Press Releases

BAFT Reelects Arab Bank’s Maram Al-Jazireh to Lead Board of Directors

BAFT would like to congratulate its officers on their reelection to the 2022-2023 association year and also welcome new board directors from ABSA, Barclays, BLOM Bank, BMO, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, and Scotiabank.

WASHINGTON — BAFT, the leading global financial services association for international transaction banking, has announced that Maram Al-Jazireh of Arab Bank will serve as the Chair of its Board of Directors for the 2022-2023 association year.

Al-Jazireh is the Senior Vice President & Global Head of Financial Institutions at Arab Bank, as well as a member of its Financial Institutions Credit Committee.

“It is an honor to be reelected as the BAFT board chair,” said Al-Jazireh. “I look forward to another year working alongside my fellow officers and board members. We share an optimistic outlook for the association and remain committed to promoting transaction banking’s value to the financial services industry and its positive impact on global economies.”

Prior to joining Arab Bank in 2001, Al-Jazireh worked for financial institutions in Amman and Dubai and has served as Co-Chair of the BAFT MENA Council for the past two years. She is a member of the Governance Committee for a USAID funded MENA investment initiative in Jordan, a fellow of the Middle East Leadership Initiative (a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network) and founder of Mid The Art Reach Project. Al-Jazireh grew up in Kuwait and graduated from Oklahoma State University with a major in accounting.

BAFT board officers include:

Vice Chair: Suresh Subramanian, BNP Paribas
Secretary / Treasurer: Amy Sahm, Fulton Bank

Other directors include:

Michelle Knowles, ABSA
Tod Burwell (CEO), BAFT
Paul Taylor, Bank of America
Maurice Iskandar, Banque Libano-Française
Sabry Salman, Barclays
Rana Beydoun, BLOM Bank
Karin Walchshöfer, BMO (Bank of Montreal)
Sriram MuthuKrishnan, DBS Bank
Miriam Ratkovicova, Deloitte
Russell Brown, Deutsche Bank
Robert Mancini, Finastra
Aaron Zynczak, First Citizens Bank
Nick Smit, ING
Robert Hostler, JPMorgan Chase
Andreas Meletiou, Mashreq Bank
Steven Lotito, MUFG
Patrik Havander, Nordea
Dyanne Carenza,Scotiabank
Kevin Holmes, Standard Bank
George Lee, Standard Chartered Bank
Tarik Muzaffar, TD Bank
Mark Garfield, Zions Bancorporation

BAFT Media Contact:
Blair Bernstein
Director, Public Relations
[email protected]
+1 (202) 663-5468

Premier of Montserrat to Attend Two US-Based Meetings

Montserrat Premier and Members of the Caribbean Association of Banks to Discuss Banking on Visit to the U.S. at the 2022 BAFT Global Annual Meeting.

MONTSERRAT/WASHINGTON – The Premier of Montserrat, Hon. Joseph E Farrell will be on overseas duty from April 23 to May 5, 2022 as he will be attending meetings in Miami and Washington, DC.

Premier Farrell, whose portfolio includes Tourism, will attend the Seatrade Cruise Global Conference in Miami Beach, Florida from Monday April 25 to Thursday April 28, 2022. His delegation will include the Director of Tourism, Rosetta West-Gerald; Project Manager at the Tourism Division, Charlesworth Phillip and Private Sector Representative, Tour Operator, Roselyn Cassell-Sealey.

In addition to their attendance at the conference which includes workshops, the Montserrat delegation will also attend meetings with several cruise liners and will have an opportunity to display Montserrat branded collateral during the Expo which runs from April 26 to 28. The Montserrat Port Development project will also be highlighted during the week long activities.

Following this meeting, the Premier & Minister of Finance will travel to Washington, DC for the May 1-4, 2022 BAFT Global Annual Meeting.

The meeting will provide an opportunity for the Caribbean Association of Banks (CAB) Member Banks to network with North American banks at the largest correspondent banking event in the United States where industry professionals will be able to network, conduct bilateral meetings, and engage in topical discussions and sessions on the global transaction banking industry.

There will also be a Caribbean Banking Roundtable hosted on May 2, 2022 where BAFT and CAB will convene a group of Caribbean and U.S. Banks along with respective governments together in one room to discuss challenges in correspondent banking for the Caribbean community and opportunities to engage with North American banks.

