Our first speakers

Roland Adrian has been Managing Director of Verimi GmbH since 2019. Before that, he served as CEO of Lufthansa Miles & More from 2015 onwards. After studying Business Administration at the European Business School, he began his career in 1996 at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. He then held senior positions within the KarstadtQuelle Group before going on, from 2002, to build up the multi-partner loyalty programme HappyDigits as a joint venture between Arcandor and Deutsche Telekom. In 2009, he moved to PAYBACK, relocated to Bangalore to establish PAYBACK India, and subsequently oversaw the company’s international expansion into further global markets. Verimi is a joint venture backed by leading German companies, including Allianz, Atruvia, Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Telekom and Volkswagen. Its core focus is the development and operation of secure digital identity solutions, including identification, digital onboarding and electronic signatures. Verimi offers an onboarding platform covering all relevant identity verification methods, EUDI Wallet services for acceptance and issuance, and operates the sector-specific identity provider for the GesundheitsID used by Barmer and AOK.

Anna-Lena Angerer is a Senior Manager with a focus on digital identities and related ecosystem strategies. She has many years of experience in managing complex transformation programmes and in building cross-industry digital ecosystems. Clients benefit from her ability to implement digital transformation effectively and at scale.

Dirk Backofen is Head of Digital Identities at T-Systems International GmbH and for Deutsche Telekom as a whole. In this role, he is responsible for establishing this new business area and for all activities related to the introduction of the EUDI Wallet and the implementation of EUDI Wallet use cases within Telekom. 

Previously, he was Head of Telekom Security and was responsible for Deutsche Telekom’s SME business. Dirk Backofen has been with Deutsche Telekom since 1991. He holds a degree in Information Technology Engineering (Dipl.-Ing.) from Chemnitz University of Technology.

Since October 2022, Timo Behrmann has been responsible for the Public Sector division at Nect GmbH in Hamburg. His role focuses on the design and development of secure, user-friendly, and fully digital identification and signature processes for both natural and legal persons. 

In addition to his work at Nect, Timo Behrmann serves as a board member of the Bitkom Working Group on Digital Administration, contributing to strategic discussions on modernising state identity and administrative infrastructures. He is also a regular participant at industry events and political forums, particularly on digital identities and EUDI Wallet initiatives. 

Previously, Timo Behrmann worked at Dataport AöR, where he contributed to and led digitalisation projects at regional, national, and European levels, with digital identities as a central focus throughout. His academic and professional experiences in Estonia, Thailand, and the Netherlands have further deepened his understanding of the potential and societal significance of modern digitalisation.

Hartje Bruns, who holds a degree in Media Informatics, has been a member of the Governikus management board since October 2025 and leads the company’s technical division. 

Previously, as Director Products within portfolio management, he was primarily responsible for overseeing the development of products and solutions related to electronic identities. As a product and project manager, he played a leading role in the development of the eID solution Governikus ID Panstar (formerly Governikus Autent). The use of the eID function of the German ID card, and more broadly the interoperability of various eID systems at the European level, are key cornerstones of his work. As a certified Scrum Product Owner, his main interest lies in the close integration of product management and development. 

For a period, Bruns also served as Product Owner at Governikus, where he was responsible for the further development of the TR-ESOR-compliant solution for long-term storage, Governikus DATA Aeonia. This solution focuses on the preservation of evidential value in the long-term storage of electronic documents.

Constanze Clauss is a Senior Consultant specialising in digital identities and organisational development. She focuses on translating regulatory requirements and ecosystem dynamics—particularly those emerging around the European Business Wallet (EBW)—into future-proof business strategies for public and private organisations. She supports clients in developing operating models, structuring opportunity portfolios, and building the organisational capabilities required to operate effectively within the evolving European Digital Identity (EUDI) ecosystem.

Programme Manager at the Strategy, Policy and Legal Affairs department of the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce. Coordinator of the WE BUILD Consortium.

After completing her studies, Beate Ginzel worked as an architect in Germany, Finland, the Netherlands and Tanzania. 

From 2004 to 2014, she conducted research and taught at the University of Leipzig, where she also completed her doctorate in the field of urban development. From 2014 to 2019, as Head of Department, she was responsible for shaping the implementation of housing policy instruments and establishing the City of Leipzig’s Smart City process. Since April 2019, Beate Ginzel has headed the Digital City unit within the Department for Economic Affairs, Labour and Digitalisation of the City of Leipzig. 

She is Deputy Chair of the Digitalisation Working Group of the German Association of Cities.

Dr Elisabeth Grießl studied Economics and International Management in Chemnitz and London. She subsequently completed her doctorate at the Technical University of Freiberg, focusing on an expert system for the economic evaluation of international projects. 

She worked as a project manager on various international projects in Asia, with a focus on resource management and environmental issues, at G.U.B. Ingenieur AG in Berlin. 

Since 2017, she has been working as a Senior Solution Manager at Bundesdruckerei GmbH. Initially, her main areas of focus were eIDAS trust services; she is currently responsible for digital identities and credentials, such as the digital vehicle registration certificate and driving licence. In this context, she was active as a sub-project lead in the EU project POTENTIAL and is also involved in the ongoing EU project APTITUDE.

Uwe Härtel, 59 Jahre alt, verheiratet, 2 Kinder, wohnhaft in München. 

Seit März 2026 bei G+D Netcetera verantwortlich für den Vertrieb des Trusted Services Portfolios und Sales Security. 

Davor in verschiedenen Vertriebspositionen bei internationalen Payment und Payment Security Anbietern wie Entersekt und Thales (vorher Gemalto).

Seit vielen Jahren arbeite ich im Bereich der digitalen Identität, wo ich unter anderem für die Entwicklung elektronischer Identifikationsmittel und elektronischer Signaturen verantwortlich war. Derzeit bin ich an der Umsetzung der eIDAS2-Verordnung in das polnische Rechtssystem beteiligt und fungiere als Business Lead für die Einführung des EU-Wallet-Ökosystems.

CIO/CDO Krebs wurde 1960 in Neckarsulm geboren und war nach seinem Studium zum Diplom-Verwaltungswirt zunächst mehrere Jahre als Entwickler und Projektleiter bei der Datenzentrale (DZ) Baden-Württemberg tätig. 1990 wechselte Stefan Krebs in den Bankensektor und verantwortete unter anderem das IT-Sicherheitsmanagement der LBBW. Ab 2001 war er in unterschiedlichen Führungspositionen bei der Finanz Informatik, dem IT-Dienstleister der Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, in Hannover tätig. Am 1. Juli 2015 wurde Stefan Krebs zum ersten „Beauftragten der Landesregierung für Informationstechnologie“ ernannt.

Jörg Lenz is Head of Marketing and Communication at Namirial, one of the leading providers of qualified trust services in accordance with the EU eIDAS regulation.

Since 1999, he has been dealing holistically with the legal, technical, business and organisational requirements for the application of electronic signatures in the private sector as well as in public administration.

Jörg Lenz's specialist topics include the orchestration of signature workflows, procedures for identification and authentication including biometrics, digital identity, ID wallets and various procedures for generating electronic signatures and seals. He is intensively involved with the framework conditions for the use of these technologies for their application in regulated industries such as finance, telecommunications and energy supply as well as in public administration.

He contributes his expertise to the working groups and discussion groups of various national and international organisations. In doing so, he follows the design and revision of guidelines, regulations and laws - among others in the Bitkom working group on the application of electronic trust services. Currently, he is particularly concerned with the revision of the eIDAS Regulation.

Before playing a key role in founding and establishing Namirial's subsidiary in Germany from 2018, he worked as a signature expert in various roles in communication, business development and marketing at Softpro and Kofax. Jörg Lenz completed his studies with a degree in business administration. 

Eva-Maria Lindig, Lead Product Manager at PayPal, is shaping the future of digital payment processes and seamless customer and merchant experiences in the European market. Previously, she was responsible for establishing the product management programme at CODE University and worked in various product roles in international tech environments (including XING, idealo and Meta). With her experience at the intersection of product strategy, market dynamics and user behaviour, she focuses on questions such as how customers will shop and pay in the future, how much of this will be handled by AI agents, the role digital identities will play, and how companies can strategically prepare for this today.

Paloma Llaneza González CEO, Razona Legaltech | Digital Trust Scheme Manager, CerteIDAS (CERTICAR, S.L.) Paloma Llaneza González is a practising lawyer and one of Spain's leading experts in digital trust services, electronic identity and cybersecurity regulation under the eIDAS framework. She serves as CEO of Razona Legaltech, a consultancy specialising in digital identity, electronic trust services and regulatory compliance, and as Digital Trust Scheme Manager at CerteIDAS, an ENAC-accredited Conformity Assessment Body operating under the eIDAS Regulation. She has worked at the heart of the European eIDAS ecosystem since 2016, auditing Qualified Trust Service Providers and shaping the frameworks that underpin digital commerce and public services. On the standardisation side, she is editor of ETSI standards EN 319 401, EN 319 403 and TS 119 471, and coordinates the eIDAS Subcommittee at Spain's National Cybersecurity Forum. She currently participates in the WE BUILD Large Scale Pilot, one of the flagship projects driving the European Business Wallet under eIDAS 2.0, and in the CompDS4EU project. In 2025 she was awarded the Premio SIC in recognition of her sustained contribution to cybersecurity.

