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Serena Sebastiani
Group Chief Strategy & Venture Officer, Head of Regulatory Affairs
Fuze Finance
Serena Sebastiani is the Group Chief Strategy & Venture Officer and Head of Regulatory Affairs at Fuze, where she leads global strategy, new venture development, market expansion, and government and regulatory affairs. With over 15 years of experience across financial services, fintech, and digital assets, she is a veteran of the industry, focused on scaling institutional-grade digital assets and payments infrastructure across high-growth corridors, with regulation and compliance positioned as core enablers of sustainable growth.
Prior to joining Fuze in January 2026, Serena spent over seven years at PwC Middle East, most recently as Senior Director and Virtual Assets Consulting Lead within Financial Services Advisory. In that role, she advised central banks, regulators, sovereign wealth funds, and financial institutions on digital assets, fintech strategy, regulatory frameworks, and financial-sector transformation across the region. Alongside her executive role, Serena serves as Co-Chair of Digital Assets at the MENA Fintech Association and as President, GCC at the Association for Women in Cryptocurrency, contributing to policy dialogue, ecosystem development, and industry leadership across the Middle East.
Serena speaks at leading Regional and main Global conferences and events (ex. Money 20/20, Leap, Seamless, Dubai Fintech Summit, Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Insights Forum, etc.), moderates industry roundtables and Regulators' meetings, runs podcasts and is frequently featured in media coverage.
Speaking At
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11:00am–12:00pmTue 17 NovWorkshopWorkshop Room 1Open
Others
Money Without a Passport: Building the Regulated Orchestration Layer for Global Money - Powered by Fuze Finance
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Arjun Vir SinghPartner, Global Head of Fintech & Digital AssetsArthur D. Little
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Mo Ali YusufChief Executive OfficerFuze Finance
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Queenie LeRegional Expansion Lead, APACTether
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Serena SebastianiGroup Chief Strategy & Venture Officer, Head of Regulatory AffairsFuze Finance
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Khibar RassulChief Executive OfficerAxiym
About this session
One integration, multiple markets: who is responsible at each step of a cross-border payment?
Imagine a payment company serving customers across Asia and the Middle East. Funds are collected through a bank, converted into digital money, transferred across borders, and paid out in local currency.
Behind this seemingly seamless journey, who is authorised to perform each step? Who holds the funds, provides liquidity, manages foreign exchange, and carries out transaction checks? And who answers to the customer if something goes wrong?
Fuze will guide attendees through this illustrative payment journey, with representatives from a bank and a payment company, alongside a regulatory expert, examining the responsibilities, risks, and requirements at each stage.
Attendees will gain a clearer understanding of what to expect from infrastructure partners when launching new cross-border payment routes, and how local regulation and market access shape what can be delivered through a single integration.
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