Meet WIFA

Bio to come

Bénédicte is the Head of the BIS Innovation Hub, Hong Kong Centre. Prior to this appointment, she was a managing director at SC Ventures, the innovation arm of Standard Chartered Bank that leads a series of new ventures across digital banking, banking as a service, SME finance and blockchain. From 2018-2019, she was the Vice President of International Government Relations at Circle, involved in the evolution of blockchain and digital assets. From 2012-2018, she was the Head of Risk & Strategy of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), and in that capacity also acting as the Vice Chair of the Committee on Emerging Risks and the Fintech research lead for the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). From 2007-2012, she was a managing director at Credit Suisse and before that from 1997-2007, she was an associate and executive director at Goldman Sachs. Originally from Belgium, she holds LL.M. and M.B.A. degrees from the University of Chicago and the University of Leuven. She is admitted to the New York Bar since 1999. In 2016, she was a recipient of the China Daily Asian Women Leadership Awards for her efforts related to entrepreneurship, innovation and charity. She remains closely engaged in these topics, most recently through her involvement in the Fintech Association of Hong Kong (FTAHK) and Women In Finance Asia (WIFA.)

Bonnie has had an extensive career in public service focused on designing, implementing, and managing programs for marginalized communities. During her tenure in the U.S. government, she focused on public health issues, both in international and domestic settings. She also has experience working for the Executive Office of the President on budgetary policy; for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on compliance and regulatory oversight; and at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce representing U.S. banking industry clients. Since moving to Hong Kong, she pivoted her career towards the non-profit sector. She worked as an advisor to MindHK on mental health issues surrounding the protests in Hong Kong, and recently joined OneSky as a Project Director. In her spare time, she enjoys Zumba, hiking, and volunteering in community service events.

Winner of the 2020 Global Excellence Awards, Nominee for the 2020 Women of the Year and Winner of the 2019 Women in Tech Steerco’s Choice for the Excellence Awards. Bonnie thrives on understanding and nurturing interactions between people.

At Morgan Stanley, Bonnie is the Chief Operating Officer of Enterprise Technology and Services under the Technology Division in the region, in addition to her existing role as part of the Technology team responsible for implementing and building controls and solutions for the Firm’s Cybersecurity Program. She helps to develop team culture to nurture creative ideas and innovative solutions, ensure recognition, mentoring and focusing on ways to boost team morale and cohesion. Bonnie leads the Morgan Stanley Women in Tech Network for Hong Kong, and is an active champion to the Hong Kong Women’s Business Alliance.

Outside of work, Bonnie is the Board Member and co-Chair for Women in Finance Asia (WiFA). WiFA is a non-profit organization to provide women and men the tools, resources and network to shift the dial in their professional interaction. In 2021, the theme of the year is “Pivot To Succeed” with a continued focus on Innovation and Resilience. WiFA experienced a rapid transformation in 2020; from revamping traditional flagship events, going virtual to connect 5,000 members who worked from home, as well as initiating new workshops to equip ourselves to adopt to this new norm, WiFA is proud to stay strong to serve our community.

Being the first female President for the High Technology Crime Investigation Association (HTCIA) for Asia Pacific in 2017-2018 and contributing to the Association since 2009, Bonnie continues to partner with notable investigators and high-profile speakers to share unique insights within HTCIA membership through hosting regular knowledge sessions.

Bonnie would like to live her life to the fullest, champion the change that we wish to see, be bold, have the courage to follow our hearts and make a difference. Think and Thank.

Urszula is a regulatory lawyer and digital economy specialist. Her passion is to drive excellence at the cutting edge of finance and technology and help clients launch market-leading projects with strong technical and legal infrastructure.

Urszula is an advisory and transactional lawyer supporting virtual asset issuers, new DLT protocol developers, global banks, SVFs, custodians, payment providers, P2P lenders, market makers and asset managers on new products, compliance and licensing. She works closely with governments, regulators and multilaterals.

In the secondary markets space, she advises OTC desks, exchanges and FMI providers, including building rulebooks for institutional grade regulated markets.

Across the spectrum, she advises on privacy regulation, digital transformation and algorithmic design.

Urszula is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering specialist (CAMS). She helps clients build smart AML/KYC controls, understand eID systems and navigate sanctions and WMD non-proliferation issues. She is passionate about combatting forced migration-related issues including human trafficking and predatory lending.

On the policy side, Urszula has been privileged to work with industry and regulators on critical regulatory reforms, including the World Economic Forum DeFi Working Group, as well as being a contributing author of ASIFMA’s “Best Practices for Digital Asset Exchanges”, “Tokenised Securities Roadmap” and upcoming “AI Whitepaper”.

Mei Ling is a fellow member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. She has more than 15 years of experience working in international accounting firms and public companies. She has led teams on investment projects, M&A assignments, funding and restructuring. Aiming to contribute for especially the causes of sustainability, social inclusion and diversity, Mei Ling has joined WiFA as volunteering Treasurer recently.

As an adventurous person and nature lover, she has completed various international marathons, completed 100km tail-walks and hiked up to 6000m altitude. She co-founded a fitness centre in Hong Kong in 2017 with her running buddies.

Sonja is Group Senior Corporate Counsel at AIA Group. She has over 25 years of experience in the Asia Pacific region leading large multidisciplinary teams, in the negotiation, execution and implementation of landmark M&A transactions as well as transformational initiatives, working closely with senior management and cross functional teams, as a senior legal and/or business leader. In addition to her legal roles, other roles with AIA have included AIA Head of Corporate Transactions and Head of Operations – AIA Group Partnership Distribution. Sonja is one of the founders and committee member of the AIA Group office internal diversity network and is also one of the co-chairs of the WiFA Mentor Mentee Programme.

• Accomplished government and regulatory affairs executive with specialized focus on public policy, government, regulatory and industry advocacy.
• Able to shape policy and develop regulatory strategy across the Asia Pacific to drive company services, operations, products and support clients.
• Play a key role in senior management teams focused on governance, business strategy and client engagement.
• Skilled communicator who brings extensive multicultural experiences to support relationships with senior corporate, client and public sector leaders.
• Certified coach, negotiator and leader with a proven track record of building and managing high preforming, cross cultural/functional teams who deliver results.
• Highly motivated to create, promote and drive diversity and inclusion, ESG and CSR programs on the global, regional and local levels.

Bernice works in Bloomberg’s Enterprise Sales and covers clients in the banking industry. Her positivity and hardworking attitude drives confidence in the sales strategies and projects that she leads in APAC. She is a strong believer in staying curious, constant learning and giving back. She is co-chair for the Bloomberg Women’s Community and helps to promote internal and external events within the women’s network. Bernice’s enthusiasm in diversity and inclusion related topics drew her to attend WIFA events. She was inspired by like-minded professionals and became a committee member in 2018.

Bernice holds a BA from Boston College with a major in Art History and minor in French. Prior to her career, she has also co-founded the Lean In at Boston College chapter inspired by Sheryl Sandberg.

On the weekends or her spare time, you will find her doing yoga or on hiking trails with her blind dog, and enjoying quality time with friends and family over good food and wine.

A Financial Services Lawyer with 18 years of in house legal experience. Based in Hong Kong working in a Private Bank covering all general banking matters including financial regulatory matters, HKMA / SFC compliance, market products (e.g. derivatives and structured products) and structured finance transactions.

A highly motivated and passionate individual who loves Finance, Charity and Sport.