Speaker Name: Z Ali Kazmi

What's one thing you hope attendees take away from your session?

That AI is a powerful tool that could help with many things but without a qualified human in the loop, it creates more regulatory risk than it removes. Attendees should leave knowing exactly where AI alone fails in a data protection context, and what a credible and experienced Human + AI model looks like in practice.

In one sentence, what do you do and what is your role?

I’m the founder and CEO of Kew Data Consultants, a boutique consultancy that combines CISSP and CIPP/E-certified expertise with AI precision to deliver scalable GDPR, cybersecurity, and data protection compliance for FinTech, SaaS, and HealthTech firms.

What's the biggest challenge facing the industry in this area?

FinTech firms are under mounting pressure from the ICO, the EU AI Act, and global privacy regulators; yet many are turning to unsupervised AI tools to manage compliance, unaware that those tools hallucinate, carry no professional liability, and may process sensitive client data without adequate safeguards. The industry is sleepwalking into a compliance gap it cannot afford further down the line.

What's one piece of advice you'd give to someone working in fintech today?

Don’t confuse automation with compliance. AI can accelerate your data protection programme enormously, but a regulator will hold your organisation accountable, not your chatbot or the company behind it. Make sure there is a qualified human reviewing, owning, and signing off every step, someone who can take responsibility for their work.

What book, podcast, newsletter, or resource would you recommend to our audience?

For anyone serious about data protection in FinTech, I’d recommend the ICO’s own guidance on AI and data protection along with very informational IAPP resources and newsletters.

What topic will you be speaking about at FinTech Connect 2026?

Why Data Protection Still Needs a Human in the Loop; where AI-only compliance fails, what regulators actually expect, and how a Human + AI model delivers both scalability and accountability for FinTech firms.

Just for fun: if you could have dinner with any person, past or present, who would it be and why?

Alan Turing (the father of modern computing) who also grappled with questions of machine intelligence and human oversight.

What industry trend are you watching most closely?

The EU AI Act’s intersection with GDPR, specifically how FinTech firms using AI in credit decisioning, fraud detection, and customer profiling will need to demonstrate both algorithmic transparency and lawful data processing simultaneously. It is the compliance challenge of the next three years.

Why is this topic particularly important right now?

The ICO has signalled increased enforcement focus on AI systems and automated decision-making. At the same time, the EU AI Act is introducing new obligations for high-risk AI use cases that are common in FinTech.

What's one prediction you have for the next 3-5 years?

Within three to five years, every regulated FinTech firm will be required to evidence human oversight of its AI-driven compliance and risk functions.