Altaf Kassam

Altaf Kassam

Consultant Independent

Altaf is an investment professional with over 30 years' experience at global financial institutions. From 2015 to June 2026, he served as Europe Head of Investment Strategy & Research at State Street Investment Management, where he advised sovereign wealth funds, central banks, and pension funds on the macro outlook, systemic financial risk, asset allocation, and portfolio construction, including engagement with regulators and policymakers on financial stability.

He has deep expertise in wholesale financial markets, equity derivatives, quantitative strategy, and factor investing. He has co-authored practitioner and academic research cited by regulators and central banks, and communicates widely on financial markets through conferences, media, and publications. Altaf holds a CFA Charter, an MSc in Finance from London Business School, and a First Class MEng in Engineering & Computing Science from St John's College, Oxford. He is a trustee of the National Deaf Children's Society and a member of the CFA Society UK's Ethics & Professionalism Steering Committee.

Main Day 2 | 17th September

9:15 AM Investment Outlook Panel: FX Regime Outlook 2027: How can you position portfolios to capture opportunities and manage risk across shifting regimes?

With global growth uneven, inflation paths uncertain and policy divergence re-emerging, senior investors are reassessing how currency risk fits into multi-asset strategy. This panel brings together CIOs and senior multi-asset PMs to discuss how they frame FX exposure across regimes: when currencies diversify portfolios, when they amplify risk, and where selective opportunities are opening across developed and emerging markets. Speakers will explore how they balance return drivers, hedging discipline and volatility signals, and how they adapt frameworks as correlations shift. The discussion will also address the growing role of “store-of-value” behaviour- from gold to commodities and alternative assets- when confidence in fiat regimes is challenged. A high-signal, investment-focused discussion on preparing portfolios for the FX regimes most likely to dominate in 2027 and beyond.

DigiAssets Connect | 16th September

12:25 PM Macro Keynote: Macro and geopolitics: How should institutions position digital assets amid conflict, inflation risk and market volatility?

Global macro conditions are increasingly shaping digital asset markets- from escalating conflict in the Middle East and energy price risk, to inflation uncertainty and rising market volatility. This session explores how institutions should interpret these dynamics in practice. How are digital assets behaving across different market regimes- and what role should they play in portfolios during periods of stress, volatility, and policy uncertainty?

Check out the incredible speaker line-up to see who will be joining Altaf.

Download The Latest Agenda