Agentic AI in Financial Services: Real World Applications & Emerging Risks

Shawn Tumanov is the Head of AI Governance at Alight Solutions, where he helps guide the company’s transformation into an AI first, data centric organization. With more than 20 years of experience, Shawn believes technology is only as powerful as the trust behind it, championing a “trust by design” approach that treats governance as a competitive advantage rather than a barrier. He has built and scaled Data and AI governance programs at GEICO and BMO, partnering closely with executive leadership to align innovation with risk, compliance, and business outcomes. Most recently, he collaborated with Meta’s Global Finance team to align AI initiatives with financial integrity and reporting standards, including ICFR and SOX. His perspective is shaped by early experience as a federal bank regulator with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, enabling him to translate complex oversight into practical business value. Shawn serves on the CDO Magazine Global Editorial Board, was named one of Chicago’s Top 25 Data Leaders, and holds an MBA, CISA, and advanced AI audit certifications.

Duncan Robinson MSDS, MBA, CAIA, FDP is currently Director, Principal Research Scientist, AI & Optimization at Franklin Templeton Technology where he leads enterprise AI-driven portfolio optimization, macro, and quantitative research systems at Franklin Templeton, building durable intelligence platforms that integrate machine learning, alternative data, and portfolio optimization into global investment workflows. His focus is on using AI to transform complex macroeconomic, behavioral, and non-traditional datasets into systematic signals that enhance regime awareness, portfolio construction, client communication, and firm-wide research scalability.

Previously, as Director of Quantitative Insights and Data Science at Allspring Global Investments, he institutionalized cross-asset research infrastructure and secured the firm’s first patents in alternative data valuation and privacy-preserving metadata engineering. At Wells Fargo Asset Management, he architected a patent-pending alternative data scoring framework designed to convert unstructured information into portfolio-ready investment intelligence.

Duncan began his career as a derivatives trader and portfolio manager at Wolverine Trading, where nearly two decades of alpha capture and risk management across global markets shaped his conviction that advanced analytics must be capital-aware, economically grounded, auditable, regulatory-compliant, and operationally robust.

He holds a Master of Science in Data Science from Northwestern University, an MBA in Decision Science from Purdue University, and a Bachelor of Science in Public Finance from Indiana University. He is a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) and Financial Data Professional (FDP).

Christina Fernandes-D’Souza is the Global VP of Transformation Solutions for Aon’s Strategy and Technology Group (STG). As a leader within the Transformation Solutions Center of Excellence, she helps global organizations—ranging from $1B to $69B in revenue—navigate complex change by integrating talent, operations, and technology.

With over 15 years of cross-industry experience in both the public and private sectors, Christina specializes in the strategic application of AI to drive business impact and sustainable competitive advantage. Her career includes pivotal leadership roles at Zurich North America, Spencer Stuart, and Three Arc Advisory.

Christina holds a Master’s degree in Applied Mathematics with a concentration in Actuarial Science. Christina serves on the Board of Digital Divide Data (DDD), focusing on the intersection of technology and social impact, and is also on the steering committee for the Chicago Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP).

Sandeep Maira is a leader in the practical application of technology innovation, product development and driving business transformation. He has a deep background in artificial intelligence, high performance computing, data and analytics, along with cloud technologies. Sandeep has deep expertise in leveraging advanced GenAI and agentic AI to provide solutions that have significant ROI.

At Accenture Sandeep focuses on AI and transformations, including leading the largest and most complex AI initiatives in the industry. He also helps lead partnerships with AI ecosystem partners including Anthropic. Prior to Accenture, Sandeep led numerous data, analytics and cloud initiatives at major institutions, including at JP Morgan, BNY Mellon, and Citigroup. He was head of risk, compliance and regulatory technology at BNY Mellon and led a number of technology functions at JP Morgan and Citi.

Sandeep is on the Advisory Boards for AI and Fintech at the Center for Finance Professionals, and also the AI 2030 initiative. He is also on the steering committee for the Chicago Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) and also chair of the Chicago chapter of Asian Executive Network (AEN). He is a frequent speaker and lecturer on the use of GenAI at conferences, podcasts and universities. Sandeep also has a background in blockchain and led the first USD digital currency pilot with the US Treasury. Sandeep has a Bachelors and Masters in Computer Science from Cornell University.