Where America’s Payments & RegTech Leaders Redefine the AI Era
#npf
DIAMOND SPONSOR
The 26th NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum
JOIN PAYMENTS, COMPLIANCE & REGTECH LEADERS FROM ACROSS THE USA
LET’S CONNECT
“The best way to predict the future is to invent it”
Alan Kay
Welcome to the NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum – Austin 2026!
Join us at the W Hotel in Austin, Texas for a power-packed forum at the intersection of payments, regulation, technology and AI. Building on the momentum of the 2025 Austin Forum – which brought together banks, credit unions, fintechs, processors, regulators, card schemes and technology innovators from across the US – the 2026 edition will dig even deeper into the big shifts reshaping the North American payments and compliance landscape.
Across a full day of keynotes, fireside chats, boardroom-style panels and use-case driven discussions, you will explore how instant payments (FedNow and RTP), A2A transactions, digital wallets, open banking, crypto, CBDCs and embedded finance are transforming customer journeys, business models and revenue streams. You will also gain practical insight into the evolving US regulatory environment – including expectations around AML, sanctions, BNPL, digital assets, consumer protection and data access (Section 1033) – and what they mean for strategy, product, risk and operations.
A dedicated focus will be given to AI and agentic AI in payments and RegTech: how intelligent, goal-driven systems and advanced analytics can orchestrate workflows, enhance fraud and financial crime detection, streamline investigations and empower compliance teams – all with the right governance, explainability and human control.
Whether you represent a bank or credit union, fintech, payment processor, card network, merchant, RegTech provider, law firm, consultancy or regulatory body, the Austin Forum is designed to deliver actionable insights, warm introductions and high-value one-to-one meetings that move your roadmap forward.
Secure your place in Austin and help define the next chapter of payments, compliance and RegTech in the USA.
OUR SPONSORS
OUR SPEAKERS
OUR CONTRIBUTORS
WHAT'S COMING UP
The Future of Payments in the USA
-
Instant & A2A Payments at Scale – Lessons from FedNow, RTP and real-time rails: how instant and account-to-account payments are reshaping consumer expectations, liquidity management and bank/fintech collaboration
-
From Cards to Wallets, BNPL & Embedded Finance – The next wave of the US consumer payment experience, including digital wallets, BNPL, subscription models and embedded finance across e-commerce, travel and everyday spend
Regulatory Change & Compliance in a Fragmented Landscape
-
Federal vs State: Navigating the Patchwork – Understanding the latest developments in US payments, AML, crypto and consumer protection rules, and how to build agile compliance frameworks that can adapt as regulation evolves
-
Crypto, CBDCs & Digital Assets – Practical perspectives on licensing, taxation, stablecoins, CBDCs and crypto integration in payments – and how to balance innovation, risk and regulatory expectations
AI & Agentic AI in Payments & RegTech
-
From Analytics to Agentic AI – Moving beyond rules-based systems and classic machine learning towards agentic AI that can coordinate tasks, surface insights and support real-time decisioning in onboarding, fraud, AML and treasury operations
-
Governance, Explainability & Human-in-the-Loop – Designing AI and agentic AI with robust guardrails: model governance, bias and fairness, documentation, and human oversight that regulators, boards and customers can trust
Financial Crime, Fraud & Cross-Border Payments
-
Next-Gen Fraud & AML Defences – Using AI, advanced analytics and collaborative intelligence to tackle scams, mule accounts, APP fraud, cyber-enabled crime and complex money-laundering schemes across US and global corridors
-
Smarter Cross-Border & Open Banking – How new infrastructures, partnerships and technologies (including blockchain, data-sharing and open banking initiatives) are making cross-border payments faster, more transparent and more compliant
OUR AGENDA
10 NOVEMBER | AUSTIN | USA
The 26th NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum will bring together global leaders to explore the future of payments, compliance, and innovation in the USA. The agenda highlights AI, digital transformation, open finance, cryptocurrency and CBDCs, instant and A2A payments, embedded finance, and financial crime prevention, offering clear insights into the key challenges, opportunities, and trends shaping 2026.
