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Conference | 15 October 2026 | Nicosia, Cyprus
2nd Converging Risks:
Confronting the New Risk Reality
AGRC is a global, non-profit professional accreditation and certification organization founded in 2020, serving as a networking platform for governance, risk, and compliance professionals. We offer Level 3 professional qualifications in AML, ESG, KYC/CDD, Compliance, Risk Management, Corporate Governance, and International Economic Sanctions—all accredited by the London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF).
AGRC facilitates knowledge exchange and experience sharing among multi-jurisdictional GRC professionals in financial services and beyond, supporting our community through shared values, expertise, and business development opportunities.
Strategic Intelligence
Master black swan events, grey rhinos and unknown unknowns with expert-led sessions
Future-Forward Focus
Navigate AI threats, crypto risks and cybersecurity challenges
Global Perspectives
Understand how political instability, sanctions and ESG demands impact your bottom line
Practical Tools
Leave with actionable frameworks for risk assessment, compliance intelligence and crisis management
Elite Networking
Connect with regulators, risk leaders and innovators shaping the industry's future
Exclusive Sponsors
Education Partners
Supporting Partners
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Sponsorship Opportunities
Only 5 Strategic Partnerships Available
Gain exclusive access to senior risk professionals and decision-makers in financial services. Secure one of our five limited Strategic Partner positions and receive:
- Premium Visibility | Equal billing with top-tier branding across all conference materials.
- Direct Engagement | Dedicated networking space plus 5 complimentary delegate passes.
- Digital Spotlight | Featured placement on website, social media, and email campaigns.
- Exclusive Opportunity | Host the high-value Networking Lunch for maximum impact.
Investment: €3,000
For more details, please contact us | info@agrc.org
Speakers
Fraud Specialist and BBC Presenter ‘Scam Secrets’ | UK
Transnational Technology Lawyer-Managing Partner of The Hybrid LawTech Firm | The Hybrid LawTech Firm by Christiana Aristidou LLC | CY
Advisor at CMS and Author | CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP | UK
President Regtech | Binderr | CY
Managing Director, Global Financial Crime Unit | Complyport Limited | UK
Independent AML/Anti-Financial Crime Consultant | AML Cube Consulting and Education | CY
Founder | RegPac Revolution | Singapore
Lawyer and University Lecturer | Ch. P. Savvides & Associates LLC | University of Nicosia | CY
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) | PLF Consulting Ltd | CY
Director of Science Communication | ThoseNerdyGirls | USA
Academic Director | European Institute of Management and Finance (EIMF) | CY
Global Manager for Partners & Media | The Association of Governance, Risk & Compliance (AGRC) | UK
Event Agenda
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Time
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Description
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08:30–09:00
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Registration | Welcome Coffee
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09:00–09:05
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Opening Remarks
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09:05–09:35
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Opening Keynote
Is Risk Management Failing? Rethinking the Discipline in an Age of Constant Disruption Risk functions have never been more sophisticated, yet major failures keep happening. This keynote will explore: • Geopolitics is now a business risk, are organisations taking it seriously enough • Whether current risk frameworks are fit for purpose • Why organisations still get blindsided • What needs to fundamentally change in how we think about risk Speaker | TBC |
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09:35–10:15
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Session 1
The Domino Effect: Triggers and Chain Reactions in Risk We still categorise risks such as cyber, financial, operational, as if they exist separately. They don’t, in fact they are increasingly triggering one another. This session will explore: • How risks cascade across systems in real time • Why siloed risk management fails in practice • What organisations miss when they model risks in isolation • How to build truly interconnected risk views Panellists | TBC Moderator | TBC |
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10:15–10:35
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Session 2
Regulation Is Expanding – But Is It Solving the Right Problems? Regulation is growing in volume and complexity, but questions remain about effectiveness. This session will explore: • Whether regulation is becoming reactive rather than preventative • The real impact of frameworks like DORA, MiCA, and ESG rules • The gap between regulatory intent and industry reality • What regulators expect vs what firms can realistically deliver Speaker | TBC |
