Officers & Board Members

CEO – Koenig & Bauer Banknote Solutions

After a degree in Mechanical Engineering and Business Management at the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Eric Boissonnas worked as a consultant and manager in IT systems, business process reengineering and Change Management for Andersen Consulting for nearly 10 years.

After a short stay in Singapore for Cosa Liebermann, where he worked as business development manager, Eric Boissonnas joined De La Rue Giori in 1996 as Commercial Director.

He took over, in addition to his previous tasks, the HR responsibilities in 1999 and joined the management committee in 2001.

He acted as number 2 of the company at the integration of De La Rue Giori into the KBA Group and took over the position as CEO of KBA-NotaSys in Lausanne in June 2012, which is called today Koenig-Bauer Banknote Solutions AG.

Mr Boissonnas took over the full responsibility of the Business Unit Security Printing and joined the Koenig & Bauer Group Executive Committee in 2015.

Mr Boissonnas is also a Board Member of the International Currency Association (ICA).

Chief Technology Officer – Authentix

Tim Driscoll is the Chief Technology Officer at Authentix, a company providing advanced authentication and track and trace solutions to safeguard the integrity of global commerce for governments, central banks and brand owners.  Tim joined Authentix in 2005 and started his career in currency with Spectra Systems in 1995.  Over this time, he has been involved in the design, development and implementation of authentication and fitness solutions for banknotes and coins.  Tim holds a Ph.D. in Physics from Brown University and a B.S. in Physics from Rensselaer.

With rapid fire technological developments and an ever changing host of issues that Central Banks must resolve, it's imperative to have an organization like IACA that serves the entire Currency community by providing a clearinghouse for information and a forum for discussion and collaboration.

Managing Director – De La Rue International Ltd

Ruth Euling was appointed Managing Director of the Currency Division in August 2019. Prior to that, she was Sales Director for the Currency business worldwide, from December 2011 to July 2019 after being responsible for De La Rue Holographics business, also as Managing Director.
She joined De La Rue in 1988 as a graduate trainee and has held a variety of positions across the Group of companies during her career, including Sales, Strategy, Corporate Development, Human Resources, Marketing, Operations and General Management.
Ruth has lived and worked in Mexico, Colombia, Spain and the Far East and speaks Spanish, Portuguese and French.

Director General Cash Management – Deutsche Bundesbank

Stefan Hardt completed an apprenticeship as a banker and then he studied busi-ness administration at the University of Deutschen Bundesbank. After successfully completing his studies at the University of the Deutschen Bundesbank, he obtained an advanced banking diploma. In 2010 he assumed the presidency of the Regional Office in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. Since 2015, Mr. Hardt works as the Di-rector General Cash Management.

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The future of cash is very much in the hands of the people who are responsible for its management in their organizations. These people should be ready to adapt to new market conditions, use technological opportunities and involve the various stakeholders in the cash cycle in the development work. Every opportunity should be exploited to learn from best practices both within the industry and central banks. IACA provides a specific forum for that.

Head of Currency Management Department – South African Reserve Bank

Pearl was appointed the Head of Currency Management Department at the South African Reserve Bank effective 1 March 2021. She is responsible for the management and operations of the entire Currency function which includes both banknotes and coin. Her responsibilities span from research, development of both banknotes and coin, issuance, distribution, and destruction. She therefore works very close with the South African Bank Note Company and the South African Mint and is a Board Member of both subsidiaries. Pearl is also responsible for the 3 Cash Centres of the SARB which are responsible for distribution and processing of banknotes. Pearl is leading the SARB in the Central Bank Digital Currency feasibility study.

Pearl joined the Bank in 2018 as the Divisional Head responsible for Research, Policy, and Strategy within the Currency Management Department, where she was responsible for conducting research on emerging developments in the currency landscape, developing innovative strategies and formulating innovative and futuristic policies.
Prior to her appointment at the South African Reserve Bank, she held various senior roles at both governments departments and private companies.

Pearl holds a degree in economics from the University of Witwatersrand and an MBA FROM Milpark Business School.

