Welcome to the latest edition of At the Forefront: Fintech Conversations!
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In this episode, Forefront Managing Partner Mark Dowd sits down with Ben Wood, Executive Director of the Risk Global Group at InfoPro Digital. Together, they explore how the financial publishing and events landscape is evolving alongside broader changes across capital markets, trading technology, risk management and institutional marketing.
The conversation begins with an overview of the Risk Global Group portfolio, including brands such as Risk.net, WatersTechnology, FX Markets, Chartis Research and Central Banking. Ben explains how the group has evolved from a traditional publishing business into a broader platform spanning enterprise subscriptions, benchmarking products, peer networks and events, all designed to help financial institutions navigate increasingly complex markets.
From there, the discussion turns to some of the largest forces reshaping the industry today, including AI, operational resilience, fragmented regulation, cyber risk and the growing importance of data infrastructure. Ben explains how many longstanding challenges, particularly around data quality and interoperability, remain central to the industry despite years of technological advancement. The conversation also explores how institutions are increasingly focused on non-financial risks such as cyber threats, third-party dependencies and operational disruptions.
Mark and Ben also discuss the evolution of institutional marketing and content strategy within financial services. Ben shares how audiences have become more targeted and time-constrained, making credibility, quality and relevance more important than ever. The conversation highlights the growing importance of thought leadership, peer validation and long-term brand building in complex enterprise sales cycles, particularly for fintech and infrastructure providers selling into large financial institutions.
Finally, the episode explores the launch of InfoPro Digital’s new Risk & Markets Show event series, which will bring together multiple flagship brands and communities under one umbrella across London, New York and Singapore. Ben explains how the initiative reflects the increasing convergence across trading, risk, compliance and technology, and why firms are increasingly looking for more integrated industry conversations and event experiences.
For more conversations with fintech and capital markets leaders, explore the At the Forefront podcast archive or our YouTube channel.
If you’d like to learn more about InfoPro Digital and their work, visit https://www.infopro-digital.com/
TLDR
0:30 – Inside InfoPro Digital’s Risk Global Group and wider media portfolio
7:30 – AI, data infrastructure and the rise of non-financial risk
12:00 – How thought leadership translates into commercial value
20:30 – The vision behind the new Risk & Markets Show series