Fixed Income Leaders 2025
14 - 16 October, 2025
Mövenpick Hotel Amsterdam City Centre + ij VENUES Amsterdam
Day 1 | 15th October
7:30 am - 8:30 am
Registration and Breakfast
8:30 am - 8:35 am
FILS Welcome Address
8:35 am - 8:40 am
Chairperson’s Opening Remarks and Market Overview
Bonds Through Macro Lenses
8:40 am - 9:00 am
Macro Outlook Keynote: How can you navigate 2025’s global uncertainty to secure liquidity and adapt your trading and investment strategies for greater stability?
Philippe Waechter -
Chief Economist,
Ostrum
Stefan Hofrichter -
Head of Global Economics and Strategy,
Allianz Global Investors GmbH
Amid rising geopolitical fragmentation, tightening liquidity, and inflationary pressures, fixed income markets are entering a new era of uncertainty. In this opening address, leading economists will provide critical insights into the 2025-2026 macroeconomic landscape, highlighting the strategic shifts asset managers must make to preserve resilience, optimise liquidity, and capture emerging opportunities.
Evolving Trading Desks & Buy-Side Collaboration: Optimising Technology, Execution & Partnerships
9:00 am - 9:20 am
Buy Side Initiatives Fireside Chat: The value of partnerships: How can strengthened industry collaboration enhance liquidity, efficiency, and execution quality against a backdrop of trade tensions, inflation and rising geopolitical uncertainty?
In an era of rapid technological evolution and shifting market dynamics, buy-side firms must rethink how they engage with the sell-side to optimise liquidity, execution quality, and overall efficiency. This session captures the current state of collaboration, addressing how firms can adapt their strategies, quantify the value of partnerships, and harness innovation to stay ahead in an increasingly digital trading environment.
Revolutionising Fixed Income Trading: Mastering Liquidity, Market Structure & Innovation
9:20 am - 10:00 am
The View on Liquidity Panel: Leveraging bank and non-bank LPs: How can you improve liquidity sourcing to optimise bond trading performance in a fragmented and volatile market?
Lynn Challenger -
Global Head of Trading,
UBS Asset Management
Christophe Pannelay -
Head of Fixed Income trading and OTC derivatives,
BNP Paribas AM
With liquidity dynamics shifting due to evolving market structures, diverse liquidity sources, and technological advancements, traders must rethink their execution strategies. This panel will explore practical approaches to optimising liquidity access, balancing traditional and non-traditional counterparties, and utilising cutting-edge tools for improved trade performance.
10:00 am - 10:20 am
Market Transformation Fireside: Chat Navigating the next wave of change: What’s transforming fixed income trading — from evolving regulations to breakthrough technologies
In 2025, EU fixed income markets face accelerating change as new transparency rules under MiFID III and the ongoing push for consolidated tape reshape trading workflows and liquidity access. At the same time, firms are adopting AI-driven tools to manage data and execution more efficiently. This Q&A will explore how European trading desks are adapting to regulatory reforms while leveraging innovation to stay competitive.
10:20 am - 10:50 am
Market Structure Panel: Navigating the EU market structure evolution: How can you collaborate with major market participants to boost liquidity and overcome market data access and cost hurdles to optimise trading outcomes?
Nafisa Yusuf -
Head of EMEA Market Structure,
BlackRock
Yannig Loyer -
Global Head of Trading, Securities Financing and Derivatives,
AXA Investment Managers
Dominic Holland -
Director, Market Oversight,
FCA
At this pivotal moment in European fixed income, market participants must navigate ongoing structural shifts driven by regulation, technology, and liquidity dynamics. This session will examine the latest market structure developments and explore how buy-side and sell-side collaboration, innovation in trading technology, and regulatory engagement can shape a more efficient and resilient fixed income ecosystem.
Yannig Loyer
Global Head of Trading, Securities Financing and DerivativesAXA Investment Managers
Sponsored by: J.P.Morgan
Sponsored by: Bank of America
Sponsored by: S&P Global Market Intelligence
Keynote Stage 1: Optimising Execution
11:10 am - 11:50 am E-Trading Panel: Electronification beyond liquid markets: How can electronic trading drive efficiency, cost reduction, and optimise execution in opaque areas of fixed income? Karim Awenat - Head of EMEA & APAC Macro Trading, Invesco Christopher Minck - EMEA Head of Systematic Execution, BlackRockWith electronic trading now accounting for over 50% of fixed income flows in Europe—and projected to rise—market participants must refine their approach to automation, algorithmic execution, and data-driven decision-making. This panel will examine how firms can harness cutting-edge technology to streamline workflows, reduce costs, and enhance execution quality in an increasingly digital fixed income landscape.