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10:35–11:05
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Panel Discussion
A Regulatory Perspective: Between Intent & Reality Following the keynote, this panel brings regulators and industry voices together to interrogate the frameworks shaping financial services today, from DORA and MiCA to ESG, and ask whether they're solving the right problems. The session will explore: • The gap between what regulators expect and what firms can realistically deliver • Whether current frameworks are reactive, preventative or somewhere in between • How the industry and regulators can better align on outcomes that matter A rare, unfiltered dialogue between those who write the rules and those who live by them. Panellists | TBC Moderator | TBC |
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11:05–11:25
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Coffee Break | Networking
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11:25–11:55
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Session 3
Fraud Is Winning: Are We Fighting the Wrong Battles? Despite billions spent on controls, financial crime is accelerating. Something isn't working. Alex Wood knows both sides of that equation. A former fraudster turned financial crime prevention champion, Alex brings a perspective no compliance manual can offer. This session will explore: • Why fraud is outpacing prevention • How AI is arming both attackers and defenders • What a fundamentally different approach looks like This is the conversation the industry needs to have. Speaker | Alex Wood | Fraud Specialist and BBC Presenter ‘Scam Secrets’ | UK |
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11:55–12:35
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Session 4
Digital Identity & Trust Infrastructure: The Next Frontier of Risk? Digital identity is becoming the foundation of financial systems, platforms, and trust – but also a single point of failure. This session will explore: • Are we centralising too much trust in identity systems? • What happens when digital identity fails or is compromised? • Who controls identity, and who should? • The hidden risks of exclusion, bias, and over-reliance. Speaker | TBC |
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12:35–13:15
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Session 5
Can We Still Trust What We Can't Verify? AI-generated content, synthetic identities, digital assets, and increasingly sophisticated criminal networks are challenging many of the assumptions on which trust has traditionally been built. As technology transforms how we identify people, move value, and verify information, organisations are being forced to rethink the foundations of trust itself. This panel will explore: • How AI is changing the nature of fraud, deception, and financial crime • Whether current identity and verification systems remain fit for purpose • The role of crypto and digital assets in reshaping trust and transparency • What law enforcement and fraud experts are seeing that organisations are missing • How businesses can operate in a world where seeing is no longer believing A forward-looking discussion on trust, technology, and the risks that will define the next decade. Panellists | Alex Wood | Fraud Specialist and BBC Presenter ‘Scam Secrets’ | UK Erica Stanford | Advisor at CMS and Author | CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP | UK Charis Savvides | Lawyer and University Lecturer | Ch. P. Savvides & Associates LLC | University of Nicosia | CY Moderator | TBC |
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13:15–14:15
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Lunch Break | Networking
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14:15–14:35
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Session 6
ESG, Climate & Backlash: Time for a Reality Check? What was once a unifying agenda is now increasingly contested. This session will explore: • Is ESG losing credibility? • Are firms exposed to both action and inaction risk? • Is greenwashing risk now greater than climate risk for some firms? • How should organisations respond to regulatory and political divergence? Speaker | Petros Florides | Chief Executive Officer (CEO) | PLF Consulting Ltd | CY |
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14:35–15:05
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Session 7
Is Compliance Still Fit for Purpose in the Age of Crypto and Digital Assets? As digital asset ecosystems become more sophisticated, organisations are being forced to confront a difficult question: are traditional compliance frameworks still capable of managing modern threats? This session will explore: • The growing risks surrounding crypto and digital assets • How emerging technology is transforming financial crime • Why traditional KYC/KYB models may no longer be effective • The ethical implications of AI, data usage, and automated decision-making Speaker | Erica Stanford | Advisor at CMS and Author | CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP | UK |
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15:05–15:30
