It is with great pleasure that we announce the appointment of Sugandh Saxena to the AllianceDFA Board! Sugandh takes a seat on the board, representing our Asian DFA Membership.

Sugandh is CEO of the Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment (FACE) in India. Sugandh has over two decades of diverse experience in fintech, financial inclusion, microfinance, the development sector, and technology. Her expertise is vast, and includes areas such as regulations, standard setting and enforcement, research, consumer protection and industry collaboration.

As the CEO of FACE for the past two years, she has made FACE a leading self-regulatory industry association for the fintech sector, leading conversations and programs to contribute to the innovative and responsible fintech sector. FACE has partnered with entities including the Centre for Financial Inclusion (CFI) to produce the Risk Barometer Study and with Google for India to remove illegal lending apps to foster a safer environment for consumers.

Before joining FACE, she worked with the Microfinance Industry Network (MFIN) for over a decade, leading work in policy advocacy, research/publication, developing the credit bureau and employee bureau ecosystem, and setting up the Self-Regulatory Organisation function (standards, oversight/surveillance, compliance support, enforcement, and customer grievance redressal mechanisms).

Sugandh’s wealth of experience running industry associations and establishing Self-Regulatory Organisations will add tremendous value to the work of the AllianceDFA Board. Sugandh’s knowledge will contribute to our strategic direction and to capacity building and supporting our DFA Members.

We will be inviting Sugandh to our August Members Meeting (date TBC) allowing all DFA members to meet her and engage in an exchange of ideas and information.

Joao Gaspar, AllianceDFA Board Chair expressed his enthusiasm, stating:

“We are delighted to welcome Sugandh Saxena to the AllianceDFA Board. This is a significant achievement and a tremendous addition to our team. Sugandh’s extensive experience and expertise in fintech, financial inclusion, and industry regulation will greatly enrich the work we do for our members. Her insights and leadership will significantly contribute to the strategic direction and capacity building of the Alliance. We look forward to the innovative ideas and valuable contributions she will bring to our board and to our mission of supporting DFA members.”