An Open Symbology Regulatory Workshop: The Proposed Role of Data Standards within the FDTA and Beyond

In 2015, Mr. Babyak was named Global Head of Bloomberg’s Regulatory Affairs Group. Mr. Babyak joined Bloomberg L.P. in 2001 as Global Head of Government Affairs. Mr. Babyak has worked extensively on market structure, trade and competition issues in the United States, Europe and Asia; broadcast issues in the United States; and numerous other areas of regulatory and legislative policy. Mr. Babyak served from 2006 to 2018 as Co-Chair of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association’s (SIFMA) Subcommittee on Market Data. He has also served since 2015 on the Board of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness and since 2018 as a member of the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation.

Prior to joining Bloomberg L.P., Mr. Babyak was a partner in the law firm of Royer, Mehle & Babyak (1986-2001). The firm provided counsel on the executive, legislative and regulatory functions of the federal government, specializing in financial services.

Before entering the private practice of law, Mr. Babyak served as Chief of Staff to Congressman James H. Scheuer (D-N.Y.), the Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the U.S. House of Representatives. In this capacity, Mr. Babyak worked extensively on issues dealing with the capital markets including authorization and oversight of the SEC.

Mr. Babyak received a Bachelor of Science degree from Duke University (summa cum laude) where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and a Juris Doctor degree from the Georgetown University Law Center. He is a member of the Bar of the District of Columbia.

Ashley Nelle-Davis is the Chief of Staff at the Data Foundation and lead for Special Projects. She has strong project management skills, a deep understanding of the policy landscape related to data, experience working with a range of stakeholders in industry, nonprofits, academia, and government, and communicating complex, niche topics to a variety of audiences.

Ashley facilitates productive discussions between diverse stakeholders across data communities, ensuring various perspectives and interests are heard as she works to support the mission of the Data Foundation to support the use of data for positive change in government and society. 

Ashley is a graduate of the Lyndon Baines Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin (Global Policy, 2015). Prior to joining the Data Foundation, she honed her skills at prominent D.C. think tanks and as an educator. She brings a depth of experience in research, analysis, communication, and knowledge sharing. Her data heros include those who place data in context for meaningful and significant change, like Upton Sinclair and her uncle S. Fritts.

Vishal Kapur is a principal in Deloitte’s Federal Financial Regulatory practice and has advised clients such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Office of Financial Research in several mission modernization initiatives. His areas of expertise include regulatory supervision and examinations, consumer protection, receiverships, and market research. As a technology professional, he has extensive experience in leading large scale business transformations using information-driven solutions. He has successfully applied his broad expertise across the strategy and business domains, with the right data science techniques and enabling technology solutions – to drive solutions that are innovative, practical and create business impact. As a leader in Deloitte’s AI and Engineering practice, Vishal is actively engaged in the industry and with his clients in areas such as advanced analytics, cognitive computing, text mining, applied data science, and large scale data management disciplines.  Vishal received a Master’s degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from the Indian Institute of Technology, India.

Sherman Boone was until recently Senior Policy Advisor in the SEC’s Division of Economic and Risk Analysis. With over 40 years of experience in public policy, financial regulation and international economic affairs, spanning both the public and private sectors, Sherman has played a pivotal role in shaping financial crisis response, regulatory standards and risk assessment methodologies.

During his career with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the US Treasury Department, Sherman led efforts on a wide range of initiatives aimed at strengthening financial systems through regulatory policy and data standards, including development of the Financial Stability Board’s Compendium of Standards, the IMF’s Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSCs), and formation of the GLEIF and the Global LEI System. Sherman recently spent a year with the General Secretariat of the International Organization of Securities Commissions where he was Senior Advisor in the Standards Development Department and was subsequently elected to serve as Vice Chair of IOSCO’s Committee on Emerging Risks.

Karen has over 35 years of experience in the financial industry, specializing in data management, team leadership, and open data innovation. She is currently a team leader within the Open Symbology product at Bloomberg LP, where she leads the development and maintenance of the Financial Instrument Global Identifier (FIGI). Karen collaborates with industry stakeholders to establish an open, unique, and comprehensive solution for financial instrument identification across all asset classes. With a strong focus on open data frameworks and FIGI, Karen is dedicated to enhancing financial market transparency and efficiency, ensuring that standardized data solutions support regulatory needs and industry innovation. Prior to her current role, Karen managed various teams at Bloomberg, gaining extensive expertise in reference data, corporate actions, and market identifiers.

Rich Robinson is a senior executive and author with over 30 years of experience in the financial industry, across operations and technology functions. He has held leadership positions throughout the front, mid and back offices at major global custodian banks, brokerages, and industry utilities, leading transformative projects in data, operations workflow, and messaging.

His second book, “Cracking the Data Code: Pragmatics for Better Data Management and Governance” was published in December 2024 and is a definitive work on addressing key issues in communication and semantic treatment of data.  It is a follow up to his first book, “Understanding Financial Services Through Linguistics” from 2021 and also published by Business Expert Press, that explores how to improve the creation and application of data, standards, and regulation in financial services through an applied linguistics lens.

Rich is Chief Strategist, Open Data and Standards at Bloomberg LP. He works globally with regulators, legislators, and industry leaders on addressing data and standards issues to create more efficient and transparent markets. Bloomberg supports two international open data standards, FIGI and LEI, and Rich focuses on helping firms and regulators leverage these standards to achieve better interoperability and create efficiencies across the industry.

He is currently Chair of ISITC, co-Vice Convenor of the ISO20022 RMG, Sherpa for the APFF Financial Market Infrastructure Workstream, and Co-Chair and Board Member at the Object Management Group. He is a regular speaker at conferences, and has been published in the Journal of Securities Operations and Custody, the MDPI journal “Standards”, Waters, and Inside Reference Data, among other global financial services publications.

He holds an MBA in Organizational Behavior and Information Technology from NYU’s Stern School of Business and a B.S. in Industrial Management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Sean Tompkins is a senior data professional with over 20 years of experience in financial data and financial services. He specializes in data strategy, analytics, and system integration, helping organizations leverage data-driven insights for growth and efficiency. With a deep understanding of financial symbologies, Sean is passionate about optimizing data solutions through Open Data Standards.

Sean has spent the majority of his career at Bloomberg, holding various roles, including Financial Data Procurement, Mortgage Data, and  the creation of the Open Symbology product. He currently specializes in maintaining OpenFIGI.com and the OpenFIGI API. Additionally, Sean collaborates with various data teams within Bloomberg to develop data models that incorporate Open Symbologies.

Charles is a senior leader with nearly 10 years of experience in the financial industry. Charles graduated from The College of New Jersey with a bachelor’s degree in finance. Charles is currently the team leader for Bloomberg’s LEI Services. Charles has been able to grow Bloomberg’s platform dramatically since being accredited as an LEI issuer in 2017. Under Charles’ leadership, Bloomberg has become the largest issuer of LEIs globally.

Charles joined Bloomberg in 2015 and quickly became an expert in entity content. During his tenure with the Entity Management team, Charles helped produce and guide products that are utilized by thousands of clients for onboarding new clients (KYC), analyzing market trends in the entity space, and for regulatory compliance.

Tom Baldinger is a Senior Data Analyst with Bloomberg Open Symbology Data Team with a strong focus on marketing, product insights, and data-driven strategy in the finance sector. With a unique ability to bridge technical data work and business impact, Tom helps marketing and product teams uncover trends, and optimize Open Symbology campaigns. Tom has taken an active role in the global data community—organizing Open Data Standard events in London, Frankfurt, and Washington, D.C. These events brought together thought leaders across finance to advance data transparency and collaboration.