9th ESAs Consumer Protection Day

09:30-09:40	Welcome speech Petra Hielkema, Chairperson, EIOPA and Current Chairperson, Joint Committee of the ESAs
09:40-09:55	Keynote speech Mairead McGuinness, European Commissioner for Financial Services, Financial Stability and Capital Markets Union
09:55-11:15	PANEL 1: Are EU policymakers going down the right path on the sustainable finance policy agenda? Panelists will discuss how to prevent greenwashing, consumers’ comprehensibility and usability of sustainability disclosures and labeling, as well as the role of the IDD/MiFID II suitability assessments rules in ensuring investors are advised appropriately with regard to the sustainability characteristics of financial products. Confirmed panelists: Aleksandra Mączyńska, Executive Director, Better Finance Montserrat Martínez Parera, Vice-Chair, National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), Spain Olav Jones, Deputy Director General & Director of Economics and Finance, Insurance Europe Moderator: Natasha Cazenave, Executive Director, ESMA
11:15-11:30	Keynote speech Paul Tang, Member of the European Parliament
11:30-12:50	PANEL 2: How to facilitate access to finance for consumers in an inclusive way in the current environment? Higher food, energy and record petrol prices push up inflation and increase the cost of living. Certain categories of consumers including vulnerable groups could encounter difficulties to access financial services. Furthermore, the trend towards increasingly data-driven business models can be compromised if adequate governance measures are not put in place to deal with biases in datasets used in order to avoid discriminatory outcomes. Greater financial inclusion can contribute to greater social mobility, a more effective welfare system and greater national resilience from economic shocks. New products and services reportedly enable access to more affordable products for some consumers. Confirmed panelists: Anne de Lanversin, CEO, Generali Global Pension Esko Kivisaari, Deputy Managing Director, Finance Finland Liz McFall, Director of Data Civics and Chancellor’s Fellow based in the Edinburgh Futures Institute and Sociology, University of Edinburgh Olivier Jérusalmy, Managing Director, Financial Inclusion Europe Moderator: Fausto Parente, Executive Director, EIOPA
12:50-14:10	Lunch break
14:10-15:30	PANEL 3: What are the opportunities and challenges related to the access and sharing of data in financial services? The panel will explore lessons learnt from open payments in the banking sector and discuss its extension into the insurance and investments sectors, focusing on anticipated opportunities for consumers, industry and authorities, as well as potential challenges with data protection and security of data transmissions. Confirmed panelists: Agustín Reyna, Director, Legal and Economic Affairs, BEUC - The European Consumer Organisation Hetal Popat, Director for Open Banking Services, HSBC Magda Bianco, Head of Department, Consumer Protection and Financial Education, Banca d'Italia Rym Ayadi, Professor at Bayes Business School (previously, Cass Business School) Moderator: Francois-Louis Michaud, Executive Director, EBA
15:30-15:45	Highlights and concluding remarks Verena Ross, Chairperson, ESMA

 

Anne de Lanversin

Anne de Lanversin is the CEO of Generali Global Pension, a new business venture for Generali dedicated to pensions. Anne has more than 25 years of experience in Asset Management, Employee Benefits & Insurance including more than 20 years’ experience in SRI. Anne was a Member of the first French SRI Label Committee from 2016 to 2021. She was previously Head of Investment & Sales at AXA Pension where she steered the investment business towards SRI. At Allianz Global Investors she was in charge of Corporate Sales Management. She has a strong track-record in International Corporate and Commercial Development where the customers have always been her main focal point, whether institutional or retail. She has also been an Independent Board Member of 123IM, Asset Management, Paris, Private Equity, since 2020. Anne studied at McGill University, Montréal and at Science-Po, Paris.

Agustín Reyna 

Agustín Reyna is Director of Legal and Economic Affairs at The European Consumer Organisation, BEUC. BEUC represents 46 independent national consumer associations from 32 European countries. The primary task of BEUC is to act as a strong consumer voice in Brussels and to ensure that consumer interests are given their proper weight in all EU policies. Within BEUC, Agustín supervises five policy teams (Financial Services, Digital, Consumer Rights, Competition, and Consumer Redress and Enforcement) and coordinates the organisation’s work on competition law enforcement. Agustin is co-EU chair of the Intellectual Property committee of the Trans-Atlantic Consumer Dialogue, a network of over 75 organisations representing consumers’ interest in the US and the EU. Since 2018 he acts as non-governmental advisor for the Commission to the International Competition Network. He holds a PhD. from the University of Bremen on the intersection between copyright and consumer contract law and often publishes in scientific journals on issues related to EU law.

