State of play: Consumer Directed Finance with Royal Bank of Canada
Episode 4 welcomes RBC’s digital products lead, Rami Thabet as he joins Abhishek Sinha Open Banking and Blockchain Leader, EY Canada and Parna Sabet-Stephenson, Partner, Gowling WLG as they discuss the geographies that have implemented Open Banking to date. They will draw on some key use cases in the global market whilst analysing potential forthcoming regulation, specifically looking at the introduction of Bill C-11 and the impact this could have on Consumer Directed Finance (CDF). Our guests will link all this up and set-out how this could shape a ‘made in Canada’ approach when it comes to CDF.
In association with EY 
Rami Thabet
Rami Thabet
Vice President of Digital Product Royal Bank of CanadaRami Thabet is the Vice President of Digital Product. In this role Rami leads the team responsible for envisioning, building and shipping industry leading digital products. He is responsible for RBC’s Digital channels, Omni-channel experiences and key capabilities such as identity and security and the API platform.
Rami has been with RBC for over 7 years and held various roles in Marketing & Channel Strategy, Technology & Operations, Payments & Cards and Digital. Most recently, Rami led the mobile, tablet and wearables organisation and delivered on a number of key capabilities and Canadian firsts in payments, identity and the NOMI Artificial Intelligence platform as well as the creation of RBC’s J.D. Power award winning mobile platform. His team has recently been awarded Celent’s Model Bank of the Year award for delivering personalised client engagement, creating exceptional customer-focused experiences and building digital literacy among employees.
Prior to his time at RBC, Rami held a number of roles across business, technology and consulting in the financial, technology and public sectors including BMO, CIBC, Manulife, Cancer Care Ontario, Ontario Government and CGI.
Rami graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence. He also holds a MBA from Cornell University.
Abhishek Sinha
Abhishek Sinha
Partner EY CanadaAs the Open Banking and Blockchain Leader, Abhishek leads EY Canada’s Banking Technology Consulting practice.
Abhishek focuses on the transformative impact technology has on the banking industry.
He works with clients to strategize and operationalize major transformative initiatives within Core Banking Operations, Retail & Commercial Banking, Finance & Treasury and Payments. Abhishek’s current focus includes Digital Adoption, Innovation, Open Banking, Open APIs, Enterprise Architecture, Data Management, Analytics and IT Strategy.
Abhishek also leads EY’s Blockchain practice in Canada across all sectors, working with clients as they understand the fundamental impact blockchain has to their operating & business models.
Abhishek significant international experience with top-tier consulting firms and within the banking industry. He has played significant roles in setting up de-novo banks in different jurisdictions and has held various management positions in established global banks.
Parna Sabet-Stephenson
Parna Sabet-Stephenson
Partner, Leader of FinTech Group Gowling WLGAs the leader of Gowling WLG’s Fintech Group, Parna Sabet-Stephenson is a longtime legal advisor to players in the financial services and technology industries. She has over two decades of experience in assisting clients with a wide variety of commercial and technology law matters.
Widely recognized nationally and internationally for her expertise in technology law and fintech, Parna was named “Lawyer of the Year” for the Fintech Practice by The Best Lawyers in Canada 2023 guide.
An engaged practitioner, she serves as a Canadian delegate for e-commerce law to the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, as well as a member of FSRA’s technical advisory committee for digital transformation and data governance. A passionate advocate for women’s advancement, Parna has led and supported a number of initiatives aimed to provide leadership and career opportunities for women. She is the co-founder of Yara Leadership Society.
