ACI UK EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
The ACI UK Executive Committee is elected by Members at the Annual General Meeting. In accordance with ACI UK Constitution and Statutes, all Committee positions are subject to election/re-election at the AGM. All ACI UK members are eligible to stand for election to the Committee, subject to being nominated and seconded by other Members.
Hugh Whelan – President
Hugh Whelan is a experienced financial services executive with a strong track record in building Electronic FX Execution businesses. Hugh possesses a deep understanding of the OTC FX electronic trading market, underpinned by a history of consistent success.
In his current role as Head of EBS Direct Trading Platforms at CME Group, Hugh oversees multiple OTC FX electronic trading platforms. Leveraging his extensive banking background, Hugh is known for his strong commitment to client success, revenue growth, and strategic alignment. He brings a wealth of experience from his tenure at CME Group, ICAP PLC, Commerzbank, MUFG, Mizuho, Bayern LB and Tokai,making him a highly respected leader in the financial services industry. Hugh Whelan’s career reflects his ability to drive business transformation and achieve demonstrable results.
Katherine Leaman – Vice President
Katharine is a regulatory compliance consultant with expertise in technical areas of the rules such as market conduct, CASS, SMCR and Outsourcing. Katharine has worked in financial services for thirty years in insurance, banking, distribution, and regulation. During that time Katharine developed a passion for supporting smaller financial services firms because they so often find they are expected to be across a broad range of regulations sometimes to a technical depth that takes time to understand and implement.
Katharine setup Leaman Crellin Limited to do the leg work for these companies and to provide practical roll out ready documents available from the Leaman Crellin online shop. Her regulatory compliance consultancy practice specialises in providing practical and proportionate solutions for all sizes and types of FCA and PRA regulated business.
Steven Singer – Treasurer
Steve is the Treasurer of ACI UK. His career in financial markets spans almost 30 years. He joined CIBC in 2006 as Director of Liquidity and is actively engaged in day to day business and operational processes to ensure compliance with regulatory policy. Previously, he held a variety of positions with Qatar National Bank in both London and the Middle East, including Head of FX and Head of Money Markets.
Steve passed the ACI Diploma, with Merit, in 1995.
T: +44(0) 20 7234 6492
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBERS AS AT NOVEMBER 2021
Matthew Chessum
Matthew Chessum is an Investment Director in the Global Liquidity Management team at abrdn. Matt is responsible for all of abrdn’s Securities Lending business and is a fund manager for abrdn’s Sterling Money Market funds.
Matt joined abrdn in 2011 from BNP Paribas Securities Services where he worked as a Securities Lending Trader on the agency lending stock loan desk after having previously worked for Barclays Global investors in the stock lending middle office. Prior to that, Matt worked for BNP Paribas Securities Services in Paris, in the securities lending back office.
Matt is both a member of the Bank of England’s Securities Lending Committee and a board member of the International Securities Lending Association.
Matt has a BA (Hons) in European Business from the University of Portsmouth and graduated with a Maitrise (Bac+4) from the École Supérieure de commerce in Bordeaux.
Ramy Soliman
Ramy Soliman is President, Head of Business Development and Sales at GMO-Z.com Trust Company, Inc, a NYDFS licensed Stablecoin operator issuing JPY and USD backed stablecoins (both NYDFS Greenlisted). He is also the co-founder of the Stablecoin Standard, an industry body for stablecoin issuers globally.
He has had over 20 years experience within Banking, Brokerage and Fintech at institutions like IG, Citibank and Integral Development specializing in FX and FX Prime Brokerage. Ramy has been part of the GMO Internet Group since 2019. Prior to joining GMO Trust, Ramy worked at GMO-Z.com UK establishing and growing an institutional FX business. He earned an LLB in Law from the University of Liverpool and a post grad diploma in Law (LPC) from the College of Law.
Ramy is on the executive committee of the ACI UK (an FX industry body) and a member of the ACI Global Digital Assets Committee where he has contributed to ACI responses to BIS, IOSCO and FSB requests for consultation on stablecoins and other digital assets.
Alex Gilmour
Alex Gilmour is a Director – FX Distribution at UBS Investment Bank with a specific focus on FX Sales-Trading to banks, brokers and hedge funds. In addition to traditional voice dealing, his role also encompasses active participation in E-FX distribution and E-FX trade data analysis.
Prior to joining UBS, Alex traded FX spot and FX options at Western Union for 5 years, managing risk within EMEA. His City career and passion for FX began when he joined London-based hedge fund Armajaro as an analyst. Alex was elected to the ACI UK Committee in July 2017.
