Top three papers of WAIFC Young Academic Award 2026
The first paper is from Wiktoria Chrzanowska, a student at SGH Warsaw School of Economics, with the title: The Programmable Citadel: International Financial Centers and the Architecture of Global Tokenized Capital Markets
Wiktoria Chrzanowska is a student at SGH Warsaw School of Economics, specializing in Global Business, Finance and Governance, with a strong focus on the intersection of financial systems, economic development, and technological innovation.
Chrzanowska's experience spans financial analysis, market research, and projects shaping the fintech ecosystem in Poland. At FinTech Poland, she contributed to strategic initiatives and research on financial sector development, working closely with public institutions and industry stakeholders. In parallel, now at a family office, she analyses financial data, evaluates investment opportunities, and supports data-driven decision-making processes.
Beyond professional experience, Chrzanowska is actively involved in academic and leadership initiatives. She contributes to FinTech research at her university and leads Fintech Future, a large-scale student project that connects academia with financial industry leaders through conferences and workshops, under the patronage of PKO Bank Polski.
She is particularly interested in how financial institutions and international financial centers can drive sustainable economic growth, foster innovation, and strengthen global resilience. Her goal is to build a career at the intersection of finance, strategy, and technology, contributing to the development of modern, forward-looking financial ecosystems.
You can download her paper here.
The second paper is from Natalie Playford, a PhD candidate in Political Science at the University of Toronto, with the title: From Gender Rhetoric to Lending Rules: Adoption and Strength of Gender Clauses in Multilateral Development Bank Lending
Natalie Playford is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science at the University of Toronto. Her research examines how international organizations translate global commitments into concrete policy instruments, with a particular focus on gender equality in development finance. Drawing on an original dataset of Multilateral Development Bank loan agreements, her work explores when social objectives, such as gender inclusion, are meaningfully embedded in financial systems and when they remain largely symbolic. Her broader interests include global governance, international political economy, and the role of financial institutions in advancing inclusive and sustainable development.
You can download her paper here.
The third paper is from Won Woo, a graduate-level researcher at Hanyang University, with the title: Supervisory Observability for Agentic Finance: A Cross-border Governance Framework for International Financial Centers
Won Woo is a graduate-level researcher at Hanyang University focusing on machine learning, financial data analysis, and AI-driven decision systems. His work centers on applying quantitative methods and deep learning models to real-world problems, including financial market prediction and data-driven policy design. He is particularly interested in bridging theoretical models with practical applications in complex systems.
You can download his paper here.