Focko Lowin ist als Head of Sales bei der A-Trust Vertrauensdienste GmbH für das kommerzielle Wachstum in Deutschland verantwortlich. In dieser zentralen Rolle forciert er maßgeblich die Verbreitung qualifizierter elektronischer Signaturen und digitaler Identitätslösungen. Er verfügt über langjährige Führungserfahrung im IT-Vertrieb und gilt als ausgewiesener Experte für die rechtssichere Digitalisierung komplexer Geschäftsprozesse. Durch sein tiefes Marktverständnis im Bereich der Vertrauensdienste festigt er die Position von A-Trust als einem der führender europäischer QTSP. Damit verbindet er technische Expertise erfolgreich mit einer nachhaltigen, kundenorientierten Wachstumsstrategie. Mit seiner Erfahrung aus über 20 Jahren in der Telekommunikations- und Software-Branche bringt er eine tiefe Expertise für digitale Skalierung und rechtssichere Prozessoptimierung in die Diskussion ein.

Arjang Navabi is a Senior Consultant specialising in digital identities, the European Business Wallet (EBW) and enterprise-level strategy. His work focuses on strategic design, operating model development, and the implementation of regulatory and technical requirements into scalable, future-proof EBW and EUDI ecosystem solutions.

For the past seven years, I've been working as a civil servant in the Italian Government's Department for Disability Policies. Since 2022, I've been managing projects related to the digitalization of public services and documents for people with disabilities (European Parking Card and European Disability Card), including their integration into the European Digital Identity (EUDI) Wallet programs.

Andreas Plies ist CEO und Mitgründer von AUTHADA sowie ein Experte für digitale Identifikations- und Signaturlösungen. Seit mehr als 15 Jahren ist er in der Cyber-Sicherheitsbranche tätig und hat verschiedene Forschungsprojekte zur sicheren digitalen Identifikation als Informatiker geleitet. 

Sein Fokus liegt auf den regulatorischen und geschäftlichen Aspekten von eIDAS 2.0, den entsprechenden Durchführungsverordnungen sowie den daraus resultierenden technologischen Anforderungen und Herausforderungen für die Branche. Gemeinsam mit seinem Team ist er an der konzeptionellen und technischen Bewertung von Konzepten zur Implementierung der EUDI Wallet beteiligt, mit Schwerpunkt auf Secure Element- und eUICC-Anwendungen. Seit der Gründung im Jahr 2015 leitet er AUTHADA, einen der ersten Anbieter aus dem privaten Sektor, der marktspezifische Identifikations- und Signaturlösungen auf Basis der deutschen eID anbietet, die insbesondere in der Finanz-, Telekommunikations- und eHealth-Branche weit verbreitet sind. 

Seit einiger Zeit arbeitet er an der Umsetzung sicherer und interoperabler Lösungen für vertrauende Stellen und Aussteller, die deren konformen Zugang zum eIDAS 2.0-Ökosystem ermöglichen.

Als Experte für Identity and Access Management (IAM) mit über 20 Jahren Erfahrung spezialisiert sich Andre Posner auf die „letzte Meile“ der digitalen Identität: die Übersetzung komplexer technischer Komponenten in nahtlose, praxisnahe Nutzererlebnisse. Als Solution Architect und Sales Engineer bei Ping Identity berät Andre Organisationen aus den Bereichen Versicherung, öffentlicher Sektor und Telekommunikation strategisch. Sein Fokus liegt darauf, diese regulierungsintensiven Branchen dabei zu unterstützen, strenge regulatorische Anforderungen (z. B. AML und BaFin) mit dem Bedarf an skalierbaren, betrugsresistenten digitalen Ökosystemen in Einklang zu bringen.

Carsten Rosche is a computer scientist and has been working in the field of digital public administration since 2008, initially at the Federal Ministry of the Interior and, since 2025, at the Federal Ministry for Digital Transformation and Government Modernisation. He is currently heading the project for the implementation of the EUDI Wallet in Germany.

I am responsible for authentication, identification and e-signature solutions at Volkswagen Financial Services, driving secure, user-centric and eIDAS-compliant digital identity capabilities. At the Bitkom eIDAS Summit, I will share insights from our work on integrating the EUDI Wallet into our digital identity landscape.

Arno Scheidereiter is Co-Founder and CEO of neusta aerospace GmbH, operating at the intersection of aerospace, cybersecurity, and the European data economy. Within the Gaia-X ecosystem, he serves as Business Advisor and Co-Lead for Aviation, Space & Defense. With a focus on digital sovereignty and secure identities, he drives the development of DORIS – a European business wallet for eIDAS and verifiable credentials. His goal is to establish scalable, industry-ready solutions for trusted data spaces and identity management across Europe.

