Agenda 2025

The transatlantic relationship is entering its most uncertain era in decades. Long anchored in shared values, strategic trust, and predictable diplomacy, the US–European alliance now faces a fundamental realignment. Shifts in US political behaviour - most notably under the Trump administration - have reframed the relationship from partnership to negotiation, from trust to transaction. Europe is responding with growing strategic autonomy, recalibrated security expectations, and a reassessment of American reliability. This keynote explores how the erosion of trust reshapes Western cooperation, what a transactional US means for global stability, and where Europe must adapt to navigate an era defined less by alliance and more by calculation.

• How trust eroded: Why European leaders increasingly question US commitments and how domestic US politics drive unpredictability in foreign policy
• A new transactional logic: How the US shift toward deal-based diplomacy changes NATO cohesion, trade dynamics, and geopolitical strategy
• Europe’s strategic crossroads: The EU’s emerging instinct for military, economic, and technological and what it signals for the future of the alliance
• Paths forward: Scenarios for rebuilding trust, managing strategic divergence, and shaping a sustainable transatlantic framework in a transformed political landscape

Key takeaways from the five Landscapes - Tuning strategy into disruption

Challenger and digital-first banks are not just using new tools—they are reframing risk itself. This keynote explores how embedded data, agile models, and customer-centric design shift the perception and management of risk compared to traditional incumbent banks.

• Data as the new risk engine: How continuous, real-time data streams enable proactive risk decisions
• Agile risk models: Why challenger banks iterate, test, and adapt risk frameworks faster than incumbents.
• Customer-centric risk design: How digital banks turn onboarding, identity, and credit friction into competitive advantage.
• Beyond compliance: How digital-first institutions treat risk as a strategic capability, not a constraint.

‍

Fraud is evolving at the same pace as digital banking, driven by AI, automation, and cross-border networks that enable increasingly sophisticated criminal activity. Emerging patterns reveal that fraud is not only a financial risk but a growing threat to the wider economy.

• Fraud as a Funding Chain for Organised Crime
  How corporate credit fraud is increasingly exploited to finance criminal networks.
• The Rising Threat Landscape
  Economic crime is expanding—from a financial risk to a societal challenge.
• Banks as the First Line of Defence
  Why trust and resilience depend on robust data and proactive controls.
• Collaboration is Key
  How banks, credit providers, and technology partners can join forces to combat fraud effectively.

‍

As fraud evolves, so do its ripple effects across Nordic societies. This dynamic panel brings together voices from government agencies, banking institutions and academia to explore how fraud is reshaping our future. From policy shifts and regulatory innovation to societal impact, join us for a thought-provoking conversation on the challenges and opportunities ahead. Discover how collaboration across sectors can build a more resilient and fraud-aware Nordic region.

‍

AI-driven fraud is evolving faster than the defenses built to stop it, from synthetic identities and deepfakes to highly targeted social-engineering scams. For Nordic banks, this is a pivotal moment: the shift from detecting fraud after it happens to disrupting it in real time.

The combination of AI and open banking data can finally reveal the hidden patterns within transaction flows, enabling earlier intervention and stronger protection. At the same time, GenAI manipulation is placing customers under unprecedented pressure, making adaptive friction, real-time guidance, and explainable decisions essential.

This panel explores how Nordic institutions can strengthen resilience, protect customers, and preserve trust now one of the most valuable assets in an era of AI-powered fraud

• AI-Accelerated Threats: Synthetic Identities, Deepfakes, and AI-Driven Scams
  
• GenAI Manipulation and the Rise of Consumer-Targeted Scams
  
• The Power of Open Banking Data + AI
  
• Trust, Liability, and Regulatory Demands in the Nordic Landscape

‍

Artificial Intelligence is reshaping conversations across the financial sector, but when it comes to risk management, the debate is far from settled. Should AI drive a radical transformation, or is a more measured, evolutionary approach the smarter path forward? This question matters - not just for technology leaders, but for regulators and banks alike. While the promise of AI sparks excitement, its role in defining best practices remains unclear. The session will explore why an incremental, evolutionary strategy could deliver significant benefits: cost efficiency, reduced disruption, and faster adoption - without plunging organizations into massive transformation projects.

