Obituaries
Futures industry operations veteran Loretta “Lori” Walsh passed away on 31 December at the age of 69. Walsh spent her career in operations roles across the futures and derivatives industry. She was most recently a senior operations analyst at Deutsche Financial Services, where she worked from 2013 to 2018, focusing on trade reconciliation, exchange processing and global client and proprietary inquiries. Previously, she served as associate vice president at Citi, managing reconciliation teams and working closely with fund clients on trade break resolution. Earlier in her career, she held operations roles at UBS, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Chase and Rosenthal Collins, with responsibilities spanning exchange reconciliations, position transfers and back-office operations.
Former Cboe executive Edward Joyce passed away on 15 January at the age of 73. Joyce served as Cboe’s president and chief operating officer from 2000 to 2011. He began his career at Cboe in 1974 as a trading post coordinator and went on to hold a series of senior roles across trading procedures, operations and business development. He was named executive vice president of trading operations in 1987. He later served as executive vice president for business development, overseeing client relationship management, member trading services, marketing and The Options Institute. Joyce played a key role in the development of Cboe’s hybrid trading model and the VIX Index product line. In 2012, he received the Joseph W Sullivan Award at the Options Industry Conference in recognition of his contributions to the options industry over a 38-year career.
People News
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has appointed financial economist Joshua White as chief economist and director of the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis. Robert Fisher, who has served as acting chief economist, will continue to support the agency’s work within the division. White previously worked at the SEC between 2012 and 2018, conducting cost-benefit analyses of agency rulemaking in a range of roles within the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis, including financial economist, visiting academic scholar and expert consultant. Most recently, he served in the Office of Economic and Risk Analysis at the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, where he was a senior adviser and later acting chief economist.
The SEC has appointed Keith Cassidy as director of the Division of Examinations. Cassidy has served as acting director since May 2024 and previously held senior roles within the division, including deputy director, acting co-director and national associate director of the Technology Controls Program. He joined the division in 2017 to lead the Technology Controls Program, overseeing technology-focused examinations as well as the SEC’s CyberWatch Program and Cybersecurity Program Office. Earlier, he served as director of the SEC’s Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs and before joining the commission in 2010 was chief of staff and counsel in the Department of Justice’s Office of Legislative Affairs and an attorney in the US Senate.
The SEC has also announced that Christina Thomas will rejoin the Division of Corporation Finance in February as deputy director and chief adviser on disclosure, policy and rulemaking. She returns from private practice and previously served as counsel to SEC commissioner Elad Roisman. She was also detailed to the Office of International Affairs and the Office of the General Counsel at the US Department of the Treasury and began her career as an attorney-adviser in the Division of Corporation Finance.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman Michael Selig has announced two senior staff appointments in his office. Michael Passalacqua has joined the CFTC as senior adviser to the chairman. He previously practised law at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in New York and earlier worked at Willkie Farr & Gallagher as part of the firm’s Digital Works practice. Passalacqua also served as assistant general counsel at a crypto asset capital markets firm. Cal Mitchell has also been appointed senior adviser to the chairman. He most recently served as special adviser in the Office of Legislative Affairs at the US Department of the Treasury. Earlier, he worked in the office of US Senator Bill Hagerty as the senator’s personal aide.
SUI Group Holdings has appointed former US futures regulator Brian Quintenz as an independent director to its board. He also serves on the board’s audit committee. The appointment follows the transition of chief financial officer Joseph A Geraci II from director to board observer. Quintenz currently serves on the board of Kalshi, an event-based derivatives exchange regulated by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and advises institutions across digital assets and financial services. He previously served as global head of policy at a16z crypto and earlier as a commissioner of the CFTC, where he was involved in regulatory oversight of derivatives, fintech and digital assets, including bitcoin futures markets. “Brian is a widely respected leader in the digital asset industry, with a rare combination of capital markets expertise, regulatory credibility and deep infrastructure knowledge,” said Marius Barnett, chairman of the board.