Sam’s nearly 30 year career in the financial markets has spanned a variety of trading and management roles across sellside, buyside and intermediary businesses. Prior to his current role advising CMC Markets on the next stages in their journey into the wholesale markets, he headed up Global Markets eFX Trading at BBVA, with previous stints building and managing trading businesses at Rabobank, UBS Asset Management, Louis Capital FX, Lloyds Bank and Marex Spectron adding to his broad cross market and cross asset experience.
Jeff Roberts – ACI FMA Committee for Professionalism
A focused and analytical financial professional with extensive experience of global foreign exchange markets, Jeff is currently a Business Manager for CME Group (formerly Business Manager NEX).
His FX career began with Bank of America in FX Investigations before he moved first to the middle office then to the trading floor, starting as a desk assistant before becoming a Spot trader, and subsequently moving into an e-commerce role as the industry became increasingly ‘electronic’.
Prior to NEX (CME) Jeff worked for Lloyds Banking Group as a senior staff member responsible for all FX requirements – and the bank’s order book – during the APAC timezone.
Noel Singh
Noel Singh is Head of eFX Business Development at Sucden Financial, leading the firm’s expansion of its non-bank FX prime brokerage business. He has over 25 years of experience in banking and currency trading and joined the company from ABN Amro Clearing Bank, where he managed their OTC FX clearing business.
Past positions include Head of FX Prime Brokerage for SEB and senior roles at Integral Development, Dresdner Kleinwort, EBS and also Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank, prior to its merger.
An active supporter of ACI UK and frequent Moderator and Speaker at ACI events, Gavin was elected to the ACI UK Executive Committee in November 2019.
Most recently (March 2019) Head of Europe at Digital Asset, the New York-based provider of distributed ledger solutions, Gavin previously spent eight years at LCH, building its Foreign Exchange and Credit Default Swap clearing services (and a member of LCH’s Executive and Executive Risk Committees). Previously, Gavin worked at Citi for fifteen years in a variety of leadership roles spanning FX trading, e-commerce, algorithmic trading and prime brokerage.
Before the City, Gavin served for eight years as an officer in the Royal Artillery. He is Chair of the Board of Trustees of the charity Action Breaks Silence and a founding member of the Women’s Equality Party.
David Woolcock – ACI FMA Committee for Professionalism/ACI FMA FX Committee
David is an experienced FX trader with good knowledge of the detailed workings of the FX market and related matters gained through a variety of roles in the industry. He is currently serving on the Market Participants Group for the Central Bank FX Working Group at the BIS on the new FX Global Code of Conduct.
David is Chair of ACI’s Committee for Professionalism and vice-Chair of the ACI FX Committee; he has broad knowledge of and experience in writing Codes of Conduct for ethical, fair & transparent OTC markets.
David is passionate about education and training in Best Practice and Ethical matters. After working for a number of banks, specialising in e-FX from 1998, in 2002 David set up a consultancy practice (eFX, FX Prime Brokerage, FX CCP clearing). Following a stint at FXall, leaving when it was sold to Thomson Reuters, David then took up a position as Global Head of Sales and Business Development for Eurobase Banking Solutions.
Outside of ACI, David splits his time between Eurobase and Derivative Consulting Ltd, undertaking strategic advisory work and Expert Witness assignments.
HONORARIUM
Sue Attwood – President 2017-2019, Honorary Life Member
President of ACI UK from 2017 to 2019, previously Managing Director for many years, and the longest serving ACI UK Committee member, Sue stepped down as President in 2019. Her fantastic contribution to ACI UK and ACI Financial Markets Association globally is acknowledged by the many tributes sent by colleagues and ACI friends and was acknowledged formally by granting Honorary Life Membership to Sue at the Annual General Meeting on 11 November. Sue was instrumental in creating and driving ACI UK’s charitable effort which has raised well over £1 million to support Variety – the Children’s Charity and fund the purchase of an incredible 157 Sunshine Coaches that have been donated to schools and institutions for disabled and disadvantaged children. Sue is also responsible for developing and running the hugely successful ACI UK Dealing Simulation Course and new FX Masterclass, launched in November 2019.
Prior to working in a number of senior e-commerce roles at Markit, Logicscope and other companies, Sue spent 23 years at the Bank of England, where as Deputy Chief Dealer she headed the Money Market and Forward FX side of its operations for UK Reserves, Bank of England Reserves and the customer book. Sue also represented the front office on the Bank’s Risk Advisory Committee as well as being the Bank of England representative on the ACI UK Committee.
