Caroline Bowler

As the CEO of BTC Markets, Caroline Bowler is a seasoned professional in the financial services industry with over 20 years of experience. With a focus on strategic direction and growth, she works closely with government regulators and industry stakeholders on responsible legislation to ensure Australia is positioned as a technology hub for crypto and blockchain innovation.

Caroline has a diverse professional background, having worked with a variety of institutions including investment banks, hedge funds, financial technology companies, and financial advisors. Her expertise in the blockchain and digital asset sector began in 2015.

In addition to her role at BTC Markets, Caroline served as a board member of Blockchain Australia and was honoured with the Female Fintech Leader of the Year at the Fintech Australia Awards and Blockchain Leader of the Year at the Blockchain Australia Awards in 2022.

She is a frequent media commentator on cryptocurrencies and regulatory frameworks, having been featured in outlets such as Bloomberg, CNBC, ABC, 7News, 9News, Sky News Australia, the AFR, SMH, The Age, The Australian, and news.com.au. With her extensive experience and knowledge, Caroline is regarded as one of Australia's foremost experts in the field.

Eugene Budovsky

Eugene Budovsky is an electronic equity execution specialist with expertise in sales, trading, connectivity, regulatory compliance, and product development. Eugene's past roles include Head of Equity Execution Platforms at Barrenjoey, and Co-head of Credit Suisse’s AES electronic execution business for APAC.

Eugene has over 18 years of front office experience in Asian equities with roles covering electronic execution, portfolio trading, facilitation, D1 sales and ETF market making.

Carole Comerton-Forde

Carole has been researching the global exchange industry for over 20 years. Her research in market structure examines how the mechanics of the market, such as regulation and technology, impact prices, liquidity and trader behaviour. Her research covers equities, corporate bonds and Exchange Traded Funds. Current research interests include dark pools, fragmentation, the connection between the cost of raising capital and secondary market liquidity and the evolution of public and private markets. Carole’s research has been published in the leading finance journals including the Journal of Finance and the Journal of Financial Economics.

Carole previously held academic positions at UNSW Business School, Australian National University and University of Sydney, and visiting positions at New York University and the London School of Economics and Political Science. She was also Visiting Economist at the New York Stock Exchange. In addition to her academic role, she has been an economic consultant for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and is an Academic Advisor to the Plato Partnership in Europe. She also consults with market participants, stock exchanges, market regulators around the world.

Kate Cooper

Kate is a transformational leader with over 20 years of global experience at the intersection of technology, strategy, and leadership. She has a proven track record of helping organizations navigate paradigm shifts—first with the rise of Web 2.0, where she played a pivotal role in digital transformation for major global brands and governments, and now with the proliferation of Web3, where she is shaping the future of financial services.

Kate’s career has spanned executive roles in both traditional finance and digital assets. Most recently, she led APAC operations at Zodia Custody, a bank-backed institutional digital asset custodian, where she drove growth, regulatory alignment, and industry collaboration across five markets. Before that, she held senior positions at National Australia Bank, where she was instrumental in the bank’s digital asset strategy.

Her expertise in regulatory strategy and digital transformation is well recognised - she was previously the UK government’s first-ever Head of Social Media, played a key role in Lego’s turnaround by harnessing online communities, and helped Toyota recover from a global recall crisis through large-scale digital engagement across 32 countries.

Kate is also a board member of the Digital Economy Council of Australia (DECA), actively shaping the country’s digital asset policy landscape.

Edward Mangles

Edward Mangles has helped support The FIX Trading Community’s Asia Pacific committee for over 20 years, playing a key role in promoting institutional trading standards and FIX adoption across the region, and facilitating cross-industry collaboration. In March 2009, Edward was appointed Asia Pacific Regional Director for the FIX Trading Community, and works closely with the buyside, sellside, regulator, exchange and technology provider members of the institutional trading community to support efficient trading.

Clare Witts

Clare Witts Head of APAC Market Structure at J.P. Morgan, working with clients and across the bank’s equity trading desks. Her role includes assessing the impact of regulatory and policy trends and analysing how that affects the microstructure of the equity markets and improving trading outcomes. Clare has worked in Asia for over 15 years in a variety of roles that help combine big picture trends with actionable trading insights. As well as over 10 years working in electronic trading at investment banks and agency brokers, she has worked in cross-industry functions including as Chair of the FIX Trading Community, as the Asia Chair for Quorum 15, the think tank for buy and sellside heads of trading; and as Director of Government and Regulator Relations at CFA Institute representing key topics for the investment management industry to regional policymakers.

Amanda Zeller

Amanda leads the Market Integrity team, which is responsible for the regulation and supervision of corporate finance transactions and markets surveillance. This includes overseeing listed companies’ conduct and disclosure in public capital raisings, and mergers and acquisitions, as well as leading ASIC’s work in derivatives and equities surveillance.

Amanda has held other senior roles at ASIC including leading the Supervisory Cyber Resilience Program for ASIC regulated entities. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce and is a member of CPA Australia.