10 NOVEMBER 2026
08:30-09:00
REGISTRATION & WELCOME COFFEE
Participants arrive, register, and enjoy welcome coffee
09:00-09:10
WELCOME ADDRESS + CHAIRMAN
Opening remarks, key themes, and how to get value from the day
09:10-09:35
KEYNOTE SESSION + Q&A
State of US Payments 2026
-
FedNow, RTP, ACH, cards: what is scaling fastest and why
-
Where value is shifting: orchestration, data, identity, and risk controls
-
The next 12-18 months: what leaders should prioritise now
Mark Majeske, Senior Vice President of Faster Payments at Alacriti
09:35-10:05
KEYNOTE SESSION + Q&A
Real-Time Payments at Scale – Instant Payment Readiness, Liquidity and Customer Trust
-
Designing for 24/7 operations: liquidity, exception handling, and customer experience
-
Fraud and risk controls for instant rails: velocity, behavioural signals, and VoP-style approaches
-
Interoperability and messaging modernisation: ISO 20022 roadmaps and practical migration lessons
Vinay Nilakantan, Head of Product at Wise
10:05-10:30
PANEL SESSION + Q&A
Beyond the SOC: Modern Cyber Defense for Banks,
PSPs & FinTechs
-
How are banks and PSPs modernizing cyber defense beyond traditional SOC models?
-
Leveraging AI, threat intelligence, and automation to detect and respond to emerging threats
10:30-11:00
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
Fraud, Scams & Financial Crime - Defending
Faster Payments and Digital Channels
-
APP scams, ATO and social engineering: prevention strategies that work in practice
-
Synthetic identity and mule networks: detection, collaboration, and analytics
-
Building a modern investigations operating model: case management, intelligence and automation
Christian Crisan, Managing Director – Financial Services Strategy and Advisory at Splunk
Prateek Sangal, Head of Digital at Everbank
Ramon Ramirez, Director of AML Operations at Western Alliance Bank
Harsh Dev, Director, Global Head of Risk Platform at PayPal
11:00-11:30
NETWORKING COFFEE BREAK + ONE-TO-ONE MEETINGS
Opportunity for attendees to connect and discuss insights from the morning sessions
11:30-12:00
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
Agentic Payments - The Companion to Agentic Commerce
-
Delegated payment journeys: consent, limits, credentials, and customer control
-
Trust, liability and dispute handling when an agent initiates a transaction
-
Secure execution: tokenisation, policy engines, real-time risk scoring, and monitoring
Moderator: Bo Berg, Technical Strategist & Innovation
Anthony Kuyoro, Head of Merchant experiences, SMB - Product management at PayPal
Peter Papaioannou, Chief Product Officer at IXOPAY
Jason Jerina, Head of Platform Optimization at Truist
Vibhu Bhatnagar, Vice President, Technology at Texas Capital
Urooj Siraj, Senior Manager, Security Information Office at Capital One
12:00-12:30
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
Digital Identity & Wallets - Authentication, Passkeys and Tokenised Credentials
-
Passkeys and next-gen authentication to reduce friction and fraud
-
Digital identity signals for onboarding and ongoing monitoring
-
Wallet strategies: provisioning, token lifecycle, and protecting the customer journey
Melissa Pottenger, VP, Enterprise Growth North America at Yuno
Xavier Ferguson, Associate Product Director at OneMain Financial
Amber Thetford, Chief Product Officer at Onafriq
12:30-13:30
NETWORKING LUNCH
Attendees network over lunch, fostering connections and discussions
13:30-14:00
KEYNOTE SESSION + Q&A
Regulatory & Supervisory Priorities - Practical Compliance for 2026
-
BSA/AML, sanctions, consumer protection and privacy: what is changing operationally
-
Exams, governance and reporting: getting audit-ready and reducing remediation cycles
-
Partner ecosystems: oversight models for PSPs, fintechs and third parties
Elizabeth Davidson, Regulatory Counsel | Special Assignment at PNC
14:00-14:30
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
RegTech Modernisation - Smarter AML, Sanctions & Monitoring with Responsible AI
-
Reducing false positives while improving detection: data strategy, tuning, and segmentation
-
AI governance and model risk management: explainability, documentation and testing
-
Operationalising compliance: integrated screening, monitoring, cases, and reporting
Jason C. Honeycutt, Chief Compliance Officer at Ouro
Pratik Gautam, Vice President, Lead AI/GenAI Product Manager at Citi
Vincent Ross, Vice President, Sr. Risk Manager, Digital, Data & AI at U.S. Bank
Josh Douglas, Director of Financial Crime Compliance / BSA Officer at Snap Finance
Nachiket Joshi, Head of Engineering at Ford Credit
14:30-15:00
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