Tina Kane – Honorary Life Member
As marketing communications adviser and as a Committee member, Tina has a long established association with ACI both in the UK and internationally. Over many years, and under the direction of a number of Presidents, she worked closely with ACI UK Executive Committee to provide guidance on – and delivery of – activities and events generated within ACI UK’s Represent, Inform, Educate and Charity streams.
A financial markets veteran and specialist marketing, communications and media consultant, Tina held a number of senior roles at Markit and Logicscope and was instrumental in the creation, launch and early success of EBS, driving its Marketing and Communications strategy and policies through its formative years. (EBS is now part of CME Group.) Prior to that she was a Director of City-based financial PR company, Buchanan Communications (now part of the WPP group) where she worked on multiple IPOs/corporate activities across many sectors (biotech to banking).
Tina was awarded Honorary Life Membership in April 2021 when she stepped down from her ACI UK role, in recognition of her long service and commitment to ACI in the UK and globally.
David Clark
Honorary President, ACI UK and ACI International
David Clark spent over 40 years working in currency and capital markets for firms including Bankers Trust, Commerzbank, HSBC and Bankgesellschaft before moving into non-executive director and advisory positions. He is Chairman of Charity Bank, a non-executive director of CafBank (both owned by the Charities Aid Foundation), is Senior Independent (SID) non-executive director of Tullett Prebon, and a non-executive director of Westpac Europe Limited. He was a senior advisor to the UK’s Financial Services Authority and has sat on a number of Basel II working groups.
He was President of ACI, The Financial Markets Association from 1992-95 and is an Honorary President of both ACI and ACI UK. In March 2006 he was appointed Chairman of the Wholesale Markets Brokers Association and the London Energy Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Advisor to GFTA, an FX overlay fund manager, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA).
Adam Morrow
With over 20 years of experience in the city that started in the post room, Adam Morrow has forged a career in the FX market. Initially starting in the back office for City Index, prior to the financial crisis of 2008, he climbed the career ladder become more focused on Sales and Account management. Adam spent nearly five years on the eFX desk with the hugely successful team at Sucden Financial. In 2019 REFINITIV (formally Thomson Reuters) offered a great career move working for the largest Financial Data and Analytics provider in the industry, now part of the London Stock Exchange Group.
Adam joined the ACI committee in 2023 with ambitions to help the younger generation carve out successful careers in one of the best cities in the world.
IN MEMORIAM
Paul Chappell – 29 June 1953 – 24 June 2018
ACI UK Executive Committee / ACI FMA Director of Education / ACI FMA FX Committee
A long-standing and active participant of ACI’s Foreign Exchange Committee, in the past few years Paul had stepped up his involvement in ACI activities considerably, joining the ACI UK Executive Committee to support its local efforts and then, in 2017, becoming ACI’s first full time Director of Education. In this role, he worked tirelessly to promote ACI’s services in support of the new Global Code and to continue ACI’s influence in guiding industry best practice. Paul was especially engaged with ongoing industry debate around ‘last look’, chairing the ACI Working Group on the subject and bringing a voice of reason to this controversial topic. Paul was a stalwart of the foreign exchange market; both as a market practitioner and a committed proponent of industry best practice.
Paul was the epitome of an ‘industry veteran’, having enjoyed a long, illustrious and varied career in financial markets. He was, particularly, at the forefront of the modern foreign exchange industry, initially on the ‘sell side’ with roles at Chemical Bank, and for a long period, Bank of America, where in the late 80s and early 90s he was a major influence on the development, launch and take up of EBS (Electronic Broking Services).
An active and vociferous member of the original EBS consortium (representing Bank of America’s stakeholder interests) Paul’s commitment and support for the (then) market-changing EBS proposition, and his determination to ‘change dealer behaviour’ – starting on his own trading floor – contributed greatly to its early market adoption (and its great success).
Paul went on to create C-View, an FCA-regulated Investment Manager named – rather neatly – after his lovely holiday home, Sea View, in the Isle of Wight, where he enjoyed many happy vacations with his young family (and which he ‘shared’ on occasion with friends). As Chief Investment Officer of C-View, Paul gained first hand insight into the ‘buy side’ experience of trading relationships and more recently, the challenges of implementing mandates and directives like EMIR and MiFID. He channelled this experience into providing consultancy to other market participants and regulators.
At a time in his life when he could have taken life much more easily – and with plans in place to enjoy his retirement with his wife Ann now his children were grown – he chose instead to embark on this new ‘career’, travelling extensively to spread the ACI word at industry conferences and events, meeting regulators and industry groups across the globe, and supporting ACI National Associations.
Paul was a devoted family man and committed Christian whose great pride in all of his family’s achievements were evident to everybody who met him. He is a great loss to our industry and to so many of us personally. We all miss him very much.