Avtar Sehmbi, career and experience

The Cigna Group is a Fortune 15, $275B revenue global insurance organisation serving more than 185 million customer relationships across 30+ countries. Avtar is accountable for the technology, operations and risk dimensions of International Markets expansion and US-led service capabilities, spanning day-to-day running of these functions, including supplier and cost management, operational resilience, executive governance and business management.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Across mergers, acquisitions and divestitures approaching $80B, he led the technology, operations and risk workstreams, including transition services, sovereign data requirements and competitive ring-fencing.
• Establishing Global Capability Centres, he oversaw a 12k-role migration programme, cut run costs 21% and modernised the software lifecycle to get digital products to market faster.
• As Chair of the Ethical AI and Cloud Centres of Excellence, he governed AI adoption and deployment across 30+ markets, covering data residency, model validation, cybersecurity and third-party model risk, and readiness for emerging regulation including the EU AI Act and DORA.
• Rebuilding the India technology landscape, he ran the new platform into live service, retired the incumbent and met the regulatory glidepath, underpinning an insurer growing at 28% compound annual growth.
• By overseeing an API-first platform, he reached 250k customers across Asia, the Gulf and 16 African markets through 32 licensed partners, minimising local market costs and opening claims-processing fee income.
• Directing the technology, operations and risk work behind regulated market entry and maintenance across India, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Belgium, he met local and sovereign requirements, including the first international insurer branch licensed by the Saudi Central Bank.
• Representing head office to joint-venture shareholder groups, he aligned their operating, technology and risk agenda with Group priorities, including Australia, China, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Turkey.

CHSI is The Cigna Group's India-based global centre of excellence and innovation hub for data and analytics, artificial intelligence, technology and business operations, driving global strategy for the Group and its affiliates. Avtar served on the statutory board in addition to executive duties within the Group, providing board oversight through a period of rapid capability expansion.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• On the Group's AI and analytics build-out, he set board-level expectations for control maturity and the pace of scaling, and held oversight of risk and capital allocation.
• On strategy, performance and resources, he challenged and supported management, including key appointments, executive succession and standards of conduct.
• Exercising the independent judgement required of a statutory director, he discharged his duties to the board, including approval of accounts, related-party arrangements and regulatory filings.

HSBC is a FTSE 100, $50B+ revenue global bank serving 40 million customers across more than 60 countries. Avtar led the global restructuring and build-out of technology, operations and non-financial risk functions across Investment & Wholesale Banking under its US Department of Justice Deferred Prosecution Agreement and associated consent orders, spanning Capital Markets, Asset Management, Liquidity & Cash Management, Securities Services, and Trade & Receivables Finance.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• As Delegated Risk Steward, he restructured 1.1k Global Banking and Markets roles into a Basel-aligned operating model, separating the first and second lines of defence and strengthening technology-risk governance.
• Across 60 markets, he directed the operational technology risk taxonomy under supervisory oversight, working with regulators and executive committees to cut risk exposure by 17%.
• Embedding standards into design through the product control and new product approval committees, he cut the product approval cycle from twelve weeks to six across digital product compliance and architecture.
• To protect front-to-back trading operations, he modernised and automated production controls and strengthened assurance across 50+ suppliers, enabling global thematic risk visibility and cutting run costs 35%.

HSBC Ireland is the country's leading international bank, serving top-tier Irish multinationals and subsidiaries of global corporates with corporate banking, treasury and securities services. On secondment, Avtar oversaw the deal pipeline for HSBC Ireland Commercial Banking and global Wholesale Banking clients across Hedging, Revolving Credit, Club Finance, New Monies and Settlements.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Chairing the credit committees governing wholesale lending under $20M delegated pre-approval authority, he supported 4% business growth.
• Running Watch, Worry and Monitor reviews alongside credit-rating assessments, he worked with markets, credit and geopolitical risk teams to tighten oversight and protect the lending book.

Global Banking & Markets is HSBC's investment banking division, spanning markets, advisory and securities services worldwide. Reporting to the divisional COO and Fraud Risk leadership, Avtar restructured the division's technology and operations control functions into a shared, standards-led service hub.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Representing the Investment Bank on the Group-wide shared-services programme, he cut technology controls costs across Banking and Capital Markets by 22%.
• Under PRA supervision, he led HSBC's remediation programme, applying the Bank of England's CBEST framework across the Investment Bank and engaging regulators including the OCC, NFA, HKMA and MAS.
• To strengthen operational decision-making and the resilience of mission-critical systems, he directed predictive risk and sentiment capability across capital markets data and machine-learning platforms.

Market intelligence within Global Banking & Markets informs trading, risk and executive decisions across the division worldwide. Avtar created the Global Investment Banking Intelligence and Response function from inception.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Having proved the model in the Investment Bank, he extended the function into Retail, Commercial and Private Banking, integrating cyber, geopolitical and technology intelligence across 30+ markets.
• Establishing the Emerging Threats Forum and deploying machine-learning analysis, he sharpened early warning and fed cyber, geopolitical and fraud intelligence into Global Risk Management Committee decisions.