Open Banking, Data Sharing & Privacy - Building
Trustworthy Consent - Based Experiences Data
Access, Consent and Controls: Designing
Customer Journeys that Scale
Data access, consent and controls: designing customer journeys that scale
-
Risk and liability in ecosystem models: fraud, disputes and third-party dependencies
-
Monetisation and product design: where open banking is delivering real value
Moderator: John San Filippo, Co-Founder and Publisher of Finopotamus
Venu Yeluripati, Head of Partner at Global Payments
Jairo Riveros, President, Americas & Head of the Office of Strategy Management at Paysend
15:00-15:30
NETWORKING COFFEE BREAK + ONE-TO-ONE MEETINGS
Take a moment to connect with fellow attendees and discuss key insights
15:30-16:00
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
Operational Resilience & Third-Party Risk-Securing the Payments Supply Chain
-
Cloud resilience, incident response and business continuity: what good looks like
-
Vendor risk management for critical suppliers: monitoring, SLAs and exit plans
-
Cyber and fraud convergence: aligning security, risk and compliance teams
Moderator: Katherine Avery, Founder at Chimayo Consulting, LLC
Olga Baldwin, Lead Third Party Risk at StoneX Group Inc
Shanelle Davis, MD head of Operational Resilience at Charles Schwab
Hema Zutshi, Senior Director at Visa
Lloyd Nelson, SVP, Head of U.S Digital Assets at Howden
16:00-16:25
PANEL DISCUSSION + Q&A
Digital Assets & Tokenised Money - Stablecoins, Settlement and Compliance Reality Check
-
Where digital assets add value today: cross-border, treasury and settlement use cases
-
Controls that enable adoption: AML/sanctions, transaction monitoring, custody and safeguarding
-
Interoperability with traditional rails: bridging models and operational considerations
Moderator: Laura Gibson, Executive Director at Georgia Fintech Academy
Chris B Kennedy, Head of Enterprise Payments at Regions Bank
Michael Angjeli, Head of Treasury & Liquidity at VelaFi
Ranu Gupta, Executive Director, Senior Digital Product at Wells Fargo
16:25-16:50
KEYNOTE + Q&A:
Building Intelligent Payment Ecosystems: The Strategic Blueprint for the Next Generation of Global Payments
Urvashi Nain, Director of Product Management at Visa
16:50-17:15
KEYNOTE + Q&A:
The Future of Payments is Human
Gail Burgos, CEO at PayTech Women
17:15-17:20
CHAIRMAN CLOSING COMMENTS
Summarising the key takeaways from DAY 1 of the conference and addressing final questions from attendees
17:20 -18:00
NETWORKING DRINKS RECEPTION
A closing networking reception to foster connections among attendees and speakers,
featuring local drinks & snacks
MEDIA PARTNERS
PAST EVENT VIDEO
KEY BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPATING
Interactive Hybrid Platform
Hybrid events enable you to put a virtual face to your organisation or come actually face-to-face by speaking to your viewers, attending meetings and networking
Build Thought Leadership
Showcase expertise and establish yourself as an industry thought leader
Generate Leads
It is the most cost-effective way to generate qualified leads of key B2B decision makers
Targeted Audience
Meet & engage with your target group
Global Reach
Hybrid events enable you to connect with your target audiences both locally and globally
New Prospects
Engage with new prospects and support existing relationships thus helping to drive leads into your sales funnel
BECOME A SPONSOR
Sponsoring the 26th NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum USA 2026 provides you with the perfect opportunity to showcase your solutions and interact with your target audience in a purposeful way.
You can expect to secure new direct connections with key decision-makers and industry influencers.
Our Sponsorship packages take on a holistic approach and are tailored to accommodate your specific business objectives.
Packages can include:
-
20-30 minute keynote presentation or inclusion on an industry-expert panel discussion
-
Access to The Meeting Point which includes pre-qualified one-to-one meetings
-
An integrated international marketing & branding campaign strategy
-
International social media campaigns
-
Dedicated booths and promotional areas
-
Prestigious PR opportunities & interviews with international media
MEANINGFUL NETWORKING
The time to connect with our colleagues and peers in the Payments and RegTech sector is here! Our aim with the 26th NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum USA 2026 is to facilitate key discussions and create a platform for meaningful networking. No spamming, no irrelevant conversations, just quality conversations that promote business growth.
