
Nick Flower, MDS Category Initiatives Manager, UBS
Chris Murphy, Co-Founder & CEO, Ediphy
Natan Tiefenbrun, President of Cboe Europe, Cboe Global Markets
Engineering Stream
Market data engineering issues - led by Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. Includes a hands-on market data in the cloud ‘lab’ (with exercises) – and a set of presentations and discussions. For those with an engineering focus please contact David Anderson.
02:30 p.m. - 3:15 p.m. Everything You Wanted To Know About Cryptocurrency Data But Were Afraid To Ask
This discussion will provide a baseline for understanding the history and current state of cryptocurrency through the lens of its impact on the market data industry. Attendees will learn about how trading crypto works, and its comparison in traditional capital markets (commodity or FX?). They’ll also come away with an understanding of how different countries are approaching regulation, how regulated vs. unregulated markets have flourished, and even whether efforts at banning access are working.

Moderator: Richard Young, Industry Relations - Bloomberg Data and Symbology, Bloomberg
Vincent Dulhoste, CTO, Kaiko
Stuart Shearing, Risk Management Specialist, Coin Metrics
James Stickland, CEO, Elwood Technologies
Future of Third-Party Data Access: The FTP Exodus
Over the last five to ten years, many companies have migrated to the cloud and are building new cloud-native applications. More recently, AWS has seen a similar shift of firms desiring to query traditional and alternative third-party data in-place, eliminating the need to wait for files to be delivered. This is part of an “FTP exodus” in which companies prefer a predictable programmatic interface to cloud-friendly third-party data, so that the data can be governed easily and used alongside first-party data. Unfortunately, much of the data that users want to consume doesn’t lend itself to being easily queried e.g., satellite imagery, earnings transcripts. In this session, AWS will share trends about the shifting landscape of third-party data access and governance for financial services companies.

Noah Schwartz, General Manager, AWS Data Exchange and AWS Marketplace Foundational APIs
3:15 p.m. - 3:45 p.m. Break
3:45 - 4:30 The Emergence of DeFI: Who Do You Trust, a Company or an Algo?
This information-packed panel will lay out the current debate, explaining the difference between centralized finance (CeFi or TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi), and how individuals and institutional players currently interact with them. Once the speakers lay the groundwork, they’ll further explore the implications on the market data industry, including topics like: data licensing, distribution, pricing, the current regulatory environment and likely evolution of the space.

Moderator: Bill Bierds, President & CBDO, BCC Group
Joseph Chalom, Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships, BlackRock
Peter Ho-Spoida, Data & Analytics Strategist, Deutsche Börse Group
Thomas Langbein, Head of Sales & Business Development, Blocksize Capital GmbH
Drew Orsinger, CEO and Co-Founder, Tractiv
Stefan Reichenbach, Global Head of Pricing & Commercial Strategy, London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG)
Roundtables
Roundtables are informal, small group discussions on key issues for the industry. Each table will be focused on a different, specific financial information topic. Some tables will provide an opportunity to follow up or preview topics with speakers from the plenary program. Facilitated by industry experts, these sessions will provide the opportunity to get caught up on the latest developments or take a “deep dive” into an issue with other practitioners.
4:30 p.m. - 5:15 p.m. Alternative Data Council: Solving the Data Aggregation Problem
For years now, firms consuming alternative data have been on an unrelenting search for novel and exotic data sets, each offering the promise of alpha generation. Yet for every data set utilized, scores may have been considered, each requiring an enormous expenditure of business, technical and compliance expertise before a final verdict on the purchase. Then, once the golden new data set is acquired, firms must determine how it should be combined and added to models along with many other existing data sets.

This educational session will describe the process of data evaluation and usage, and how the Alternative Data Council is developing standards to reduce friction.

Moderator: Sam Gibson, Global Head of Product, AWS Data Exchange
Dan Entrup, SVP, Senior Director of Partnerships, FactSet
Parsa Ghaffari, CEO & Founder, AYLIEN
Steve Hansen, Global Head of Market Data, Davidson Kempner Capital
Rado Lipuš, Founder & CEO, Neudata
Rodney Pedersen, Chief Revenue Officer, Visible Alpha
6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Lifetime Achievement Award Event
FISD has established a Lifetime Achievement Award in order to recognize the people who have contributed to the major developments and accomplishments of the financial information industry over the past 25 years. The Awards program will be held at the on-site at the conference hotel – Hilton Prague. This semi-formal event will honor the 2022 Market Data Lifetime Achievement Award winner.
Time Tuesday
7:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. Breakfast sponsored by Moody's Analytics
8:50 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. Welcome & Introduction
Tom Davin, SVP and Managing Director, FISD
Marcy Pike, Senior Vice President, Fidelity Investments / Chair, FISD Executive Committee
9:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. Keynote: Data Democratization in the Digital Age
Alongside the increasing variety, velocity and volume of data is an explosion in demand for data by organisations, applications and individuals. Wealth management is in transformation as the need for targeted investment planning grows, coupled with an increased focus on ethical and sustainable investing and an expectation of digital, information-rich and actionable wealth management solutions, particularly from a new generation of investors. Shai Popat will share thoughts on the challenges and solutions for these trends, including personalised content streams and managing the maturity curve for ESG data sets. Data, Diversity, Talent and Technology are key to create the necessary connections between the real economy and the financial markets, and between reference and ESG data sets, to create a more informed, sustainable and responsible future for our global financial markets.