• Setting the Stage: The AI Hype vs. Reality
• Incremental, Practical Adoption: Evolution Over Revolution
• Use Cases Without the Hype

Nordic rails and digital habits make this region ideal for trust-first AI, but value only lands when it’s governed and measurable. In this session, Shyam will show where AI actually moves the P&L: growing revenue with event-driven eligibility and next-best-action; improving CX with authenticated conversational service and clean human handoffs; unlocking efficiency by turning hours into minutes in KYC, disputes, and lending; and shipping faster with an agentic SDLC. Expect a 90-day blueprint you can run tomorrow, risk classification and DPIA from day one, thin orchestration end-to-end, controlled traffic ramps, and a weekly scoreboard your board will trust. Speed with stewardship; outcomes over screen time.

• Trust → Moments → Wallet: consented data, explainability, and HITL unlock timely, relevant help
• Four value levers: Grow Revenue, Improve CX, Unlock Efficiency, Ship Faster
• From pilots to platform: thin orchestration across channels/front/mid/back
• 90-day blueprint: baselines & risk class/DPIA → 3 increments → traffic ramps → weekly P&L scoreboard
• Metrics that matter: containment, cycle time, € per case, activation, lead time

‍

In this keynote, Riikka Laine-Tolonen, CEO of S-Bank, will share how the Finnish bank – owned by S Group, the retail market leader in Finland – is charting its rise through a bold, customer-centric playbook. S-Bank's strategy centers on purposeful expansion, data-driven customer insight and digital-first excellence leveraging the acquisition of Handelsbanken’s Finnish retail operations, combining the strengths of both cultures, to boost expertise and diversify offerings, all while aiming to become Finland’s fourth-largest household bank and serve one million active customers by 2027. By combining seamless mobile-first service with free daily banking, easy access to investing, and real-world coop benefits, Laine-Tolonen demonstrates how clarity in strategic choices fuels both growth and meaningful performance.

Resident host Teppo Havo from Danske Bank, together with the conference organisers, will open the Nordic Banking Forum by welcoming participants, framing the day’s themes, and setting the tone for an engaging exploration of the key landscapes this year. This session connects the audience to the purpose of the Forum—providing strategic clarity and practical insight for the high-level choices that will shape tomorrow’s Nordic banks.

• Welcome to Nordic Banking Forum
• Introduction to the Nordic Banking Leadership Landscapes
• From Risk to Resilient Growth: What’s at Stake for Nordic Banks

As Head of Strategic Initiatives at OP Pohjola, Heikki Rautila is steering the organization through one of its most pivotal shifts: moving to an “AI-first” strategy and mindset. In this new paradigm, artificial intelligence isn’t just another tool in the stack — it’s the lens through which every decision, process, and customer journey is reimagined. Today Heikki will trace the strategic, managerial, and workforce changes this shift demands, and offer a bold vision of where finance will stand in 2030 thanks to the ripple effects of this game-changing technology.

• Identifying the must-win battles
• Defining offering in the hyper-personalized world of AI
• Changing processes and organizational structures
• Managing new type of workforce

Expectations placed upon banks' decision-makers have increased significantly. Continuously developing regulatory landscape requires balancing between pursuing strategic objectives and maintaining full compliance. At the same time, the role of data in banks is rapidly increasing, as are the responsibilities of various organizational units. In this evolving environment, effective synchronization of these elements is not just desirable — it is essential for banks seeking to remain competitive and resilient in a dynamic financial landscape.

• What is the optimal balance between business, IT, risk management and finance?
• Do the different parties understand each other's needs: How can data help?