Aleksandra Mączyńska

Aleksandra Mączyńska is the Executive Director, responsible for research and advocacy work, of BETTER FINANCE - the European Federation of Investors and Financial Services Users. She is part of the EC Consumer Policy Advisory Group as well as a vice-chair of EIOPA’s Occupational Pensions Stakeholder Group (OPSG). She is representing individual investors and financial services users in the EU Eco-labelling Board, the United Nations Civil Society Advisory Body of the Principles for Responsible Banking (UNEPFI) as well as ESMA’s Consultative Working Group for the Coordination Network on Sustainability. She used to advise DG Fisma and the JUST in the preparation of legislation and policy initiatives which affect the users of financial services as a member of the European Commission’s Financial Services User Group (FSUG). Previously she worked for the Polish consumer and competition watchdog and was an expert on various EU Council Working Parties such as the WP on Financial Services and the WP on Competitiveness and Growth. 

Esko Kivisaari

Esko Kivisaari is a Fellow of the Actuarial Society of Finland and the Deputy Managing Director of Finance Finland, an industry body representing the interests of the Finnish financial sector. He is a former President of the Actuarial Association of Europe.

Hetal Popat

Hetal is Director for Open Banking services provided globally across HSBC.  He is accountable for delivering and operating the open banking solutions being required in markets across HSBC’s global footprint.  He also closely supports the businesses as they seek to develop propositions that use open banking to benefit customers. 

Prior to this role he led front office commercial/corporate banking teams at Barclays, as well as heading strategy functions at both Lloyds and Barclays. He is a keen adopter of new technologies and all things digital. 

Liz McFall

Dr Liz McFall is Director of Data Civics and Chancellor’s Fellow based in the Edinburgh Futures Institute and Sociology at the University of Edinburgh. She has published extensively on insurance, particularly life and health insurance. Recent research has focused on the emergence of insuretech and data-driven innovations including personalisation and self-tracking. She was recently a member of the General Data Ethics expert panel of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA). In 2020 she edited a Special Issue of the journal Big Data and Society focused on data, behaviour and innovation in insurance. Her books include Markets and the Arts of Attachment (Routledge 2017), Devising Consumption: cultural economies of insurance, credit and spending (Routledge 2014) and Advertising: a cultural economy (Sage 2004). She is founding Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Cultural Economy. 

Magda Bianco

Magda Bianco is Head of the Bank of Italy's Consumer Protection and Financial Education Department, responsible for banking conduct supervision, complaints management, the banking ombudsman and financial education programs. She worked in the Research Department, in the Law and Economics Unit, and headed the Consumer Protection and Anti-Money Laundering Directorate. She served as economic advisor to the Italian Minister of Justice and is consultant for economic and financial matters for the President of the Republic.  

She is a member of the Governing Council of the Financial Consumer Protection Network (FinCoNet), of the Advisory Board of the OECD/INFE, of the Italian Committee for financial education. For the years 2021-23 she is Co-Chair of the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion.  

She founded and was the first Chair of the Bank of Italy Women Association and has chaired the Bank of Italy Equal opportunity committee in the years 2015-2020.

Mairead McGuinness

Mairead McGuinness is European Commissioner for financial services, financial stability and Capital Markets Union

The Commissioner’s vision for the portfolio is focused on ensuring the financial sector’s strength and stability, so that it can deliver for people, society and the environment.

Before joining the Commission in October 2020, Ms McGuinness was First Vice-President of the European Parliament from 2017. She served as an MEP from Ireland for 16 years, and was a Vice-President of the Parliament since 2014.

As Vice-President, she oversaw relations with national Parliaments, led the Parliament’s dialogue with religious and philosophical organisations, and had responsibility for the Parliament’s communication policy.

