On the shortlist: Shirin Hine

Shortlisted for the WIBF Tech Leader Award 2025, Shirin is a visionary technology leader with more than two decades of experience driving innovation across banking and finance. An early advocate for artificial intelligence, she has championed its responsible adoption, helping organisations embrace AI as both a transformative force and a practical tool for growth.

As a member of the Technology Executive Committee for the Investment Bank, Shirin plays a central role in shaping AI strategy and aligning data capabilities across divisions. She combines deep technical expertise with a talent for building trust between engineers, business leaders, and regulators.

A passionate advocate for diversity, Shirin actively supports Women in Technology and Women in Data Science, mentors early-career talent, and designs educational resources to prepare future leaders. Her ability to translate complex technologies into opportunity and inclusion makes her one of the most influential voices in financial services technology today.

You’ve been an early advocate for AI adoption in banking and finance. What first inspired your belief in its transformative potential?

A key trigger for me was the Reith Lectures series in 2021 with Professor Stuart Russell which really outlined a vision for an AI future and then, within the year, ChatGPT hit the mainstream and the world changed. I loved and still love Science Fiction as a genre and I simply started to see fiction unfold into fact.

If you read the works of Ian M Banks, especially the Culture Series, and Neal Stephenson – fantasy is now beginning to read like non-fiction!

AI can sometimes create fear as well as excitement. How do you help teams and senior leaders build confidence in adopting AI responsibly?

I’m fortunate to work in a progressive environment and things have changed for the better in quite a short space of time. I am not seeing resistance anymore but still some cynicism. However, the functionality is improving so fast with agentic solutions showcasing the art of the possible that only the die-hard sceptics remain and even they are having to acknowledge the transformation. In our industry there is security through regulation and ensuring that stakeholders are aware of the robust process supporting rollout is key to building confidence and trust. Regulation is the critical seatbelt on this journey and, accepting that this will mean that we drive slower and more safely, is the price to pay for progress.

Working with senior leadership to get engagement and support can be challenging- you want to inspire excitement, but you can induce anxiety. As with any project, it is about building relationships and trust

You’ve worked across diverse areas from research and trading applications to regulatory programmes. How has this breadth of experience shaped your approach to technology leadership?

Firstly, what my experience across these different domains distils to, is that both revenue focus and cost controls are key. “How is what I am doing making money or saving money?” Over my career the technology function has moved increasingly closer to the business, and we are observing now a fundamental integration that places technical capability at the core of our industry. Therefore, technology leadership has to have deeper insight into the nature and needs of the business we are supporting.

As a follow-on point, diversity of opinion is critical in making robust, well-considered and defensible decisions. I’m very proud that at Deutsche Bank some of the most senior positions of responsibility in the technology function are held by women.

Technological change is beginning to forcibly re-engineer the way we do business. As a leader, I want to empower staff to adapt to changing expectations through education. The barrier to entry for technical understanding has never been so low. We can all access free AI tools that can help us better understand the world of work (and life outside work). With knowledge comes the power to understand how to add value (how to make or save money).

You’re the founding sponsor of the MentoRings programme at Deutsche Bank. What impact has this initiative had on supporting and retaining female talent?

The MentoRings programme is something I am extremely proud of and while I have stepped away from orchestration of the programme, enabling future leaders to take on these opportunities, I continue to be a mentor every year. The programme was conceived to give women of all corporate titles, and from across the organisation, an opportunity to connect with senior female leaders but also, and critically, with each other in small groups. The positive feedback we continue to get from the cohort every year is overwhelming and the reverse mentoring the mentors receive is extremely rewarding. With the easy access, low pressure, content-rich format women find it easier to make connections, get exposure and often access life-changing advice. While it is hard to correlate positive outcomes like retention with the programme, we get consistently positive ratings for the initiative every year.

You’ve invested in early-career initiatives like apprenticeships. Can you tell us more about these initiatives?

Deutsche Bank has a really strong Early Careers focus which has adapted over the years. We have been responsive to the wants and needs of young professionals and offering Technology Apprenticeships was a natural step. A former colleague, an inspirational woman, oversaw the first intake in Technology four years ago and we have been developing and refining the programme ever since. Modern life is making access to further education harder so the ability to ‘earn while you learn’ has been transformative. Meeting and supporting these individuals has been a fascinating experience.

Another phenomenal programme I was honoured to be part of at Deutsche Bank was our Technology function’s Work Experience programme earlier this year which has also just been nominated for an internal DEI award. My eldest daughter had the chance to attend the programme, so I was very grateful for the contribution of my colleagues to the initiative.

Looking ahead, what kind of legacy do you hope to leave as a technology leader in financial services?

I think this is an amazing time to be alive and to be part of the technological wave that is AI. I feel incredibly lucky that my education and experience have enabled me to work in this domain at this point of discovery and exploration. I would hope that people acknowledge that I was an early enthusiast and evangelist of the technologies that are changing the course of human history. Furthermore, I hope I can help in the adoption of the tools we are developing safely and in alignment with human benefit.

A colleague of mine has a Norwegian saying “pa lang sikt er alt midlertidig” which translates to: ‘in the long run, everything is temporary’. So, I try to focus on the impact I can have right now and be less concerned about forever. That being said, I do find it gratifying to be of help to others so for others to acknowledge my positive input in their success or happiness, is really rewarding.