Dear Reader,

As we finalise the Point Zero Forum 2026 programme, I want to share a few thoughts ahead of our Zurich meeting next month.

The EU has acted decisively on three fronts to reshape financial services: MiCA, the AI Act, and the Savings and Investments Union. For institutions and supervisors, the timing is consequential, as the decisions made today will determine the new status quo.

MiCA now sets the terms for issuing digital assets across a market of roughly 450 million people. The AI Act defines how high-risk systems can be deployed. The Savings and Investments Union aims to funnel more private capital into European investment.

For firms operating within the EU, the implications are concrete: which parts of a firm must be EU-licensed, what it can issue, how it runs AI in production, where it can raise capital, and which existing partners still hold up.

Stablecoins are filling gaps in cross-border payments. Tokenization is being adopted for clearing, settlement, and balance-sheet use. AI is rapidly diffusing into core financial systems.

The global picture is fragmented. Europe is setting the standards. Asia is driving deployment. The US continues to anchor dollar liquidity, including through stablecoins shaped by the GENIUS Act. And across the Global South, these new payment rails are being adopted at a pace. The question is how to assess the various approaches jurisdictions are taking and make decisions that ensure the resilience of domestic financial systems, regional connectivity, and global cooperation.

That is why the fifth edition of Point Zero Forum lands at the right moment. MiCA's transitional period ends on 1 July, days after we close. The AI Act is approaching its next implementation milestones. Europe's capital agenda is being defined in parallel.

We open with Karin Keller-Sutter, Federal Councillor and Head of the Federal Department of Finance, Switzerland, and H.E. Maria Luís Albuquerque, European Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union.

They will be joined by senior leaders from the European Central Bank, Bank of England, Bank of Canada, Danmarks Nationalbank, Bank for International Settlements, Monetary Authority of Singapore, Deutsche Bundesbank, Swiss State Secretariat for International Finance; leaders from UBS, HSBC, JPMorgan, Barclays, Société Générale-FORGE, Ant International, Banking Circle, Circle, Paxos, Ripple, Mastercard, PayPal, Tether, Euroclear, Binance; and by senior voices from NVIDIA, AWS, Google, IBM, SAP, Tencent, and Cardano Foundation, alongside more than 100 other institutions.

The Forum this June convenes regulators, central banks, and industry leaders at the point where policy meets practice. I would be glad if you could join us in Zurich.

Yours sincerely,

Sopnendu Mohanty

Group Chief Executive Officer

Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN)