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Dr. David Hardoon
Managing Director & Head of Advanced AI, Southeast Asia
Accenture
Dr. David R. Hardoon
Managing Director & Head of Advanced AI, Southeast Asia, Accenture
www.davidroihardoon.com
Dr. Hardoon is Managing Director and Head of Advanced AI for Southeast Asia at Accenture, where he advises leading organizations on harnessing Artificial Intelligence to drive growth, productivity, innovation and business transformation. His work spans AI strategy, large-scale AI adoption, agentic AI, governance, and operating model design across financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, the public sector and other industries.
With more than 23 years of experience in Data and AI, David has worked across industry, banking, regulation, government, academia and board advisory roles, providing a unique perspective on how organizations can bridge the gap between AI ambition and execution.
Prior to Accenture, David served as the Monetary Authority of Singapore's first Chief Data Officer and Head of Data Analytics Group before becoming Special Advisor (Artificial Intelligence). During his tenure, he helped shape AI adoption across Singapore's financial sector, pioneered the use of advanced analytics within central banking and supervision, and led initiatives including the FEAT Principles and the MAS-backed Veritas consortium.
Earlier in his career, David was Chief Data & AI Officer at UnionBank of the Philippines, where he led the bank's data and AI transformation agenda, and subsequently Global Head of AI Enablement at Standard Chartered Bank, driving enterprise AI initiatives across one of the world's leading international banking groups.
Today, David regularly advises executives and boards on the implications of emerging technologies, with a particular focus on how AI and agentic systems are reshaping industries, operating models and competitive advantage. He is a frequent international speaker on AI, digital transformation and innovation.
David holds a PhD in Machine Learning from the University of Southampton.
Speaking at SFF 2026
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1:30–2:00pmThu 19 NovPolicy StageHall 3, Singapore EXPOOpenModerator
Policy Rewiring
Scaling AI: Where Financial Services is Seeing Real Returns
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Abhijeet RameshVice President, Head of Innovation & Growth, Asia PacificVisa
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Janet YoungManaging Director and Group Head, Channels & Digitalisation, Strategic Communications & BrandUOB
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Mayoran RajendraManaging Director, General Manager, AI Transformation DepartmentSumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC)
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Quan YuGeneral Manager of Bettr Global CreditAnt International
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Dr. David HardoonManaging Director & Head of Advanced AI, Southeast AsiaAccentureModerator
About this session
The conversation around AI in financial services has moved beyond experimentation. The challenge is no longer identifying promising use cases—it's deploying AI at scale in ways that deliver measurable business value. From payments and banking to fintech and customer engagement, leading institutions are embedding AI into core operations to improve productivity, strengthen risk management, personalise customer experiences, and accelerate innovation. Yet while some initiatives become enterprise capabilities, many others remain trapped in pilot mode.
Bringing together leaders from across the financial services ecosystem, this panel explores where AI is creating tangible impact today, what it takes to scale successful deployments across the organisation, and the operational, cultural, and governance challenges that determine whether AI delivers lasting value. The discussion will examine how institutions are prioritising AI investments, measuring success beyond productivity gains, and building the data, operating models, and organisational capabilities needed to move from isolated use cases to enterprise-wide transformation. -
