UNESCAP-WCO-ICC-ADB Webinar on Disruptive Technologies applied to cross-border transactions

Mr. Yann Duval is currently Chief of Trade Policy and Facilitation at ESCAP, the regional branch of the United Nations Secretariat for Asia and the Pacific.

Over the past 15 years, Mr. Duval has conducted research and delivered technical assistance and advisory services on trade policy and facilitation throughout Asia and the Pacific, including on the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. He spearheaded the development of the Asia-Pacific Research and Training Network on Trade (ARTNeT), as well as the creation of the ESCAP-World Bank Trade Cost Database and the UN Global Survey on Trade Facilitation and Paperless Trade Implementation. Mr. Duval was also instrumental in the development of the United Nations Network of Experts for Paperless Trade and Transport in Asia and the Pacific (UNNExT) and the negotiation of a new intergovernmental Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-Border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific, adopted as a UN treaty in 2016.

Prior to joining the UN, He held faculty positions at the Asian Institute of Technology and Washington State University, USA.

Mr. O’Hearn serves as the Deputy Director of the Procedures and Facilitation Sub-Directorate within the Compliance and Facilitation Directorate at the World Customs Organization (WCO) where he directs the development, implementation and maintenance of international treaties, conventions, standards, guidelines and other trade facilitation tools. He oversees a large staff and the preparation and execution of more than 20 Member driven committees, sub-committees and working groups, which includes the preparation of meeting agendas, documents and reports. Mr. O’Hearn also provides counsel to the Director, Deputy Secretary General and Secretary General on matters relating to the Sub-Directorate.

From July 2013 to November 2019, Mr. O’Hearn served as both the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Attaché and Department of Homeland Security Attaché in Tokyo, Japan. In these positions, he managed a broad range Homeland Security, Customs and Immigration issues. He was also responsible for providing advice and counsel to U.S. Ambassadors to Japan Caroline Kennedy and William Hagerty, as well as numerous Japanese lawmakers, on Homeland Security issues.

Mr. O’Hearn started his public service career with the U.S. Customs Service in 1995 as an Import Specialist at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

Mr. Oswald Kuyler is the former Head of Data Strategy of BHP, the world's largest diversified mining company. He has worked on initiatives covering blockchain, electronic documentation in trade, data and analytics, and automation.

Before BHP, he was on the leadership team of EOH MS in South Africa, delivering solutions for a diverse customer base globally. He focused on providing solutions that enabled electronic documentation and records management, enhanced collaboration, business process management, and reporting. 

A technologist at heart with a strong focus on its impact on a corporates balance sheet, he is now focused on further the enabling of trade digitizations through the creation of standards at the international chamber of commerce.

Ms. Cyn-Young Park is Director of the Regional Cooperation and Integration Division in the Economics Research and Regional Cooperation Department of the Asian Development Bank. She manages a team of economists to examine economic and policy issues related to regional cooperation and integration (RCI). During her career within ADB, she has been a main author and contributor to ADB’s major publications.

Prior to joining the ADB, she served as Economist at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). She received her Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University. She holds a bachelor degree in International Economics from Seoul National University.

Ms. Florence Binta Diao-Gueye joined the Secretariat of the International Chamber of Commerce in 2016 and is part of the Global Policy Team. In addition to leading the Commission on Customs and Trade Facilitation, she is also working on trade and investment policy. Recently, she joined the team of ICC’s Digital Standards Initiative. Ms Diao-Gueye previously assisted the Incoterms® 2020 Drafting Group during the revision process and she has contributed to several publications such as the ICC Leniency Manual. Ms Diao-Gueye holds a Masters in International Security from Sciences Po Paris with specializations in African Studies and Defence & Security Economics with a focus on illicit trade, post-conflict reconstruction and development. She also has an LL.M. in International Law from Descartes University Paris (2016).