President and CEO – Royal Canadian Mint

Marie Lemay is the President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint, a position she has held since 2019. Before assuming her position at the Mint, Ms. Lemay served as Deputy Minister and Deputy Receiver General for Canada at Public Services and Procurement Canada. Ms. Lemay also served as Deputy Minister and President of the Canada Economic Development Agency for Quebec Regions, which promotes the long-term Economic development of the regions of Quebec.

In 2012, she was Associate Deputy Minister at Infrastructure Canada, the main department responsible for federal efforts to enhance Canada’s public infrastructure. From January 2008 to 2012, Ms. Lemay was the CEO of the National Capital Commission in Ottawa.

Prior to that, Ms. Lemay was the CEO of Engineers Canada, where she led a number of international initiatives and oversaw several mutual recognition agreements.

Recently, Ms. Lemay was elected as the first Chairperson of the Mint Directors Association. In 2023, she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Ottawa, her alma mater, for her substantial contribution to the field of engineering and to society at large. Ms. Lemay is a member of the Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec and of Professional Engineers Ontario, as well as a Fellow for both Engineers Canada and the Canadian Academy of Engineering. She also serves as a board member of the Richelieu Hardware Ltd. Board of Directors.

Assistant Governor – Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Mary Anne P. Lim is the Assistant Governor of the Currency and Securities Production Sub-sector (CSPSs) at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) – Security Plant Complex (SPC). In her current role she manages and supervises the operations relating to the production of circulation and commemorative banknotes and coins, printing of government security documents, and production of presidential medals and state decorations. Likewise, she supervises the gold refining operations of the central bank. In the last couple of years, she assisted the BSP’s management with the modernization of the banknotes production equipment, construction of a new mint building, and In 2021, the Introduction of the first polymer piso In the Philippines, the 1000-piso.

AG Lim’s career with the central bank began In 2011 wherein she was put in charge of contracts administration for the bank’s Infrastructure projects. In 2014, she was appointed Deputy Director of the Procurement and Property Management Group and became Director of the Department of General Services in 2015. In 2017, she was designated Director of the Banknotes and Securities Production Department, and In 2018, was designated as Director of the Human Resource Management Department. In 2019, she returned to SPC as Head of the Currency and Securities Production Sub-sector and has remained In that role ever since.

Assistant Governor Lim holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the Arellano University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts Major in Political Science from the University of the Philippines Manila. She was admitted to the Philippine Bar In 2005 and has since remained a member of the Bar In good standing.

Head, Currency Management Dpt. – Bank of Ghana

Mr. Dominic Owusu is a Director and Head of Currency Management Department, Bank of Ghana. He joined the Bank in December 2002 and was appointed as Head of Currency Management Department on December 15, 2022.

Currently he leads the Currency Management Department in the fulfilment of its basic mandate as specified in Section 35 of Bank of Ghana Act 2002 (Act 612) and other related legislations and regulations with overall vision of achieving excellence in currency management operations and to sustain the Integrity, Confidence and Trust (ICT) in the Ghana Cedi.  He has been very instrumental in the Bank’s transformational journey in transiting from manual currency examination to the use of modern automated currency processing systems, leveraging on innovative and advanced technologies in Currency Management. He has led and supported a complete paradigm shift in currency operations in the Bank from the early 2000s to date.

As an accomplished Electrical Engineer, he graduated from KNUST, Ghana in 2000 with Bachelor’s Degree In Electrical/Electronic Engineering.  In 2001,  he  obtained  a  master’s  degree  in  Robotics  Engineering  in Tennessee USA and continued a professional certificate course in Microsoft Certified System Engineering (MCSE) in 2002.  He furthered his education at Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Ghana and graduated with a Master of Science in Business Administration (Finance Option) in 2010.  Currently, he is pursuing Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Finance at GIMPA.

Vice President and Managing Director – CCL Secure

Neil is the Vice President and Managing Director of CCL Secure, a position he has held since 2019.  Based in Melbourne, Australia he has global responsibility for the organisation and its three manufacturing facilities spread across three continents. Prior to that he was the General Manger of CCL’s newest banknote substrate plant in Wigton, England where he was responsible for the production of the Bank of England’s first polymer substrate requirements.  Before joining CCL in 2017 Neil held a variety of technical, operational and senior management positions during a12 year tenure at Note Printing Australia, a subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Neil started his career as an ink chemist at the Bank of England Printing Works and with over 27 years of experience in the currency industry has played a key role in the development and production of new banknote across the world and has extensive experience in the ink, substrate and banknote manufacturing fields.

CEO – Giesecke & Devrient/ Louisenthal

Wolfram Seidemann has been Chief Executive Officer of Giesecke+Devrient Currency Technology since July 2017. As an Executive Committee member of the Giesecke+Devrient Group, he holds the responsibility for overseeing the Public Currency activities, which encompasses the Physical Banknote business as well as the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) business of Giesecke+Devrient advance52.

Prior to this, Wolfram held a number of executive management positions as Group Executive Banknote at Giesecke+Devrient, Chairman of the Management Board of Papierfabrik Louisenthal, and Head of Sales and Marketing of Banknote Processing Systems worldwide. Wolfram joined Giesecke+Devrient as Head of International Research and Development Chipcard in 1999 and has served since in various management positions in Munich, Singapore, Taiwan, and New Delhi.

His background is in Electrical Engineering and Business Administration. He holds a PhD in Innovation Management from the Technical University of Munich, where he began his career as Head of R&D and Innovation Management of the Economics Department, later working as an industry consultant in the field.

Next to his roles at Giesecke+Devrient, he has been a Member of the Board of the International Association of Currency Affairs (IACA) since 2018. Additionally, since November 2022, Wolfram has been serving as a Board Member of the International Currency Association (ICA), an organization dedicated to promoting and representing the perspectives of the currency industry. Prior to his current role, he held the position of Chairman from 2018 to 2022.

Banknotes are part of modern life! And it is our mission to keep cash competitive. The IACA is a good platform for customers and suppliers alike, bringing them together: to share experiences, pick up industry trends, discuss changes in the payment landscape and to learn about customer requirements for the future cash cycle.

President/CEO – Currency Research (CR)

Jens Seidl has been in the industry for more than 30 years with senior management roles in sales and marketing, operations, customer service, business development, and general management. Throughout his career, his work spanned across cash and payments, including leading complex automation projects, transformation programs and highly profitable global business units. Jens joined Currency Research in 2018 as Vice President, Business Development and Consulting. In November 2020, he was appointed as President/CEO Currency Research

In times where consumer payment behaviour changes perhaps more quickly than ever before with the advancement of new technologies, it is paramount that the key stakeholders in the currency industry use every opportunity to ensure the competitiveness of cash payments through dialogue, sharing insights and planning for the future. IACA provides a great framework to do so by bringing customers and suppliers together in an unbiassed forum.

President of Asia Pacific – Glory Ltd

Ben was appointed President of Asia Pacific in 2016 and is responsible for steering the rapidly growing GLORY business across more than 20 countries in Asia and the Pacific.

Ben has a degree from Cambridge University and has held several leadership positions in Glory. Prior to taking on his current role, Ben was Director of Global Marketing & Strategy building a team of global marketers to drive the integrated communications strategy. With more than 25 years of experience from living and working in Asia, he was part of the core team that integrated the Glory and Talaris businesses, forming what is known as Glory Global Solutions today.

Head of Cash Policies & Oversight – De Nederlandsche Bank

Koen Thuis is the Head of Cash Policies & Oversight for the Dutch National Bank.  Before joining the Dutch Central Bank, he worked for Rabobank, a commercial bank in the Netherlands, for 20 years in various managerial positions. He is an expert on change, behavior studies, finance and running the cash cycle in a declining market. In his job he is  also responsible for the project to establish ATM’s on the Caribbean Islands St. Eustatius and Saba. In Europe, he is a Banco member for the ECB.

Chief of FedCash Services – Federal Reserve Financial Services, FedCash® Services