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H.E. Hélder Lopes
Governor
Banco Central de Timor-Leste
Helder Lopes is the Governor of the Central Bank of Timor-Leste for the period of 2023-2029.
He has over 20 years of professional experience. He was the Appointed Minister of Finance, Vice Minister of Finance, Senior Economic and Public Financial Management (PFM) Advisor for the President of the Republic of Timor-Leste and the Ministry of Finance, Senior Economist for the Asian Development Bank's initiative on private sector development in Timor-Leste, and the founder and active member of Kadalak Institute (a private think-tank on public policy).
He has a degree in agriculture economic from the National University of Timor-Leste and a master's degree in economics from the Michigan State University (MSU) of the United States of America.
Speaking at the summit
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11:55am–12:35pmSun 15 NovForum StageMain Plenary StageOpen
Bakong - Sovereign Rails
Building the Rails: Designing the Foundation for Financial Innovation
About this session
The first choices made in a national payment system are difficult to reverse. Who owns the switch, who governs access, how fees are set and who pays for upgrades can determine the market that develops on top of it. Publicly funded rails can widen access but leave the state carrying long-term costs. Commercial models can create stronger incentives to invest while making access harder for smaller providers. Bakong offers one model: a national network connecting banks and e-wallets through shared infrastructure and interoperable QR payments. The panel compares the ownership, governance and funding choices available to emerging markets and asks which capabilities must remain under national control, which can be shared with industry, and what makes an open payment network financially sustainable.