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Session 8
Could Misinformation Become a Systemic Risk? From reputational damage to behavioural non-compliance, misinformation is becoming an increasingly serious governance and operational threat. As AI makes manipulation and false narratives faster, cheaper, and more convincing, organisations must rethink how they manage trust and information resilience. This session will explore: • How misinformation undermines trust, compliance, and decision-making • Why AI is accelerating disinformation at scale • The role of emotion, behaviour, and “trusted messengers” • How organisations can build resilience before a crisis hits • Why ‘pre-bunking’ may become as important as crisis management Speaker | Irini Hadjisavva | Director of Science Communication | ThoseNerdyGirls | USA |
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15:30–15:50
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Coffee Break | Networking
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15:50–16:20
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Session 9
The Future of AML/CFT Supervision in Europe: Are We Ready for Next Generation Threats? Fragmented supervision, cross-border complexity, digital assets, and increasingly sophisticated criminal networks are exposing the limitations of traditional AML frameworks. As the EU launches a new era of centralised AML/CFT oversight, the question is no longer whether reform is needed – but whether it can move fast enough. This session will explore: • Why Europe is fundamentally reshaping AML/CFT supervision • The role of the EU’s new AML Authority in driving consistency and enforcement • The growing risks linked to crypto assets, digital finance, and cross-border financial flows • Whether existing compliance models are still effective against modern financial crime • How cooperation between supervisors, FIUs, and institutions must evolve Speaker | TBC |
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16:20–16:40
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Session 10
After the Fraud: Tracing Assets, Money and the Evidence Fraud, corruption, sanctions breaches, cybercrime, and financial misconduct can have devastating consequences for organisations. Yet identifying a problem is only the beginning. The real challenge is uncovering where assets have moved, how funds have been hidden, and who is ultimately responsible. Drawing on experience from both law enforcement and the private sector, this session will explore: • How modern financial investigations have evolved • The growing challenges of tracing assets across borders and digital ecosystems • The role of intelligence, technology, and data in uncovering hidden risks • Lessons from complex fraud, corruption, and asset recovery cases • What organisations should do before an investigation becomes necessary A practical look at how organisations can strengthen their ability to investigate, recover, and respond when risk materialises. Speaker | Andrew Tennant | Managing Director, Global Financial Crime Unit | Complyport Limited | UK |
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16:40–17:20
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Session 11
The Hard Truth: What Risk Leaders Don’t Say in the Boardroom An unfiltered discussion on: • Where risk frameworks fall short • The pressures CROs face internally • The disconnect between boards and risk functions • What needs to change – urgently Panellists | Faisal Islam | President Regtech | Binderr | CY Petros Florides | Chief Executive Officer (CEO) | PLF Consulting Ltd | CY Anna Stylianou | Independent AML/Anti-Financial Crime Consultant | AML Cube Consulting and Education | CY Moderator | TBC |
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17:20–17:30
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Closing Remarks | What Will Define Risk Leadership in the Next Decade?
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17:30–18:30
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Networking Cocktail
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Conference Details
Date | 15 October 2026
Time | 08:30-17:30
Venue | Ceremonial Hall | Room: 012 (University of Cyprus | Old Campus) | Directions
Address | Kallipoleos 75, Aglantzia 1678, Cyprus [View Map]
CPD Units | 6
Duration | 6 hrs
Phone | +357 22274470
Email | info@agrc.org
Price | €295
Register three (3) participants for this conference and apply a 10% discount by using [CONF2026TRIPLE] the discount code during your registration. Please note that this offer cannot be combined with any other discounts. For groups of more than four (4) registrations, please contact us at info@agrc.org
Special Offer | €200 for AGRC Members
This event may be approved for up to 6 CPD units in Financial Regulation & AML. Eligibility criteria and CPD Units are verified directly by the respective associations, regulator or other bodies with which individuals may hold membership.
This event may be approved for up to 6 CPD units in Financial Regulation & AML. Eligibility criteria and CPD Units are verified directly by the respective associations, regulator or other bodies with which individuals may hold membership.
