top of page

GLOBAL BOARD 2021-23

Our truly diverse and inclusive Board

MK pic.jpeg

Malik Khan Kotadia

Philippines, Singapore, India

Chairman

Malik is the co-founder of GIFT.  He is a serial entrepreneur, Digital banker, Academic, keynote speaker and author.

  • Co-founder and Chairman of Finnovation Labs, a Singapore headquartered Fintech Advisory and Venture growth company.

  • Adjunct Faculty- Fintech at the Asian Institute of Management, Philippines.

  • Keynote speaker at over 125 conferences across 25 countries.

  • Acclaimed author of 'The New Ages'. 2 more books WIP.

Prior to this, Malik worked in digital  banking  at MNC banks (Citibank, StanChart) for 2 decades.​

Global Advisory Board 

In alphabetical order...

Global Board: Meet the Team
Dr%20Bernd_edited.jpg

Dr Bernd Van Linder

UAE

CEO, Commercial Bank of Dubai

Dr Bernd is a veteran banker in the MENA region. He is the CEO of the Commercial Bank of Dubai.

Prior to this, he was the CEO at Saudi Hollande Bank, and Executive Director at ABN Amro before that.

Global Board- Pro Tem- 2020-21

MK pic.jpeg

Chairperson

Malik Khan Kotadia- Philippines, Singapore

Malik is the co-founder of GIFT.  He is a serial entrepreneur, Digital banker, Academic, keynote speaker and author.

  • Co-founder and Chairman of Finnovation Labs, a Singapore headquartered Fintech Advisory and Venture growth company.

  • Adjunct Faculty- Fintech at the Asian Institute of Management, Philippines.

  • Keynote speaker at over 125 conferences across 25 countries.

  • Acclaimed author of 'The New Ages'. 2 more books WIP.

Prior to this, Malik worked in digital  banking  at MNC banks (Citibank, StanChart) for 2 decades.​

lotte%2525252520pic_edited_edited_edited_edited_edited.jpg

Vice Chairperson

Lotte Schou Zibell- Australia, Sweden

Lotte is Regional Director at Asian Development Bank (ADB). Lotte’s expertise is in leveraging emerging technology to deliver agile solutions for expanding access to finance at the intersection of technology and policy frameworks. She has worked extensively on the practical application of digital financial services.

In her recent role as the Chief of ADB’s Finance Sector Group, she led ADB’s efforts to innovate in digital financial technology. 

Before that, Lotte worked as Director at the Swedish Ministry of Finance, financial supervision and regulation expert at the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority and the Swedish Central Bank, and as a consultant to the International Monetary Fund.

She has been among the earliest members of GIFT. In her role as Vice Chairperson, she helps guide and frame the overall strategy for GIFT.

Seba 1.jpg

Secretary

Sebastian Resano- Argentina

Sebastian, nicknamed Chucho, has been a blockchain Advisor to the Central Banks of Argentina and Chile. He has also been engaged in Blockchain projects with WEF and Cambridge Judge Business School Center for Alternative Finance (CCAF).

Sebastian is a co-founder of GIFT.

zing_edited.jpg

Treasurer

Zing Yang- Singapore

Zing is the co-founder of Interstellar group and a former Investment Manager at Temasek, operating in the ASEAN markets.

She is also active in the blockchain space, and is the Director of Litecoin Foundation.

Zing has been one of the earliest members of GIFT.

Nizam.jpg

Director- Compliance and Regulations

Nizam Ismail, Singapore

Nizam is an accomplished lawyer and compliance professional in Singapore, and the co-founder of Ethikom. He is also a fellow at the Singapore University of Social Sciences.

 

He was a former regulator at MAS. He has also worked in leading banks like Citi, Lehman Brothers and Morgan Stanley, where he was the head of compliance for South East Asia Region.

musheer_edited.jpg

Director- Ecosystem and best practices:

Syed Musheer Ahmed, Hong Kong

Musheer is the co founder of Finstep Asia, and also the Co-Founder IndiaTech HK.

 

He is a well known Fintech ecosystem leader in Asia, and was the founding Board member of Fintech Association of Hong Kong.

kevin_edited.jpg

Director- Events and memberships

Kevin Pang, Singapore

Kevin is the Co-Chair at SGTECH Blockchain Committee, and the Secretary at the Blockchain Association of Singapore (BAS)

 

He is also the Pro tem director and Head Community at Digital Exchange Association.

bottom of page