During her time in the Parliament, Ms McGuinness sat on a range of committees, covering agriculture, environment, public health, budgets, petitions and constitutional affairs. Her legislative work included leading for the EPP Group on the European Climate Law, the revision of medical devices legislation, and CAP reform post-2013. As an Irish MEP representing the border region, she was outspoken on Brexit and the consequences for the EU and Ireland.

In 2006-2007, Ms McGuinness chaired the Parliament’s investigation into the collapse of the Equitable Life assurance company which identified issues around weak financial regulation.

Prior to becoming an MEP, she was an award-winning journalist, broadcaster and commentator.

Montserrat Martínez Parera

Montserrat Martínez Parera is Vice Chair of the Spanish National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) and an ex-officio member of the Governing Board of the Bank of Spain, member of the Governing Committee of the Spanish Executive Resolution Authority (FROB) and member of the Council and the Technical Committee of the Spanish Macroprudential Authority Financial Stability Board (AMCESFI). She is also Chair of the Coordination Network on Sustainability at ESMA and member of the Financial and Audit Committee at IOSCO.

She has twenty-five years of experience in financial market regulation, both in the public and private sectors. She was head of Deputy Governor’s Office of the Bank of Spain during the restructuring programme of the Spanish banking sector. Prior to that she was responsible for various duties at the CNMV from 2007 and 2011 including director of the Presidency Office. In the private arena, she has held several positions in CaixaBank, as Director of Public Affairs and chair of the regulatory committee, and in BBVA, both in NY and Madrid.

Born in Barcelona, she has a Degree in Economics and Business Science from Pompeu Fabra University and a Master’s Degree in Economics and Finance from Center for Monetary and Financial Studies (CEMFI).

Olivier Jérusalmy 

Olivier Jérusalmy  is Executive Director of Financial Inclusion Europe

Researcher:

• Barriers which prevent access and use of financial services
• Over-indebtedness: causes, triggers, impact, diagnostic and treatment
• Discriminative impact of data use, risk assessment, digitalisation
• EU files: Payment Account Directive, Consumer Credit & Mortgage Directives, Credit Servicers Directive, Anti-discrimination Directive, Insolvency, EU Pillar for Social Rights

Olivier Jérusalmy is currently managing the recently created NGO Financial Inclusion Europe. He was Director of the European Financial Inclusion Network (EFIN) as well as Senior Researcher for the Belgian NGO Réseau Financité, specialised in sustainable and ethical finance. 

He is a member of the European Commission Expert Group on Financial Data Space (DG FISMA), of the Financial Services Expert Group (FSUG), of th extended expert group on Insolvency (DG JUST), and former member of the Expert Group on Ethic and Data in Insurance (EIOPA). Mr. Jérusalmy is specialised in financial inclusion issues.  He previously worked as a credit advisor in a credit cooperative, before developing a personal micro-credit offer for private persons, excluded from mainstream credit supply in the Walloon Region.  He is the former Director of the Walloon Observatory of credit and over-indebtness. For the past 10 years, he has been Chairman the CAMD, the Brussels Region Umbrella Organisation of Debt Counsellors.  He is former Vice-Chairman of the European Consumer Debt Network.  Recently, he has been active for Finance Watch as Senior Research and Advocacy Officier on financial inclusion issues, consumer debts and over-indebtness. 

He holds a Master Degree in Economics and Political Sciences. 

Olav Jones

Olav Jones is the Deputy Director General & Director Economics and Finance at Insurance Europe, the federation which represents the European insurance industry. He is based in Brussels and responsible for all issues relating to Prudential Regulation, Financial Reporting, Investments and International Affairs. He is also a member of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA)’s Occupational Pensions Stakeholder Group (OPSG). After studying Engineering and then Finance, he started his career as a consultant to the financial services industry with Oliver, Wyman and Company. He then spent 15 years in the insurance industry working at Prudential Plc, Fortis Insurance and Ageas in roles relating to risk, capital management and strategy including Group Chief Risk Officer.

Paul Tang

Paul Tang is a senior Member of the European Parliament for the Dutch Partij van de Arbeid (PvdA), as part of the Group of Socialists and Democrats (S&D). In 2014, Tang led the list of the PvdA for the European elections. In 2019 he was re-elected. Paul Tang’s main priorities involve the fight against tax evasion, digital taxation, sustainable finance and platform regulation. Since September 2020, Tang is chair of the subcommittee on taxation (FISC). Next to that, Tang is one of the co-founders of the Tracking-free Ads Coalition within the European Parliament.