Agnes Koh will step down as chief risk officer of SGX Group at the end of the quarter. Ivan Han, her deputy for more than three years, has been named chief risk officer with immediate effect and will assume the role fully on 1 April. Koh will take on a special advisory role at SGX Group from July following a short break. Koh joined SGX Group in 2005 and held a range of senior roles within risk management, leading the function through major events including the Global Financial Crisis and the collapse of MF Global. Before joining SGX Group, she spent more than 11 years managing foreign reserves at the Monetary Authority of Singapore and earlier worked as an auditor at a public accountancy firm. Koh will be inducted into the FIA Hall of Fame in March 2026 in recognition of her lifetime contribution to the global listed and cleared derivatives industry. Han joined SGX Group in 2013 as head of FX and rates and later became head of South Asia equities products. As deputy CRO, he oversees financial and clearing house risk frameworks and regulatory engagement with the Monetary Authority of Singapore and global authorities. He previously worked at Singapore Mercantile Exchange and at the Singapore Economic Development Board.
Deutsche Bank has promoted Noha Nosseir to a listed derivatives and clearing platform sales role in London. Nosseir has spent more than 15 years at Deutsche Bank. Most recently, she was vice president in operations client relationship management. Prior to that, she served as vice president and global lead for listed derivatives client services. Earlier in her career, she worked as a futures account manager at Nomura.
Barclays has appointed Sabine Dittrich as managing director and head of government and regulatory policy and relations for Europe. She is based in Paris, having relocated from London after 11 years. Dittrich joins from Slaughter and May, where she was head of EU financial regulation. She previously spent more than a decade at UBS and has also worked at the European Central Bank and in private practice. She is also a member of the European Securities and Markets Authority's consultative working group.
Barclays has promoted Per Haga to managing director and global co-head of the liquid financing platform. Haga has been with Barclays for more than 16 years. He was most recently director and global co-head of the liquid financing platform and previously served as global head of the prime derivatives services product. He previously held roles at UBS Investment Bank and worked as a consultant at BearingPoint.
Nasdaq has appointed former UBS derivatives executive Daniel Upbin as vice president and head of exchange-traded derivatives clearing strategy. Upbin joins the New York-based exchange group with more than 16 years of experience across derivatives, including foreign exchange, client service, clearing product development and clearing strategy. He was most recently at Morgan Stanley, where he worked on derivatives clearing strategy and product development. Earlier in his career, he held roles at UBS and JPMorgan Chase focused on global derivatives relationship management and product development.
Nasdaq has promoted Sophie Marnhier-Foy to vice president, product strategy, and head of digital assets solutions within its capital markets technology division. Marnhier-Foy most recently served as vice president and head of client solutions strategy at Nasdaq Financial Technology. She previously held senior product management and product marketing roles at Calypso Technology, which was acquired by Nasdaq, including global commercial product manager and director of product management, covering clearing risk, enterprise risk, margin services and cloud innovation. Between 2021 and 2024, she served at Adenza as global head of product marketing and later as managing director and head of product marketing for the group.
Clear Street has appointed Alex Lawton to its UK management team. Subject to regulatory approval, he will become UK chief executive officer and will be based in the firm’s London office. Lawton brings more than 30 years of experience in financial markets and market infrastructure. He has held senior roles across global markets businesses at investment and custodial banks and has advised private equity and fintech firms on strategy and investment.
BlackRock has promoted Benjamin Tecmire to managing director and head of regulatory affairs. Tecmire has been with BlackRock since 2022 and most recently served as director and head of regulatory affairs. He is based in Washington, DC. Prior to joining BlackRock, he was director and assistant general counsel for regulatory and legal at Barings. Earlier in his career, he spent several years at the US Securities and Exchange Commission, where he held senior counsel roles within the Division of Investment Management, including in the private funds group, and worked on rulemaking initiatives such as Regulation Best Interest, Form CRS and the Volcker Rule.
Eurex has appointed Martin Simon as head of strategy and executive office. Simon is based in Frankfurt and steps into the role after holding senior strategy and transformation positions within Deutsche Börse Group. Most recently, he served as head of business management and transformation for investment management solutions at Deutsche Börse, and previously led post-merger integration at SimCorp following its acquisition by the group.