Shai Popat, Managing Director, Global Head Product and Commercial Strategy, SIX
9:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. How to Handle TMI: Consumers Using Data Catalogs to Handle a LOT of Data
Market data professionals are being pushed by their business counterparts for faster access to more data in service of ever more complex use cases, while maintaining clear cost predictability. They need to understand what data they already have, what they still need, how the data can be used, and how to get it into users hands quickly.

In this atmosphere of frustration, both for market data professionals and their business counterparts, data catalogs are emerging as a possible answer. This panel will discuss where financial institutions are in their journeys, what options are available to help them, and how standardization on data use and reporting would allow them to buy more data.

Moderator: Trip Wadleigh, Global Head of Relationship Management, TRG Screen
Justine Iverson, Head of S&P Global Marketplace, S&P Global Market Intelligence
John Mason, Group Head of Platform, LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group)
Emily Menzies, Vice President, Market Data Manager, Goldman Sachs
Eliza Raphael, Head of Market Data Services, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors, LLC
Michele Sura, Assistant Director of Digital Library and Data Licensing Service, Bank of Canada
10:15 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. Break
10:45 a.m. - 11:15 a.m. Special Guest Presentation: Creating a Culture of Resilience
Howard Lutnick will speak about creating the culture of resilience which guided the rebuilding Cantor Fitzgerald following the devastating September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks that claimed the lives of 658 of the firm's 960 New York-based employees, and how this philosophy still provides the bedrock of Cantor Fitzgerald, BGC Partners and their affiliate’s successes. In the years following the attacks, collectively these companies have provided over $180 million to help the families of the firm's employees who were lost on that day, while simultaneously growing to employ a work force of 4,000 in New York and over 10,000 globally. Since 9/11, Mr. Lutnick has been recognized as a symbol of resilience and his story has been widely covered by top financial publications worldwide.

Howard Lutnick, Chairman & CEO of BGC Partners, Inc., Chairman of Newmark Group, Inc, and Chairman & CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald L.P
Introduced by Chris Mohr, President, SIIA
11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Finding the Silver Lining: Understanding Your Cloud Use Case
Prevailing wisdom says that you can do pretty much anything in the cloud, but cloud providers hasten to add that it is not a solution until it is applied to a specific problem. Successful cloud strategy demands a deep understanding of the underlying business goal, whether it is greater operational agility, reduced time-to-market, decreased costs, more creative products or deeper investment insights, etc. This panel will discuss the opportunities in the cloud for various kind of users, and what “value” may mean for each.

Moderator: Ganesh Iyer, Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer, IPC
Trey Berre, Managing Director and Global Head of CME Data Services, CME Group
Joshua Carroll, Managing Director, Quantitative and Technology Services, Royal Bank of Canada Capital Markets
Simon Clerck, Global Head of Market Data Engineering, Goldman Sachs
Jason West, Real-Time Managed Distribution Services – Global Head, Refinitiv
Sven Wohlfarth, Head of Delivery Management and Business Technology, Deutsche Boerse
12:15 p.m. - 01:30 p.m. Lunch
Meet and confer with colleagues in a relaxing atmosphere during the networking lunch.
01:30 p.m. - 02:15 p.m. Banking on Data Vending, Even When You’re Already a Bank
Over the last half-decade or so, banks have come to understand the potential in leveraging their existing hoards of data as an additional source of value. By virtue of their primary businesses, they have access to information that others don’t. Many have developed products to benefit their clients in a range of areas: client transaction data, ESG, private company information.

As the development of alt data goes mainstream, there is more demand for this kind of data, but it brings up new questions and challenges for the banks as providers. This panel will examine the phenomenon of banks as vendors.

Moderator: Charles Ashwanden, Asset Management and ESG lead, Crux
Will Cooper, Director, UBS Data Solutions, UBS
Elliott Hann, Managing Director, Data & Analytics, Fenics Market Data
Tim Mercurio, Sales Head of Global Data Insight, Citi
Feargal O’Sullivan, Founder & CEO, USAM Group Inc.
Engineering Stream
Market data engineering issues - led by Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. Includes a hands-on market data in the cloud ‘lab’ (with exercises) – and a set of presentations and discussions. For those with an engineering focus please contact David Anderson.
2:15 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. The Business Case for Diversity and Inclusion
Studies have consistently shown that that businesses with a diverse work force are more efficient and profitable. Having a DEI (“diversity, equity and inclusion”) strategy has evolved from a ‘nice to have’ to a core requirement for many firms within market data industry. This panel will discuss how firms are evolving their cultures to attract and retain talent, and cultivating many kinds of diversity. Speakers will also explain how DEI influences both internal policies and business development strategies, as firms consider the demographics of future investors, governmental efforts, drivers for ESG, and practical changes that companies implementing right now.