Ms. Milena Budimirović is a Senior Technical Officer in the WCO Procedures and Facilitation Sub-Directorate and has been serving in the WCO since May 2012. Her responsibilities include the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) and cooperation with the WTO and other international organizations. She is the main coordinator for WCO’s key committee dealing with procedures and facilitation, the Permanent Technical Committee, and is involved in the development of trade facilitation instruments and tools. She manages the Future of Customs file, which explores disruptive technologies and foresight, amongst other, and leads on the WCO Technology Conference theme and agenda. Relations with the Private Sector Consultative Group and the International Chamber of Commerce are also part of her portfolio. During her tenure in the WCO, she served for eight months as the Acting Deputy Director Procedures and Facilitation.

Before joining the WCO Secretariat in May 2012, Milena served as Brussels-based Customs Attaché of the Republic of Serbia for three years, working closely with the European Commission and the WCO. In 2011 she was accredited WCO Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Technical and Operational Advisor.

Prior to moving to Brussels, she worked for ten years in the Customs Administration of Serbia both in operations and in the headquarters. She managed WCO SAFE Implementation Project and was involved in various modernization projects supported by the WCO and the EU.

Ms. Hope Liu started her career working for a global bank overseeing cross-border settlement activities in Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore for 7 years. As an MBA student at MIT, she turned a school project into a global venture by raising over $10mn, building a global team, and launching a public blockchain infrastructure focused on supply chain transformation. She holds a Bachelor degree from Peking University and MBA degree from MIT Sloan School of Management. She previously won the Grand Champion of Boston Seagull Entrepreneurship Competition and was a guest lecturer for blockchain at MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics and SMU International Trade Institute.

Mr. Chenard is a technology entrepreneur and investor with a number of exits including Tremor (NYSE: TRMR) and Image Space Media.

In 2018, MonetaGo, which was founded by Mr. Chenard, achieved a technological milestone by deploying the first enterprise blockchain network used in day-to-day operations by the financial services industry. Originally developed on Hyperledger, as the network grew MonetaGo foresaw the need to strategically shift to using R3’s Corda. This Secure Financing network is focused on solving fraud issues in trade finance and has continued attracting banks and a host of multinational institutions as clients.

With more than 1 million financial transactions having already been executed leveraging its Secure Financing network, MonetaGo has now developed a growing presence in Asia and deployments to multiple countries are underway.  

As CEO, Mr. Chenard plays a key role in interfacing with bankers and regulators on technology implementation pathways and participates in speaking engagements at conferences such as SIBOS, Money 20/20, and Consensus.

Mr Christian Lembke, as a Technical Attaché under the WCO Compliance and Facilitation Directorate since June 2020, is mainly involved in the area of the WCO Data Model, the online platform RAM-MAP SWIM, Advance Passenger Information as well as the Globally Networked Customs concept.

He has previously worked as a customs officer at Frankfurt am Main Airport (Germany) in the field of risk assessment for air cargo shipments since 2005. He has been involved in a risk assessment project in an EU working group at the international level.

• Education
  • Feb. 2000, majored in Materials Science & Engineering at Dong-A University
• Professional Experience
  • April 2019-Present WCO Cooperation Affairs, Korea Customs H/Q
  • Mar 2016-Mar 2019 Busan Customs, Internal Audit Division
  • Mar 2014-Feb 2016 Busan Customs, Finance Investigation Division
  • Jul 2006-Feb 2014 Busan Customs, Post Audit Division
  • Jul 2004-Jun 2006 Kimhae Customs, Passenger Facilitation Division
  • Oct2002-Jun 2004 Busan Customs, Clearance Facilitation Division

Ms. Wing-sze Leung joined the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department in 2012. She has been serving in the Land Boundary Command for over 6 years and is experienced in both cargo and passenger processing and operations. She is the current officer-in-charge of the Intermodal Transhipment Facilitation Scheme (ITFS) and Single E-Lock Scheme (SELS).

Ms. Hope Liu started her career working for a global bank overseeing cross-border settlement activities in Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore for 7 years. As an MBA student at MIT, she turned a school project into a global venture by raising over $10mn, building a global team, and launching a public blockchain infrastructure focused on supply chain transformation. She holds a Bachelor degree from Peking University and MBA degree from MIT Sloan School of Management. She previously won the Grand Champion of Boston Seagull Entrepreneurship Competition and was a guest lecturer for blockchain at MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics and SMU International Trade Institute.