Future of payments forum
With the European Central Bank advancing its wholesale distributed ledger technology trials and the digital euro entering its design phase, 2025 marks a pivotal year for Europe’s evolving financial infrastructure. The shift towards tokenised finance – encompassing stablecoins, tokenised deposits, Markets in Crypto-Assets implementation and DLT-based settlement models – raises pressing questions around interoperability, regulation and the future role of public money.
Against a backdrop of accelerating global innovation and geopolitical competition, European policy-makers are also sharpening their focus on strategic autonomy and digital sovereignty. OMFIF’s Digital Monetary Institute’s Future of payments forum brings together 40-50 representatives from central banks, regulators, governments, commercial banks, technology providers and payments companies to assess how Europe can build a resilient, future-ready payments and settlement ecosystem anchored in trust, innovation and monetary stability.
Explore insights from last year’s event write up and view the 2024 agenda here.
The forum is interactive with all delegates invited to contribute to discussions. This event is for senior representatives from banks, technology providers and the public sector, with priority given to DMI members and forum partners. Please use the form below if you would like to inquire about attending.
Speakers
Hendrik Bourgeois
Senior Vice President, Government Affairs and Policy, Europe
Mastercard
Hendrik Bourgeois
Senior Vice President, Government Affairs and Policy, Europe
Mastercard
Menno Broos
Project Lead Digital Euro
De Nederlandsche Bank
Menno Broos
Project Lead Digital Euro
De Nederlandsche Bank
Andrew Forson
President
DeFi Technologies
Andrew Forson
President
DeFi Technologies
Fritzi Köhler-Geib
Member of the Executive Board
Deutsche Bundesbank
Fritzi Köhler-Geib
Member of the Executive Board
Deutsche Bundesbank
Friedrich Luithlen
Head, Debt Capital Markets
DZ BANK
Friedrich Luithlen
Head, Debt Capital Markets
DZ BANK
Friedrich Luithlen is head of debt capital markets & syndication at DZ BANK. Luithlen ran the private placement business of the bank, and acted as head of covered bond origination. Luithlen is also responsible for a number of DZ
BANK’S digitalisation projects that aim to streamline transform internal as well as client-facing processes in the primary debt market business.
Lewis McLellan
Head of Content, Digital Monetary Institute
OMFIF
Lewis McLellan
Head of Content, Digital Monetary Institute
OMFIF
Audrey Metzger
Director of Innovation and Financial Market Infrastructures
Banque de France
Audrey Metzger
Director of Innovation and Financial Market Infrastructures
Banque de France
Paula Millán
DLT Market Infrastructures Specialist
The National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), Spain
Paula Millán
DLT Market Infrastructures Specialist
The National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), Spain
Petia Niederländer
Director Payments, Risk Management and Financial Literacy
Oesterreichische Nationalbank
Petia Niederländer
Director Payments, Risk Management and Financial Literacy
Oesterreichische Nationalbank
Julien Nivot
Julien Nivot, Policy Officer, Market and Digital Innovation Department
European Securities and Markets Authority
Julien Nivot
Julien Nivot, Policy Officer, Market and Digital Innovation Department
European Securities and Markets Authority
John Orchard
Chairman, Digital Monetary Institute
OMFIF
John Orchard
Chairman, Digital Monetary Institute
OMFIF
Wolfram Seidemann
Chief Executive Officer
Giesecke+Devrient Currency Technology
Wolfram Seidemann
Chief Executive Officer
Giesecke+Devrient Currency Technology
Jürgen Schaaf
Adviser, Market Infrastructure and Payments
European Central Bank
Jürgen Schaaf
Adviser, Market Infrastructure and Payments
European Central Bank
Katie-Ann Wilson
Managing Director, DMI
OMFIF
Katie-Ann Wilson
Managing Director, DMI
OMFIF
Katie-Ann Wilson is Managing Director, Digital Monetary Institute at OMFIF. She is responsible for leading and managing the team to deliver the institute’s overall business objectives through a pipeline of publications and events. Katie-Ann develops the editorial scope across these projects and supports senior engagement with central banks, regulators, financial services, and technology providers. She also contributes to the corporate leadership of the entire business.
Prior to joining OMFIF, she worked at King’s College London, supporting the social science and public policy faculty on research submissions to higher education funding bodies. Before this, she worked as a grant writer for a non-governmental organisation in Israel.
Katie-Ann holds an MA in International Political Economy (distinction) from King’s College London and a BA (Hons) in International Relations from the University of Leeds.
Timings
10:30 – 11:00 Registration and refreshments
11:00 – 11:30 Keynote address and Q&A: Exploring the future of finance: digital euro, cryptoassets and the quest for digital sovereignty
11:30 – 12:30 Session I: Europe’s financial sovereignty and the impact of US approach to digital currencies
- Are US-led stablecoins a threat to Eurosystem monetary sovereignty or an opportunity to drive innovation in payments?
- How can Europe coordinate regulatory, legal, and technical responses to ensure stability and interoperability in a multipolar digital currency landscape?
- What governance and risk standards are needed to ensure euro-denominated stablecoins do not compete with, but complement the objectives of the digital euro?
- What role will tokenised deposits play and what progress has been made so far?
- What would a coordinated European digital infrastructure strategy need – across wCBDC, regulatory frameworks, and pan-EU tokenisation standards –to safeguard monetary sovereignty while fostering innovation?
12:30 – 13:30 Lunch and networking
13:30 – 14:00 Keynote address and Q&A: Retail and wholesale markets in transition: visions for Europe
14:00 – 15:00 Session II: Advancing Europe’s financial markets with the DLT pilot regime
- How does the Eurosystem’s dual-track approach to DLT settlement – Pontes (short-term) and Appia (long-term) – reflect the strategic priorities for DLT settlement, and what lessons from the 2024 trials are shaping their implementation?
- What could a DLT-native financial ecosystem look like compared to today’s infrastructures?
- What were the hurdles with the DLT pilot regime that limited uptake, and what is the path to addressing these?
- In what ways can revisions to the MiFID II/MiFIR regulatory framework facilitate the emergence of tokenised securities and advance Europe’s broader digital finance goals, such as the Capital Markets Union?
- What approaches will ensure strong private sector involvement and competitive neutrality as the Eurosystem scales its DLT initiatives?
15:00 – 16:00 Reception and close
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Sponsors
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Enhance your organisation’s profile as a leader
The Future of payments forum – Frankfurt 2025 is open to partnerships.
- Enhance your organisation’s profile as a leader in your area of expertise and jurisdiction.
- Share a table with senior stakeholders from central banks, finance ministries and market-leading institutions.
- Shape the agenda on central bank digital currencies, digital assets, cross-border payments, DLT and other emerging technologies.
- Relationship managers help open doors to developing business and partnerships.
We have a limited number of partnership opportunities, please contact [email protected] for more information.