Richard Fraher is an expert in the structure and function of traditional and emerging payment systems, banking law, compliance, and emerging regulation of fintech. In addition to offering strategic consulting services, he teaches the law of payment systems at the Emory University School of Law. Previously Mr. Fraher was legal counsel for the Federal Reserve’s Retail Payments Office with primary responsibility for the Federal Reserve Bank’s check and ACH services. He was one of the principal authors of the Federal Reserve Bank rules for image based check collection and return. He was instrumental in the creation of the FedGlobal ACH service, drafting and negotiating agreements with foreign banks and processors and shaping private sector rules that bridge the US ACH with foreign payment systems using the ISO 20022 format. He is named as an inventor in two patents related to payments processing and settlement. Before he joined the Federal Reserve Bank, he was a senior attorney for the FDIC, working primarily in compliance and enforcement. Earlier in his career, he was an assistant professor of history at Harvard, visiting scholar at Cambridge University, and professor of law at Indiana University.
John Popeo is a Principal at the Gallatin Group, a consulting firm that advises financial institutions, investment companies and technology firms on complex transactions and bank regulatory matters. Mr. Popeo leads the Financial Regulation Group and represents banks in transactions, including matters requiring regulatory approvals from U.S. federal and state bank regulatory agencies. He has experience developing compliance frameworks for a variety of financial regulatory matters, ranging from regulatory investigations and enforcement proceedings, to state licensing and payments matters.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Popeo was a senior associate in the Financial Institution Group at Hogan Lovells US LLP. He spent a decade in various roles at the FDIC and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. At the FDIC, Mr. Popeo assisted in responding to the 2008 global financial crisis and represented the agency before various subcommittees of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) at the U.S. Treasury Department. He drafted regulations to implement provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. In addition to his work at The Gallatin Group, Mr. Popeo serves as a faculty member at the Financial Integrity Institute at Case Western Reserve University School of Law.
Zach Duke is the Founder and President of Cybersecurity firm Finosec. Under his leadership, he leads the vision to help financial institutions and FinTech’s navigate the complexities and burdens of cybersecurity with Information Security Officer Augmentation and Outsourcing. Before founding Finosec and joining Secura, Zach had positions in technical, business development, and leadership at network services company Safe Systems. He was also VP of Sales of Internet security startup Gladiator Technology till its acquisition by Jack Henry and Associates INC. Zach has a passion for community banks, and he has taught numerous banking topics related to technology strategic planning, cybersecurity, and compliance.
Zach is currently on the Operations & Technology Committee for the Georgia Bankers Association, on the advisory board of Management Information Systems at the University of Georgia, and he is the current President of the financial technology user group, The Association for Financial Technology (aftweb.com).
Zach received his BBA in Management Information Systems from the University of Georgia. His unique background and presentation style allows him to be able to communicate complex topics in ways that keep the audience engaged and informed.