Previously, Paul Tang was a Member of the Dutch Parliament. Here, Paul Tang was spokesperson for financial and fiscal affairs from 2007 until 2010, right through the financial crisis. Prior to that, he worked for the Dutch ministry of Economic Affairs and the Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. Paul Tang received a PhD degree in Economics from the University of Amsterdam.

Petra Hielkema

Petra is Chairperson of EIOPA and is leading the Authority since September 2021. On 27 May 2021 the Council adopted the decision to appoint her after the confirmation by the European Parliament on 18 May 2021. Petra is also member of the ESRB Steering Committee and member of the IAIS Executive Committee. Besides that she is the Champion of the IAIS Fintech Forum. In 2022 Petra is also chairing the Joint Committee of the three ESA’s (EIOPA, EBA and ESMA).

Prior to this role Petra was Division Director Insurance Supervision at De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB, the Dutch Central Bank). The division is responsible for the supervision of the Dutch insurance sector. Petra joined DNB in February 2007. In 2013 she became Head Insurance Policy. In 2015 she was appointed as Head of the DNB Expert Center for Fit & Proper testing, assessing (supervisory and management) board members in the financial sector. In February 2017 she started as Director of Payments and Market Infrastructures and was responsible for the payments and collateral operations of the central bank, oversight, policy and cyber intelligence. Also the TIBER project (Threat Intelligence Based Ethical Red teaming) was part of her responsibilities. Prior to joining the Dutch Central Bank Petra had an international career in the oil and gas industry.

Prior to being appointed Petra was an Alternate Member of the EIOPA Board of Supervisors. She was also the Chair of the EIOPA Policy Committee. Before that she participated in several EIOPA working groups and fulfilled some international roles including Chair of the FSB fmiCBCM (recovery & resolution for CCPs), member of the BIS Committee for Payments and Market Infrastructures, member of the ECB Market Infrastructures Board, member of the IAIS Technical Committee.

Petra has a European Masters in Law & Economics and a Masters in Russian Studies. She is married and proud mother of three children.

Rym Ayadi

Professor Rym Ayadi is Founder and President of the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association (EMEA), a Barcelona based regional Think Tank that serves as a leading independent and innovative policy research institution. She is also Founder and Director of the EU-Mediterranean and African Network for Economic Studies (EMANES, formerly EMNES), professor at the Bayes Business School (Former CASS) of the City University of London, Senior Advisor at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) and Associated Scholar at the Centre for Relationship Banking and Economics (CERBE) at LUMSA University in Rome.  She is the Director of the CREACT4MED project which aims to strengthen businesses within the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) in the Southern Mediterranean region. 

In October 2020 Prof. Ayadi was re-elected Chair of the European Banking Authority (EBA) Banking Stakeholders Group (BSG) of which she acted as elected Chair from February 2019 to June 2020. Professor Ayadi is an Economist and international academic expert on international business and financial systems, financial markets and institutions, global financial regulation and governance, and socio-economic development and foresight in economies in transition. She is currently Member in several international high- level Academic, Advisory Committees and Editing Boards.

Verena Ross

Verena Ross is the Chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). She took up the role on 1 November 2021 and is responsible for representing the Authority as well as preparing the work of and chairing its Board of Supervisors and Management Board. Between 2011 and 2021 Verena Ross served as ESMA’s first Executive Director, when she was responsible for building up the organisation and overseeing its day to day running. Prior to this, Verena held a number of senior posts in the UK's Financial Services Authority (FSA) and was a member of the FSA's Executive Committee. Verena joined the FSA in 1998 to run the Executive Chairman’s office during the regulator’s start-up phase and was briefly a seconded advisor to the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission in 2000. She held various positions in the FSA’s Markets Division and was Director of Strategy & Risk Division before becoming Director of the International Division.

Verena is a German national. Following studies in Sinology and Economics in Hamburg, Taipei and London (SOAS) she began her career at the Bank of England in 1994, where she worked as an economist and banking supervisor.