BAFT Media Contact:
Blair Bernstein
Director, Public Relations
[email protected]
+1 (202) 663-5468

BAFT Announces New Vice President of Payments and Financial Crime

BAFT has named Deepa Sinha as its new Vice President of Payments and Financial Crime. Sinha will lead the association’s payments, cash management and financial crime-focused policy initiatives.

WASHINGTON – BAFT, the leading global financial services association for international transaction banking, has named Deepa Sinha as its new Vice President of Payments and Financial Crime. Sinha will lead the association’s payments, cash management and financial crime-focused policy initiatives, as well as support its related councils and committees.

Sinha will work to advance the goals of the payments and cash management industry through standardization, defining best practices and developing usable industry data. She will also be responsible for formulating policy recommendations and educating industry stakeholders including practitioners, regulators, policymakers and the broader business community.

“I’m excited for Deepa to join BAFT,” said Tod Burwell, President & CEO, BAFT. “Her experience in corporate treasury and consulting roles provides her with a unique perspective on critical cash management and financial crime issues that affect our members. With the rapid pace of change in this space, her experience will be quite valuable in driving issues forward.”

Prior to joining BAFT, Sinha accumulated more than 25 years of treasury and cash management experience at both corporations and banks. She formerly served as Treasurer at Caliburn International, now Acuity International, where she oversaw cash forecasting, working capital and debt management, and implemented policies and banking technology to support all core treasury functions. As the Associate Vice President of Banking Operations and Relationships at the Carlyle Group, she developed the cash management, FX and banking platforms, and built and managed the infrastructure for multicurrency cash management across 5,000+ bank accounts at more than 100 global banks. She also served on both the JPMorgan Chase Treasury and Wells Fargo Treasury Advisory Councils. Sinha is a graduate of George Mason University where she received a bachelor’s degree in government and global systems management.

BAFT Media Contact:
Blair Bernstein
Director, Public Relations
[email protected]
+1 (202) 663-5468

BAFT Announces Future Leaders Program Class of 2022

BAFT ‘s Future Leaders Program Class of 2022 includes 35 individuals from 22 countries representing a variety of disciplines within transaction banking.

WASHINGTON — BAFT, the leading global financial services association for international transaction banking, announced today its Future Leaders Program class of 2022. Now in its seventh year, the program recognizes upcoming talent in the global transaction banking industry.

Nominated by their respective institutions, the class of 2022 includes 35 individuals from 22 countries across six continents representing a variety of disciplines within transaction banking. There are three member institutions participating for the first time and three new countries, Djibouti, Finland and Uganda represented in the class of 2022.

This year’s group will be divided into five project teams to address current industry issues including commercializing data, CBDCs, sustainability, digitizing trade finance, and ISO 20022.

The class of 2022 will start their program virtually in January and will conclude at BAFT’s Global Annual Meeting in May. Several future leader council members will support the current class as mentors, joining BAFT board members who will continue to serve as project sponsors.

“We’re excited to welcome another diverse class of Future Leaders into the program,” said Tod Burwell, President & CEO, BAFT. “Over the past several years, it’s been encouraging to see the growth of our Future Leaders Program, which now boasts 180 alumni from every continent. We’ve also seen the growth of alumni members into more senior leadership roles in transaction banking, leaving no doubt that the program is fulfilling its mission.”

BAFT congratulates the following individuals who were selected to this year’s program:

Aluwani Thenga, Rand Merchant Bank
Attia Salim, ING Bank
Raphaël Scemama, Societe Generale
Devon Falvey, Citibank
Khaled Berto, African Export-Import Bank
Romain d’Apolito, UniCredit
Tomas Zaleckas, SEB
Dejna Zunic, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
Ahmad Hamza Hashmi, International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation
David Willacy, StoneX Group
Roselyn Najjuma, Standard Chartered Bank
Tuomas Autero, Nordea Bank
Farid Al-Masri, Arab Bank
Nadine Ghandour, BNP Paribas
Akshat Jain, ANZ Banking Group
Brandon Wells, Goldman Sachs
Cyril Finan, Deutsche Bank
Martin Cortazar Mueller, UBS
Valentina Polimeno, Intesa Sanpaolo
William Murray, Fulton Bank
Kishore Kotian, Barclays Bank
Mohit Mehtaji, HSBC Bank
Jon Boran, Lloyds Bank
Ayah Al-Hneiti, The Housing Bank for Trade and Finance
Farid Samadov, Kapital Bank
Himath Kithsiri, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
Ricardo Pacheco, City National Bank
Viktoria Rudoj, Commerzbank
Leos Hruz, BBVA
Alejandra Basañez Coppola, Banco Mercantil del Norte (Banorte)
Katherine (Katie) Belchere, PNC Bank
Marie Mohmand, Swedbank
Min Jeong Chae, Bank of Montreal (BMO)
Anum Chaudhary, Bank of America
Elmi Gabobe, CAC International Bank