Marex has made three senior hires as it builds out its Americas business. Meytal Galam has been appointed global head of financing and head of capital markets for the Americas. Based in New York, she reports to capital markets CEO Paolo Tonucci. Galam brings 20 years of industry experience, most of it spent at Société Générale Corporate and Investment Banking. There, she covered prime products and solutions for the Americas before becoming co-head of prime services in 2023.
Sarah Masterson has been named Marex’s chief administrative officer for the Americas, reporting to Americas CEO Ram Vittal. She has more than two decades of experience and joins from HSBC, where she was most recently chief of staff to the US chief operating officer and previously worked across foreign exchange, emerging markets rates and commodities.
Steve Scandura has been appointed Marex’s head of compliance for the Americas, reporting to global head of compliance Ann Marie Bull. He joins from MUFG, where he served as head of Americas market compliance and chief compliance officer for MUFG Securities America.
Marex has also appointed John Frewin as managing director and global head of OTC clearing sales. London-based Frewin joins from BNP Paribas, where he spent more than eight years as senior sales manager for derivatives execution and clearing. Prior to that, he was EMEA head of sales at Citi, focusing on prime finance.
Optiver has appointed Eva Sanchez as group general counsel, based in London. Sanchez joins from crypto trading and liquidity provider GSR, where she served as chief legal officer. She previously held the role of general counsel and head of compliance, international at AQR Capital Management, and she spent seven years at Citadel Europe as general counsel and head of compliance.
Citi has appointed Sarah Shahnavaz as European head of derivatives clearing relationship sales. Based in London, Shahnavaz joins Citi from Morgan Stanley, where she spent more than a decade in client-facing roles within derivatives. Most recently, she served as executive director and client relationship manager. She also held roles in listed derivatives client services at Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan.
CME Group has promoted Simon Burnham to managing director and Americas head of sales. He is based in Chicago. Burnham has been with CME Group for more than a decade, most recently serving as executive director and head of bank and intermediary derivative sales for the Americas. He previously led bank and intermediary sales across the region. Prior to this, he held roles in prime brokerage and FX at the Royal Bank of Scotland and began his career at Citadel Investment Group in equity derivatives.
CME Group has also promoted Supreet Dhillon to executive director and Globex product manager. Dhillon has been with CME Group for more than 15 years. She was most recently senior director of software engineering. Earlier in her career, she worked at CME Group as a software quality assurance consultant. She started out as an intelligent network engineer at Vodafone India.
Terry Burke has joined Graham Capital Management, an asset management company with $21 billion in assets under management, as managing director responsible for counterparty relationships. Burke joins from Wells Fargo, where he was head of FCM sales. Before that, he served as US head of prime derivatives services at Credit Suisse. Earlier in his career, he held client development and sales roles at CME Group and Barclays Capital, including as head of Americas futures and options distribution.
Trading Technologies has appointed Christian Voigt as vice president of connectivity product management. He is based in London. Voigt joins the firm from Broadridge, where he was a senior product manager leading global teams responsible for exchange connectivity and market data solutions. Prior to that, he held roles focused on product management, exchange connectivity and regulatory advisory work, including positions at ION and Eurex.
Thailand Futures Exchange has named Triwit Wangvorawudhi as managing director. Wangvorawudhi will be responsible for advancing TFEX’s strategy, including investor base expansion, product development and market liquidity. He has been with the Stock Exchange of Thailand since 2020, serving as executive vice president in the market division. He previously held managing director roles at Settrade.com and Digital Access Platform, which provide technology infrastructure for the Thai capital market.
Sucden Financial has appointed Bruno Almeida as chief financial officer. Almeida joined the firm in September 2024 as executive director and director of regulatory and financial risks from FNZ Group, where he was chief financial officer for the UKMEA region. He previously served as an executive director and board member of FNZ Securities, worked in the Financial Conduct Authority’s prudential specialists department and held roles at Itaú BBA International and KPMG.
IMC Trading has promoted Matthew Skidmore to head of market structure and corporate affairs for Europe. Skidmore has been with the firm for nearly four years. He most recently served as head of compliance UK, following an earlier role in corporate development for Europe. He is based in London and will work closely with trading teams, exchanges and policymakers on market structure across European capital markets.
