Saurav currently serves as the CEO & MD of Proxtera Private Limited, a company born out of Business sans Borders (BSB) initiative. BSB, is a global initiative, by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to create an open connector of business platforms, trade associations, government bodies, financial services, and other services providers for the benefit of SMEs globally. Proxtera’s reason for existence is to help SMEs in their growth in cross-border trade.
Saurav was the founder CEO of Quantum Inventions (QI), a company focused in mobility intelligence for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) which was wholly acquired in 2017 by Continental Corporation. He worked with Continental for close to 5 years thereafter, in global roles. Saurav is the immediate past President of the Intelligent Transport Society of Singapore (ITSS), and now serves it as an Advisor.
Amongst other appointments, he serves on the board & investment panel of SEEDS Capital, and as the Chair of Action Community for Entrepreneurship.
Roundtable Room 3, Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Level 4
Invite-Only
Both digital trade and digital finance are frequently cited as key to solving the trade finance gap and more generally the financial inclusion gap. Although there are examples of instances where fintechs have helped to expand financial inclusion, the trade finance gap and the problems of financial inclusion continue to grow. The bulk of finance, technology and digital trade innovation– particularly in the past year where focus has been on the use of AI– have focused on making current processes faster and more efficient, without making a real dent on inclusion.
This roundtable seeks to recentre the inclusion discussion on the collaboration that digital trade and digital finance advocates must undertake to create real pathways – not just rhetorical ones – towards financial inclusion. Among the key discussion items will be:
- Creation and sharing of data from trade processes into finance
- Tokenization of real world and financial assets to solve deep tier/upstream access
- Partnership with Multilateral Development Banks and policymakers to drive private sector action
- The role of CBDCs and payments
Working with the audience, the roundtable seeks to outline a number of actions that can be taken collaboratively towards closing the inclusion gap and making real progress, bearing in mind the need to strike a better balance between the need for commercial viability of innovation and the need to solve inclusion issues and secure future prosperity.
Roundtable Room 3, Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Level 4
Invite-Only
This roundtable aims to explore the critical policies and technologies necessary for fostering interoperable and harmonised digital commerce between India and ASEAN nations.
As digital commerce continues to evolve, the need for effective frameworks that facilitate seamless cross-border transactions becomes increasingly vital. This session will bring together industry leaders, policymakers, and technology experts to identify actionable strategies that can enhance digital commerce, ensuring that it is inclusive, secure, and efficient.
Key Discussion Points:
1. Identify the gaps in current regulations, policies and innovation to create a harmonised framework for digital commerce between India and ASEAN. What are the best practices that can facilitate interoperability across different digital platforms?
2. What more is to be done to advance cross-border digital payments and e-invoicing systems?
3. What is the importance of establishing secure and efficient payment gateways and the role of e-invoicing in streamlining processes and reducing transaction costs in cross-border trade?
4. With an increase in cross-border data flows, what measures need to be implemented to ensure data protection and protection from cyber attacks?
5. The discussion will explore concerns around Digital Identity and Authentication.
Hall 5, Singapore EXPO
Open
Digital identities are key enablers of building trust, allowing organisations to be verifiable and grow cross border. Digital identities are especially crucial in validating the authenticity as well as trustworthiness of MSMEs.
This is where the Universal Trusted Credential (UTC) comes in – a data-driven, digitally-enabled and independently-verified characterisation of MSMEs' creditworthiness and business trust. Since its inception, the UTC has been used in Ghana to provide MSMEs with access to financing, but its use cases extend beyond this to investment, sustainability reporting, and more.
In this session, panellists convene to discuss the potential of UTCs to build trust in MSMEs, opening up the doors to their growth and participation in using digital credentials in financing, investment, sustainability reporting and more.
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