Keynote Stage 1: Optimising Execution
11:50 am - 12:30 pm ETFs Panel: Optimising ETF selection: How can you leverage ETF innovations to enhance liquidity, diversification, and risk management? Nancy Davis - Managing Partner & CIO, Quadratic CapitalThe global ETF market has surged past $14 trillion in AUM, with fixed income ETFs seeing record inflows exceeding $300 billion in 2024. This panel will explore how investors can optimise ETF selection, leverage short-duration bonds to manage rate risk, and assess liquidity to enhance trading efficiency in evolving market conditions.
Keynote Stage 1: Optimising Execution
12:30 pm - 1:00 pm Automation Fireside Chat: Unlocking automation: How can you integrate workflow automation and system interoperability to enhance fixed income trading efficiency?In 2024, fixed income issuance surpassed $10.5 trillion, up 25.6% year-over-year. Automation adoption surged, with 60% of credit traders using automated execution. This panel will explore how firms can leverage these advancements to streamline workflows, enhance liquidity sourcing, and future-proof trading strategies.
Keynote Stage 2: Portfolio Strategies
11:10 am - 11:50 am Active vs. Passive Strategies Presentation: Active vs. Passive in Sterling Credit: Why Bigger Isn’t Always BetterPassive investing has reshaped stock markets—but does it work as well in fixed income? In sterling corporate bonds, active managers have consistently outperformed by exploiting structural index flaws, off-benchmark opportunities, and tactical positioning. Join us to unpack why passive approaches may fall short in credit markets and how active strategies add real value, especially when navigating downgrades, upgrades, and overlooked sectors.
Keynote Stage 2: Portfolio Strategies
11:50 am - 12:30 pm Portfolio Strategy Panel: Traditional and alternative portfolio construction: How can you proactively manage geopolitical, market risks, and leverage private credit to protect fixed income portfolios? Takaya Sekine - Deputy Head of Quant Portfolio Strategy, Amundi Asset Management Christie Goncalves - Portfolio Manager, Rathbones Group Thierry Vergnes - Head of Acquisition Debt Funds, Amundi Asset Management Desmond Lawrence - Senior Investment Strategist, State Street Global AdvisorsIn 2024, fixed income markets faced heightened volatility as China’s U.S. Treasury holdings hit 15-year low and bond-equity correlations turn positive amid inflation above 3%. Traditional diversification strategies are being tested, prompting investors to seek alternative approaches to risk management and hedging, such as private credit. This panel will explore how investors can adapt to global instability by integrating private credit into their portfolios to optimise portfolio positioning and enhance diversification strategies.
Keynote Stage 2: Portfolio Strategies
12:30 pm - 1:00 pm Treasury Clearing Fireside Chat: Redefining treasury markets: How will UST clearing reforms reshape the global treasury market and how can buy side firms prepare for the deadline?With regulatory mandates and market structure shifts, U.S. Treasury (UST) clearing is set to redefine global fixed income markets. This fireside chat will explore how the evolution of clearing requirements affects trading, settlement efficiency, and risk management across global treasury markets.
Sponsored by: Market Axess
Track A: AI & Automation
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm 360 Perspective: How can you leverage AI-driven predictive analytics to forecast market trends and optimise trading decisions?Track A: AI & Automation
3:00 pm - 3:20 pm Fireside Chat: How can you apply Natural Language Processing to analyse market sentiment and extract tradeable insights from multiple sources of information?Track B: Market Access
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm 360 Perspective: How can you implement best execution practices beyond pricing?Track B: Market Access
3:00 pm - 3:20 pm Fireside Chat: Evaluating e-trading channels: What are the latest API, multi and single dealer platform offerings and how can you navigate these to optimise pricing and execution?Track C: Products Deep Dive
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm 360 Perspective: The Repo Market (R)evolution: How can you leverage AI, automation, and tokenisation to transform the Repo market?Track C: Products Deep Dive
3:00 pm - 3:20 pm 360 Perspective: How can you utilise ETFs to achieve diversified fixed income exposure?Track D: Portfolio Strategies
2:30 pm - 3:00 pm 360 Perspective: How can you balance active vs. passive strategies to optimise risk-adjusted returns and protect your portfolio in high yield environments?Track D: Portfolio Strategies
3:00 pm - 3:20 pm Fireside Chat: How can you integrate sustainability metrics to align portfolios with ESG mandates?By invitation only