Centrica is a FTSE 100, $43B revenue energy group serving approximately 28 million customers across the United Kingdom, Ireland and North America. Avtar led technology, operations and risk across Energy Trading, Wholesale Markets and the group's retail business.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Merging the Trading, Retail and Wholesale technology and operations models into shared services, he cut expenditure 24%.
• To give the group a single view of risk, he established a Gartner-benchmarked enterprise-risk framework, unlocking $15M of capital for reinvestment and cutting risk exposure 34%.

British Gas, Centrica's retail business, is one of the United Kingdom's largest energy suppliers, providing energy and insurance to millions of households. Avtar led the operational resilience and control of the customer digital estate, payments and infrastructure within UK Critical National Infrastructure, covering the end-to-end customer transaction journey.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Ahead of the national smart-metering rollout, on the Smart Energy Code Security Sub-Committee from 2012 to 2014, he shaped the standards under the Department of Energy and Climate Change, supporting the 80% carbon target.
• Protecting £2B in card payments, he implemented the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, raising payment resilience to tier-one benchmarks and sustaining £1.2B in public-sector contracts.

Deloitte is a Big 4, $31B revenue global professional services firm operating in more than 150 countries, spanning audit, consulting, tax and advisory. As a member of the senior leadership team and Technology Executive Committee, Avtar led technology, operations and risk dimensions across the UK and Switzerland.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Within major engagements including HSBC, Barclays, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and London Stock Exchange, he directed the client-facing technology, operations and risk transformation workstreams.
• By turning the firm's internal security and technology environments into client showcases, he created new propositions and established delivery teams for client deployments.

As a member of the senior leadership team, Avtar built the firm's internal technology risk function from inception, establishing the remit, team and controls that protected the practice and its client engagements across the United Kingdom and Switzerland.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Growing the function to 150 staff and matrix resources, he ran technology risk operations end to end across two member firms and to global standards.
• He directed technology and cyber compliance across regulatory and contractual requirements, underpinning the firm's eligibility and continuing business for major commercial and public-sector mandates.
• Holding SC clearance, he advised on UK Government and national-infrastructure mandates and delivered the ICO Think Privacy programme including at Lloyds, HSBC and Barclays.

Progressing from Manager to Senior Manager to Director, Avtar advised on technology, digital operations and enterprise risk projects for financial services clients across client-facing and internal engagements within Deloitte Technology Operations, Enterprise Risk Services and Deloitte Consulting.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Leading the post-merger network technology rationalisation that followed the Andersen integration, he cut costs 14%.
• Balancing Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu global policy frameworks against local United Kingdom and Swiss requirements, he deployed technology controls across both member firms.
• Delivering secure network architecture for Rio Tinto, Intel and DaimlerChrysler, he secured follow-on engagements.

WorldCom Inc was a Fortune 50, $39B revenue global telecommunications provider serving 20 million residential and business customers across more than 65 countries, with assets later acquired by Verizon. Working in technology and operations for International Markets, Avtar owned the budgets for network and application standardisation supporting WorldCom's US-led international expansion in Europe and Asia-Pacific.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Sustaining mission-critical network operations through the company's most demanding period, he cut costs 18% and added 19% network capacity.
• Running WorldCom's bidirectional threat-intelligence exchange with UK Government, he strengthened network resilience as part of UK Critical National Infrastructure engagement.
• Across acquisition integrations, he provided assurance and monitoring from due diligence and design through to network and application standardisation, meeting group functional requirements throughout.

The Currency Times was a proprietary foreign-exchange venture trading major currency pairs through the market volatility of the late 1990s. Avtar founded and ran the venture, owning portfolio strategy, risk, P&L and the balance sheet. Since 2023 the name has continued as Currency Times LLP, an independent research programme applying artificial intelligence, machine learning and statistical methods to forecasting, published openly at thecurrencytimes.com.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Trading major currency pairs through changing market conditions, he delivered 6% annual returns while managing liquidity and market exposure.
• Since 2023 the name has continued as an independent research programme, building prediction engines using artificial intelligence and machine learning alongside statistical physics, probability theory and game theory, and proving them against published benchmarks across seventeen fields.

Rite Group was an international retail, wholesale and merchandising distribution business, serving corporate merchandising budgets from an Asia-based sourcing network. Avtar built and ran it end to end, owning the P&L, balance sheet, staff and facilities.

Selected highlights. Full detail on request.

• Serving Ferrari, Ford, Christian Dior and Sony, he grew sales 20% a year for three consecutive years.
• Building sourcing routes across Asia into European and North American markets, he carried full commercial, currency and operational exposure.