BAFT Media Contact:
Blair Bernstein
Director, Public Relations
[email protected]
+ 1 (202) 663-5468

Afreximbank and BAFT Deliver Correspondent Banking Training to African Respondent Banks

170+ participants from 30 banks in 20 African countries offered an overview of critical aspects to consider when establishing new correspondent banking relationships.

CAIRO/WASHINGTON – The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and BAFT (Bankers Association for Finance and Trade) organized a successful series of training workshops for thirty African respondent banks between May and October 2021 to enhance their ability to obtain and maintain correspondent banking relationships.

The three-day training session attended by over one 170 participants from twenty African countries offered an overview of critical aspects to consider when establishing new correspondent banking relationships.

In the current context where access to correspondent banking services is becoming increasingly costly due to heightened regulatory expectations, particularly concerning Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing, the attendees participated in an in-depth discussion on respondent best practices for due diligence, maintaining relationships, and how to engage money service businesses and fintech companies.

Denys Denya, Afreximbank’s Executive Vice President in charge of Finance, Administration and Banking Services said, “As part of Afreximbank’s Correspondent Banking and Trade Services Strategy, we have been supporting banks in our member states to have access to the international banking market by providing them with trade finance lines and advisory Services. Improving the capacity of African banks to enable them to access correspondent banking services is also a key part of our mandate, and capacity building is a major activity in this regard.”

“We are delighted that the BAFT Respondent’s Playbook has been introduced to so many banks in the region. Our hope is that they better understand the expectations of correspondent banks and regulators, and are able to apply key takeaways to assist in building and maintaining correspondent banking relationships.” said Tod Burwell, President & CEO, BAFT.

About Afreximbank

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade. The Bank deploys innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa. At the end of 2020, Afreximbank’s total assets and guarantees stood at US$21.5 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$3.4 billion. The Bank disbursed more than US$42 billion between 2016 and 2020. Afreximbank has ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A-), Moody’s (Baa1) and Fitch (BBB-). It is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.

Follow Afreximbank: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

About BAFT

BAFT, the leading global financial services association for international transaction banking, helps bridge solutions across financial institutions, service providers and the regulatory community that promote sound financial practices enabling innovation, efficiency, and commercial growth. BAFT engages on a wide range of topics affecting transaction banking, including trade finance, payments, and compliance.

To learn how your organization can access BAFT’s Respondent’s Playbook Training or for additional training or educational topics, please email [email protected].

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BAFT Announces New Senior Vice President of Trade

BAFT has named Scott Stevenson as its new Senior Vice President of Trade. Stevenson will lead the association’s trade portfolio.

WASHINGTON – BAFT, the leading global financial services association for international transaction banking, has named Scott Stevenson as its new Senior Vice President of Trade. Stevenson will lead the association’s trade-focused policy, practices, and education initiatives, and will support its trade-related councils and committees.

“Scott has a wealth of experience in trade, and we are delighted to have him as a part of the BAFT team,” said Tod Burwell, President & CEO of BAFT. “His diverse geographic experience, coupled with his commercial banking and multi-lateral development banking background, is a great foundation to provide our members around the world with the insight, tools and resources they need to help them succeed in trade finance.”

Stevenson replaces Stacey Facter, who retired from BAFT in the same role overseeing all of the trade-related activities of the association. Prior to joining BAFT, Stevenson was a senior advisor for AF Capital Partners, which provided expertise in emerging market structured and project finance for development banking institutions. For two years, he consulted development banks and export credit agencies following a 17-year career at the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank Group in various trade and investment project leadership roles. Before joining the IFC, Stevenson was the regional head of financial institutions at Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Colgate University, and his MBA from York University.

BAFT Media Contact:
Blair Bernstein
Director, Public Relations
[email protected]
+1 (202) 663-5468

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