Celebrating top talent in the banking and finance industry, WIBF’s Awards for Achievement is a vibrant occasion to remember. With categories for young achievers, experienced professionals, champions for women and diverse teams, the awards have shone the spotlight on influential leaders for almost two decades.

Guests at the 18th WIBF Awards for Achievement witnessed a historic moment, as BP group treasurer Alan Haywood claimed the Champion for Women title and became the first man to win a WIBF award. About 400 guests filled The Dorchester’s glittering ballroom to celebrate the 2015 winners and hear from inspirational speakers. The WIBF Awards for Achievement 2015 winners are:

A very warm thank you to the event sponsors that make the event possible: headline sponsor of the WIBF Awards for Achievement 2015 EY, WIBF Young Professional of the Year 2015 Macquarie and Award for Achievement 2015 sponsor Credit Suisse.

Video highlights

The Categories

Award for Achievement

Celebrating a woman who has achieved success within a senior role and who displays qualities of dynamism and daring. Candidates have excelled in their professional life and have also shown an ability to use their skills outside of their own career by either serving on boards of other organisation or by being involved in furthering the interests of women in the workplace.

Sponsored by Credit Suisse

Young Professional Award

Celebrating a woman aged 35 or younger who is making a significant impact in an organisation. The panel look for women whose contribution to date makes her 'one to watch'. Young professionals are shaping their organisation, not just in terms of financial success but also as being an example to others.

Sponsored by Macquarie

Champion for Women Award

Celebrating a seasoned professional, man or woman, who through personal commitment, application and dedication, continuously promotes and inspires women in the workplace to reach their full potential.

Team Award for Diversity

Celebrating team success in promoting diversity in the workplace. The team may be a business line team that has driven and embedded the diversity agenda or a specalist function (such as HR or Diversity & Inclusion) that partners the business to provide vision and framework.

Sponsored by

Headline sponsor

EY

The Shortlist

Team Diversity Award

  • EY Restructuring, EY
  • BPWIN20CS, BP
  • EMEALEAD, BAML

Young Professional Award

  • Anett Galosfai, Thomson Reuters
  • Brooke Wachtel, BAML
  • Emma Mitchell, KPMG
  • Pinar Parlar, Royal Bank of Canada
  • Seeta Haria, Macquarie
  • Serina Ramkhelawon, BAML
  • Sofya Shuster, ING

Award for Achievement

  • Ruth Wandhöfer, CITI
  • Annabel Reoch, KPMG
  • Catherine Burnet, KPMG
  • Cecilia Ronan, Citi
  • Jennifer Taylor, BAML

Champion for Women

  • Alan Haywood, BP
  • Anastasia Petrova, Royal Bank of Scotland
  • Elizabeth Lieberman, Royal Bank of Scotland
  • Jane Portas, KPMG
  • Jennifer Boussuge, BAML
  • Kristine Braden, CITI
  • Lynne Ed, EY
  • Pamela McIntyre, KPMG
  • Roben Dunkin, Credit Suisse

The winners

Anett Galosfai, Thomson Reuters

Young Professional Award

Aged just 33, Anett Galosfai has risen rapidly to her current role and is known for building strong relationships in business. By strengthening the relationship between internal stakeholders at Thomson Reuters, she has managed to improve the client retention figures.

In addition, she has built strong relationships with UCL, introducing Thomson Reuters internships for students, mentoring the interns and enabling a pipeline of possible future employees for the firm.

Ruth Wandhöfer, CITI

Award for Achievement

A regulatory expert in the field of banking and one of the foremost authorities on transaction banking regulatory matters, Ruth Wandhöfer has authored two books, including one on Basel III published in October 2014.

She chairs several influential industry bodies, such as the Global Public Policy and Regulatory Affairs Committee of BAFT (a global trade body that represents the particular interests of the transaction banking community) and the EU-wide banking industry Payments Regulatory Expert Group.

EY Restructuring, EY

Team Diversity Award

Development of women employees is embedded within the culture of this team. In a notoriously male-dominated transactions environment, the team has an impressive number of women in senior roles.

The team has nurtured some truly successful talent – with Liz Bingham (OBE), a past WIBF Award winner, having spent time in it.

Alan Haywood, BP

Champion for Women

An outstanding example of a leader actively promoting the business case for diversity and inclusion, Alan Haywood established a women’s group at BP’s traditionally male-dominated office in Canary Wharf.

He inspires employees to get involved, promotes the network to senior leaders and advocates for gender diversity and inclusion as a factor in business success.

Keynote speaker

Helena Morrissey CBE

CEO, Newton Investment Management, Founder 30% Club

Helena joined Newton in 1994 as a fixed income fund manager and was appointed CEO in 2001. In both 2013 and 2014, Helena was voted one of the 50 Most Influential People in Finance by Bloomberg Markets Magazine. In 2010, Helena founded the 30% Club, a cross-business initiative aimed at achieving 30% women on UK corporate boards by 2015.

Distinguished speaker

Geeta Sidhu-Robb

CEO and Founder of Nosh Detox Delivery

Geeta gave up her career as a corporate lawyer to set up her own business, Nosh Detox in 2008, after her young son’s severe food allergies, eczema, asthma and anaphylaxis led her to retrain as a food technician and nutritionist. Nosh Detox develops food that tackles everything from problem skin, weight or digestion to coping with stress and fighting infections. In 2012 she launched the first Nosh retail product, Nosh Raw Smoothie, the world’s first 100% raw smoothie.