Sygnum, a global digital asset banking group, announces the expansion of its board of directors to support the “next stage of its growth and globalisation strategy.”
New members “include Pia Tischhauser, Swiss Re Supervisory Board member and former BCG Executive Committee member, and Vinod Kumar, Vice-Chairman of private equity group Everstone and former Vodafone Business CEO and Tata Communications CEO and MD.”
Gabriela Maria Payer, Chairwoman “acting ad interim since September 2024, is formally appointed Chairwoman.”
Pia Tischhauser, Swiss Re Supervisory Board member and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Senior Partner Emeritus, “brings over two decades of global leadership in financial services strategy, transformation and growth to Sygnum. Formerly BCG’s Global Insurance Practice Leader and Executive Committee member, Pia possesses deep expertise in driving client-centric innovation and scaling businesses in highly regulated-international markets. “
Vinod Kumar is the Vice-Chairman of “private equity group Everstone and a UST Global board member, where he was formerly CEO and Managing Director.”
Leveraging his 30 years of experience, which “included his role as CEO of Vodafone Business, includes scaling global technology enterprises, entering new international markets and cultivating organisational cultures built on values, passion and teamwork.”
His expertise will be valuable in “navigating tech-driven ecosystems and driving transformational change to capture Sygnum’s next-stage partnerships.”
Gabriela Maria Payer, Chairwoman ad interim “since Luka Muller who had to take a medical leave of absence since September 2024, has been appointed Chairwoman.”
An original Sygnum board member, Gabriela has “actively contributed to a range of governance boards, committees and strategic working groups since 2018.”
Previous to Sygnum, she held “global roles at UBS, including Founder of UBS e banking, Global Head of Human Resources and Member of the Group Managing Board. Gabriela has a PhD from the University of Zurich and holds board positions at Helvetia Group and Sphaira Innovation.”
Gabriela Maria Payer, Sygnum Chairwoman, says:
“I am honoured to continue my service at Sygnum in the role of Chairwoman and to have Pia and Vinod join the board; each bring the experiences and skillsets essential for the group’s next stage of growth. My priorities, values, and mission have not changed since I became a founding external board member in 2018. I remain deeply committed to continually enhancing our organisational resilience and sustainability – but most of all, to connecting people and empowering them to create real value for our clients.”
Luka Muller, Sygnum Co-Founder and former Chairman, “will be welcomed back to continue his board service as Director.”
Some of the other Sygnum board members “include Peter Wuffli, former UBS Group CEO, Thomas Buess, ex Swiss Life CFO, and Kim Leng who was Special Advisor (Financial Supervision) of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).”
In January, Sygnum completed its “oversubscribed USD 58m multi-stage Strategic Growth Round and, with its new 1 billion valuation, achieved Unicorn status. 2024 accelerating business momentum and group operational profitability was driven by core business growth across its European, Asian and Middle East hubs, as well as by Sygnum Protect, the group’s off-exchange custody platform launched with Binance.”
Last year, Sygnum’s gross revenues “increased by 40%, annual trades surged by over 1000% YoY, the loan book grew by almost 200%, and total assets expanded to USD 4.5 billion.”
Sygnum now provides access to “regulated digital asset services for over a third of the Swiss population via its 20+ strong network of B2B banking partners including PostFinance, Zuger and Luzerner Kantonalbanks, Bordier & Cie, and VP Depotbank.”
In May, Former U.S. CFTC Chair J. Christopher “Chris” Giancarlo also recently joined Sygnum “as Senior Policy Advisor.”
A new member of Sygnum’s Advisory Council, Giancarlo is “leveraging his regulatory expertise and extensive public private network to support Sygnum’s global strategy and evaluate ongoing U.S. regulatory developments.”