Moderator: Debra Walton, Former Chief Revenue Officer, LSEG, Board Member/Advisor/Motivational Speaker 
Michelle Ansell, Head, Strategic Vendor Engagement, Commodities & Global Markets & Macquarie Capital Technology
Pamela Hutchinson, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion, Bloomberg
Carolanne Minashi, Global Head of Diversity & Inclusion, HSBC
Martina Satherlund, Programme Director – Global Head, Market Data, Fidelity International
John White, CEO, 3d Innovations
3:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Break
3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Bartender’s Choice Roundtables
Sidle up to the bar, pull up a stool and enjoy well-lubricated discussions with other delegates on the topics you’ve heard so far and some created just for you. Roundtables are informal, small group discussions on key issues for the industry. Each table will be focused on a different, specific financial information topic. Some tables will provide an opportunity to follow up or preview topics with speakers from the plenary program. Facilitated by industry experts, these sessions will provide the opportunity to get caught up on the latest developments or take a “deep dive” into an issue with other practitioners.
6:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m. Off-site Dinner Event Sponsored by Deutsche Boerse Group
Join colleagues for an evening of networking at the Zofin Palace – Island in the Heart of Prague!

This semi-formal event, sponsored by Deutsche Boerse Group, includes transportation, a reception, dinner and entertainment. Suggested dress code is semi-formal.
Time Wednesday
7:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. Breakfast
9:00 a.m. - 9:45 a.m. Licensing vs. Innovation
The growth of technology has enabled firms to do almost anything with data. However, some consumers argue that legacy commercial models inhibit innovation and broader usage by users while constraining data creators’ ability to capture the value of their data. This discussion will explore the creation of new licensing models that could better take into account hybrid work models, cloud access, and possible disruptive technologies like DeFi and Blockchain. Could other industries like streaming services offer a model that the financial information industry could follow?

Moderator: Mark Schaedel, CEO, DataBP
Scott Fitzpatrick, CEO, Tradition SEF & Global Head, TraditionDATA
Steve Listhaus, SVP and Head of Market Data Services, Wells Fargo
Joe Nardulli, Senior Vice President, Global Head of Enterprise Market Data, Northern Trust
Claire Pannell, Global Head, Market Data, Legal & General Investment Management
Scott Preiss, Senior VP and Global Head, CGS
9:45 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. The Market Data Boom: How Increasing Reliance on Data and Analytics is Driving Growth
The financial industry has become more agile and creative in how it uses data, finding new ways to integrate data into workflows. Advances in technology continue to fuel rising demand for and spending on market data, especially with respect to correlations to new trading opportunities. As the uses of market data extend beyond the trading desk into the middle- and back-office functions, budgets of investment banks and asset managers have become increasingly inelastic. The higher level of analysis and new forms of data delivery add considerable value to data providers, who have expanded their total offerings and introduced more advanced datasets. As a result, global spending on financial market data and news continued its decade-long growth streak with revenues reaching record levels in 2021.

Robert Iati, Managing Director, Burton Taylor International Consulting
Download Presentation
10:15 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. Break
10:45 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. ESG Data: Complex, Messy, Immature…And Absolutely Essential
The push for ESG data has considerable momentum and commitment from all parts of the financial information ecosystem, but data teams still struggle to ensure that it is transparent, reliable and meaningful. Hear from those in the middle of the muddle as they debate greenwashing, emerging standards and regulation, how to achieve consistency and clarity, and how the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as social and political unrest have accelerated the demand for ESG data.

Moderator: Barry Jennings, Global Head of Market Data Licensing & Governance, Goldman Sachs
Anthony Belcher, Head of Sustainable Finance, ICE
Silva Dezelan, ESG Director, Stafford
Prerna Divecha, Global Lead, Market Strategy & Development, Climate-Linked Credit & Risk Solutions, S&P Global Market Intelligence
Tim Langer, Global Head of Business Development – ESG Alliances and Redistribution, Morningstar Sustainalytics
Martina Macpherson, Head of ESG Product Management, SIX
11:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Regulation Roundup: A Global View on the Current State of Play
Hear from regulatory experts on regulation and other public policy developments across different regions, global ramifications and industry response. The panel will discuss the UK-EU regulatory divergence, relevant proposals coming out of the SEC in the US and other global topics which may include guidance across jurisdictions for sustainable finance, the geopolitical impact of sanctions against Russia, and potential bans on Payment for Order Flow in different areas of the world.

Moderator: Larry Tabb, Head of Market Structure Research, Bloomberg
Mukesh Agarwal, CEO, Indices & Data, National Stock Exchange of India Limited
Michael Hodgson, Head of Information Services, Euronext
Jeff Kimsey, Vice President and Global Head of Product Management for Global Information Services, Nasdaq
Sallianne Taylor, Global Manager, Strategic Alliances, Bloomberg LP
12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Farewell Networking Reception, Sponsored by CME Group
Enjoy light refreshments and post conference banter.

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