For over ten years, we’ve talked about the “future of SME banking” and the smart, seamlesssystems that would transform it. Well, that future supposedly arrived — yet very little haschanged. SMEs still see banks as a necessary evil, and most ERPs haven’t delivered on their ambition tobe the true financial hub of a business (yet). Meanwhile, players like Revolut are quietly building the infrastructure — and the capital base —to own the global SME relationship in the next 10–20 years. If banks and ERPs don’t collaborate now, someone else will do it for them — at scale.

• SMEs struggle with fragmented financial management
• The last decade – lots of promise, little progress
• Collaboration the only way forward
• The real competitive threat

From Shanghai to São Paulo, some of the world’s most exciting banking ideas are being built far from home. In this talk, Georg Hauer shows what Nordic institutions can learn from global fintechs and digital banks that are moving faster, designing smarter, and scaling bigger. A rapid tour of international best practices and how they can inspire the next wave of Nordic banking innovation.

• From Shanghai to Sao Paolo - What we can learn from digital banking abroad
• Banking International - What we can learn from fintechs abroad

Cross-border banking is entering a new era where agentic capabilities and intelligent automation enable banks to serve corporates and SMEs more effectively than ever before. Corporates need scale, control, and operational efficiency; SMEs need speed, simplicity, and predictable costs. In this fireside conversation explores how emerging AI-driven systems can finally bridge these divergent needs reducing friction, improving transparency, and enabling banks to deliver smarter, more adaptive global payment experiences for businesses of all sizes.

• Segment needs, rebalanced: How AI helps banks meet corporate demands for complex workflows and compliance while giving SMEs cleaner, simpler, faster global payment experiences.
• Automation where it matters most: The cross-border pain points ripe for intelligent, cost-reducing automation.
• Leveling capabilities across segments: The tools that let SMEs access enterprise-grade visibility and reliability, and the efficiencies that help corporates operate with SME-like agility.
• The opportunity for banks: How embracing agentic systems can transform cross-border offerings, shift cost structures, and strengthen competitiveness across both the SME and corporate markets.

‍

Resilience is becoming a central focus as digital payments play a bigger role in daily life. This keynote examines how the payments industry is working to ensure reliability and continuity, even in the face of new risks and disruptions. It highlights ongoing efforts to simplify payments for people, while adapting to changing regulations and technologies. Drawing on experiences from Europe, the Nordics, and Finland, the presentation offers insights into how collaboration and innovation are helping to build a secure and accessible payment landscape for the future.

Enjoy an afternoon drink as the spirit and mingle intensifies

Regular and VIP lunches served

Networking & Breakfast

This discussion explores how incumbent banks can turn their legacy foundations into strategic assets for both resilience and growth. From navigating US–EU technology dependencies, to deploying AI in mainframe environments, to learning from neo-banks without compromising stability, we ask what it really takes to modernise safely, compete effectively, and future-proof the core of European banking.

• Cloud Dependence: Who Should Control Europe’s Critical Workloads?
• From PoC to Production: Deploying AI at Scale on Mainframe-Centric Architectures
• Incumbents vs. Neo-Banks: Strengths, Blind Spots, and What Each Side Must Learn
• The AI Advantage: Will Scale or Speed Win the Next Phase of Banking Competition?

Financial institutions are operating in an environment where risk is accelerating across multiple dimensions: geopolitical, operational, technological, and reputational. As attacks grow more sophisticated and dependencies more complex, cybersecurity has become a defining pillar of organisational resilience. Europe’s regulatory response is now reshaping how financial institutions prepare for, manage, and recover from digital disruption.

This fireside discussion explores the strategic shift from traditional risk management to continuous operational resilience, unpacking how frameworks like DORA and TIBER-EU are raising the bar for control, preparedness, and cross-border coordination. What once were compliance obligations are now central to competitive strength and customer trust.

