25 Years of DSI: An afternoon of inspiring talks and innovative (AI) art

On Friday, 4 October, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of Stichting DSI, and we proudly look back on an inspiring day filled with insights, engaging discussions, and meaningful encounters.

The event, held at the Beursgebouw in Amsterdam, focused on two key themes: the rise of digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the important role of the investment industry in sustainability. With insightful contributions from renowned speakers and experts, we explored the latest trends and discussed the challenges facing the financial sector.

Inspiring Keynotes

Keynote speakers such as Jos Heuvelman (AFM), Jorissa Neutelings (ABN AMRO), and Erik van Houwelingen (Van Lanschot Kempen) shared their insights with the audience.

Jos Heuvelman congratulated us on our 25th anniversary and thanked us for the close collaboration with the AFM, particularly in the area of professional competence and integrity in the financial sector. He discussed new challenges such as digitalisation and the role of AI in finance. Heuvelman warned about the risks of AI, such as bias in algorithms, but also acknowledged the opportunities for fraud detection and improving efficiency. He stressed the importance of skilled and ethical advisors, especially in an increasingly digital world, and praised DSI’s role in promoting quality and trust in the sector. Jos Heuvelman’s full speech can be read here.

Erik van Houwelingen shared his personal journey in thinking and acting on sustainability, providing concrete examples of how Van Lanschot Kempen addresses this, such as by working with a fully regenerative agricultural company that produces olive oil. He challenged the audience to reflect on what personally drives them, considering the importance of future generations, and to act on that. This could also be on a small scale, within one’s personal sphere of influence.

Jorissa Neutelings engaged the audience in a discussion about the major trends that everyone in the financial sector should follow to remain successful in serving clients. The development of AI plays a key role here, from conversational AI to generative AI. Automation must be central in service models, where clients increasingly demand hyper-personalised service, based on experiences from other digital services. Security is paramount, with the bank as a vault for all your data offering opportunities. Finally, the sector needs to think more in terms of ecosystems, where parts of the service can be integrated in collaboration with third parties. In a time of increasing polarisation and decreasing trust in large institutions, integrity and a spotless track record are crucial.

Panel Discussion on Sustainability

At the anniversary event, an inspiring panel discussion on sustainability in the financial sector was held, based on the recently published DSI whitepaper “Greenwashing: Let’s be Real”, released in October this year. An expert panel, consisting of Harald Walkate (Route 17 / University of Zurich), Carola van Lamoen (Robeco / Eumedion), and Erik van Houwelingen (Van Lanschot Kempen), explored some thought-provoking questions: What exactly do we mean by greenwashing? How can we effectively integrate elements such as “additionality” into labels or disclosure regulations? And how do we create an honest dialogue with consumers about what they can expect from the financial sector in addressing societal issues?

Event Highlights

For those who missed the event or wish to revisit it: presentations and photos are now available on our website www.dsi.nl/jubileumevent. We also presented three fantastic AI artworks from the AI Gallery in Amsterdam, creatively portraying our themes: integrity, sustainability, and digitalisation in the financial sector. Explanations of these works can be found at www.dsi.nl/ai-artworks.