KRM22, a technology and software investment company that focuses on risk management for capital markets, has named Justin Llewellyn-Jones as non-executive director. Llewellyn-Jones has more than 30 years of experience in fintech and financial services. He joined Trading Technologies International as chief operating officer in January 2024 and became chief executive officer on 31 March 2025. Previously, he was chief product officer for capital markets at Broadridge, leading North American operations in equities, FX, and derivatives. His career also includes senior roles at ION, Fidessa, ADP-Wilco, and NatWest, with expertise in multi-asset trading, product development, operational strategy, and compliance technology.
Jane Kilmartin has been appointed chief information officer at Trafigura, a newly created role. Based in Geneva, Kilmartin brings more than 15 years of experience in information technology across global energy and commodities businesses. She joins Trafigura from Alpiq, where she served as group chief information officer. Previously, she spent eight years at Cargill as chief information officer for the agriculture supply chain, leading technology strategy across energy, transportation and metals and financial services.
ClearToken, a recently established clearinghouse for digital assets, has made two senior appointments to its leadership team. Kristi Tange has been named group chief risk officer. She joins from Goldman Sachs, where she most recently served as global head of operational risk and resilience. Tange spent nearly three decades at Goldman Sachs across operations, risk and finance roles in the US, UK and Japan, including leading recovery and resolution planning and enterprise risk initiatives. Clare Weaver has been appointed chief legal officer. She has been with ClearToken since its inception in 2023, serving as legal counsel and head of legal and regulatory and company secretary. Weaver brings more than 20 years of experience across corporate, commercial, M&A, fintech and financial regulation, including senior in-house roles. She previously established the legal function for Nomura Digital and served as interim chief legal officer of Laser Digital.
BMLL has appointed Karen King as head of sales, APAC. Based in Hong Kong, she will be responsible for growing the firm’s client base across Asia Pacific and leading its regional growth strategy. King joins during a period of growth for BMLL following its acquisition by Nordic Capital. King brings more than two decades of experience in financial services and data solutions. She was most recently managing director at S&P Global Market Intelligence following its merger with IHS Markit, having originally joined IHS Markit through the acquisition of Data Explorers. Earlier in her career, she worked at Goldman Sachs in London within prime brokerage, covering Southeast Asia.
The law firm of Sidley has appointed Peter Malyshev as a partner to its Regulatory and Enforcement practice in Washington, DC. Malyshev joins from Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, where he was head of the commodity derivatives and CFTC practice and a partner in the Financial Services Group. Before joining Cadwalader, Malyshev was a partner at Reed Smith. He has also held senior roles at Latham & Watkins.
Colin Rice has joined the law firm of Jones Day as a partner in its financial markets practice, based in Singapore. Rice joins the firm from Norton Rose Fulbright, where he was a partner for nine years. Prior to that, he served as a director at Credit Suisse for two years. Rice advises clients on financial markets transactions, with a focus on OTC derivatives, structured products, structured finance transactions, repos and securities lending.
The law firm of Morrison Foerster has hired Ryne Miller and Trevor Levine as partners in its financial services and fintech industry groups. Miller is based in New York and joins from Lowenstein Sandler, where he was a partner and chaired the commodities, futures and derivatives practice, as well as co-chairing the firm’s crypto practice. His previous roles include managing partner at Miller Strategic Partners, general counsel at FTX US and partner at Sullivan & Cromwell. Levine is based in Washington, DC and joins from Lowenstein Sandler, where he was counsel. He previously served as general counsel at BitOoda and associate counsel at FTX US. He began his career at Reed Smith.
Former CFTC official Lauren Fulks has joined Chainalysis, a blockchain surveillance company, as director of regulatory affairs and policy. Fulks joins after more than 17 years at the CFTC. Most recently, she served as senior advisor for digital assets in the Division of Market Oversight and earlier as senior advisor in the office of Commissioner Summer Mersinger. During her tenure at the CFTC, she also served as secretary of the Energy and Environmental Markets Advisory Committee and held a range of advisory roles across market oversight and policy. Earlier in her career, she worked as an auditor at PwC.