• Why resilience is now as important as security
• Cybersecurity as a Strategic Capability - Building resilience into systems, culture, and operating models
• From Compliance to Continuous Resilience - What DORA changes in practice for risk, IT, and governance
• TIBER-EU: Testing the Real-World Limits of Cyber Resilience

‍

Nordic payments are at a turning point. New regulations, rising customer expectations, and rapid advances in data and AI are reshaping how value is created. This talk explores where payments are heading next, where the new challengers will emerge, and how Nordic innovators can move fast while keeping a big strategic vision. We’ll also show how the Visa ecosystem can help fintechs and banks scale smarter, build securely, and bring new ideas to market quickly.

A fast-paced call to action: the Nordics can shape the future of payments—if we think big and act small.

• Payments at a Crossroads: Defining the Next Decade
  
• Strategic Direction: Where the Next Challengers and Gamechangers Will Emerge
  
• Why the Visa Ecosystem Matters for Building the Future of Payments
  
• Closing: The Nordic Opportunity

Dr. Prag Sharma will share Citi's insights on AI development and global trends. He will cover the latest Generative and Agentic AI use cases in financial services, discuss risks and governance in Agentic AI, and share lessons learned from deploying Generative AI at scale. This session offers a critical look at the future of finance.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as one of the most powerful levers for transformation in financial services, capable of delivering efficiency, hyper-personalisation, cost reduction, and risk mitigation. The rollout of open banking and upcoming Financial Data Access (FiDA) regulations in Europe are amplifying trust and innovation by enabling secure data mobility via Open APIs that will feed the AI use-cases. Embedded finance is anticipated to generate over EUR 170 billion in new revenue streams across the EU by 2027, linking lifestyle and financial experiences seamlessly. However, there is a critical truth: AI is only as valuable as the data it consumes. Without credible, real-time, enterprise-integrated data, AI cannot deliver its promised impact.

• Why Real-Time, Integrated Data is Board Critical
• Legacy and Siloed Systems: A Structural Risk
• Aligning Modernisation with Market and Regulatory Initiatives
• The Boardroom Case for Core Modernisation

As regulatory expectations grow more complex and communication channels multiply, traditional compliance recording is no longer enough. Banks now need systems that not only capture interactions but also validate, analyze, and surface risk in real time. 

The talk highlights emerging capabilities, including automated monitoring, AI-assisted detection, and integrated oversight across distributed workforces showing how financial institutions can future-proof their compliance operations while enabling more agile and customer-focused teams.

• How to ensure full regulatory coverage as customer and employee communication moves across voice, chat, video, collaboration platforms, and mobile.
  
  
• Beyond capture and toward insight: How analytics and automation can turn recorded interactions into real-time compliance intelligence and early warning signals.
  
  
• Managing risk in a hybrid world: What banks need to maintain oversight as teams become distributed, mobile, and increasingly digital in their daily communication.

‍

Financial crime is evolving faster than ever and the institutions that stay ahead are those that understand not just data, but context. This fireside chat explores how breaking down data silos and building a unified, contextual picture of customers, suppliers, and counterparties is becoming the new foundation for effective financial crime detection.

The conversation dives into real-world cases including sanction-evasion patterns and cross-border circumvention stories that demonstrate why clean, connected, reliable data is now the true “secret sauce” in detecting sophisticated financial crime. Attendees will walk away with a clearer sense of where the industry is headed and what technologies and practices will matter most in the years ahead.

• Transforming detection: Context and connecting siloed data provides a deeper, more accurate understanding of customer and supplier behavior
  
  
• Real stories of sanction circumvention and evolving financial crime patterns that demand more holistic, contextualized analytics.
  ‍
• What banks must build to stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated threats

Banking as a business has unique characteristics and an inherent structural tension. This makes banks complex to manage and requires active steering. BearingPoint conducted over 30 in-depth, one-on-one interviews with a diverse group of senior stakeholders from Nordic banks. This keynote reveals central findings of the resulting white paper and explores the hidden power structures within banks.

‍

Sparkling wine served to all delegates in the main conference lobby on the 3rd floor

After Work by Visa

16th floor — snacks & drinks