Clemens Schleupner has been actively shaping the development of digital identities and trust services in Germany and Europe for three years. Initially serving as a division leader at Bitkom, he now works for the Federal Agency for Jump Innovations (SPRIND), contributing to the implementation of the German Wallet within the EUDI-Wallet project. Clemens studied International Relations in Nancy, Paris, and Washington

Lilly Schmidt ist eine etablierte Expertin für digitales Identitätsmanagement, eIDAS 2.0 und Technologiepolitik mit besonderem Fokus auf die kommunale sowie internationale Umsetzung der EUDI-Wallet. Sie verfügt über umfangreiche Erfahrung in der strategischen Beratung zur Digitalisierung öffentlicher Dienste und hat sich auf die Einführung und Skalierung elektronischer Identitäten spezialisiert. 

Zuvor leitete sie die Begleitforschung im Projekt Schaufenster Sichere Digitale Identitäten an der ESMT Berlin und befasste sich mit den Themen Cybersicherheit, vertrauenswürdige Infrastrukturen und eID Use Cases in Deutschland. 

Ihr interdisziplinäres Studium der Politik und Verwaltung absolvierte sie mit Stationen in Estland, Belgien und Deutschland. Frühzeitig spezialisierte sie sich an der Schnittstelle von Verwaltung und Technologie auf Fragen der digitalen Souveränität und Verwaltungsmodernisierung. 

Seit Januar 2025 ist sie als Senior Consultant bei der Nortal AG tätig. Dort begleitet sie die kommunale sowie internationale Umsetzung der EUDI-Wallet, konzipiert und moderiert Workshops zu eIDAS 2.0 und proaktiver Verwaltung und bringt ihre Expertise in Verbänden, wie dem Bitkom oder Women in Identity ein. 

2024 gründete sie den Arbeitskreis „Digitale Identitäten in der Verwaltung“ beim NEGZ, um den fachlichen Austausch zu stärken und praxisnahe Ansätze für digitale Identitätslösungen in der öffentlichen Verwaltung zu entwickeln.

Since 2014, Justus Schrecker has been working on KYC processes, operational procedures, policies, and legislative drafts. He has gained international experience across a range of KYC projects. 

As Managing Director of Clarilab GmbH & Co. KG, responsible for customer engagement and research, Justus Schrecker oversees the further development of SCHUFA Holding AG’s KYC solutions and designs tailored approaches for entities subject to the German Anti-Money Laundering Act (GwG). 

Previously, he served as Head of the KYC Factory at passcon Germany, where he was responsible for the operational implementation of all KYC requirements at both national and international level. 

Prior to that, he worked as a Manager at PwC GmbH in the field of consulting for regulatory processes.

Steffen Schwalm has around 20 years of experience in the design, implementation, and deployment of trusted (decentralised) digital ecosystems based on digital identities and trust services in highly regulated industries across Europe. 

He works as a Senior Manager for Digital Identity and Trust at msg. His main areas of focus include: 

• eIDAS, EUDI and the EU Business Wallet 

• Decentralised digital identities & compliance 

• Trust services 

• Certification & audit 

Steffen Schwalm is actively involved in international standardisation related to eIDAS, the Business Wallet and trust services, including within ISO, ETSI and CEN, and is the author of numerous publications. He also supports the piloting of EUDI ecosystems and EU Business Wallets in various European projects.

Britta has more than 15 years of experience in the field of cloud computing within international technology companies. In her current role at Delos Cloud, she focuses in particular on sovereign cloud solutions and the role of partner ecosystems in their successful implementation. A special emphasis is placed on collaboration with software partners to enable innovative and trustworthy cloud solutions for public sector organisations.

Heike Troue has been a member of the Executive Board of the Consumer Advice Centre Rhineland-Palatinate since 2023. The qualified economist has many years of experience in national and regional associations as well as in strategic bodies. Previously, she served, among other roles, as Chief Executive of the German Land Women’s Association, as a member of the Executive Board of Welthungerhilfe, and as Managing Director of “Deutschland sicher im Netz e.V.” (DsiN).

Carlo Ulbrich, Co-Founder and CSO of Nect GmbH, brings over ten years of experience in B2B sales, sales controlling, and project management. As a former Head of Sales at a global project logistics company, he led an international team. With a background in logistics and a degree in business administration, he focuses at Nect on building sustainable customer relationships, expanding into new markets, and growing the partner network.

Mit über 20 Jahren Sales-Erfahrung im digitalen Umfeld und mehr als sieben Jahren bei Swisscom Trust Services prägt Mario Voge als Head of Growth die internationale Wachstumsstrategie des Unternehmens. Er verantwortet den Aufbau und die Führung der Growth-Organisation, die Entwicklung neuer Partner- und Kundenbeziehungen sowie die nachhaltige Pflege und Weiterentwicklung des Bestandskundengeschäfts.

After completing his studies as a graduate in business law, Leif Warnecke joined Deutsche Post AG in 2011, moving into product management at Post & Paket Deutschland. Most recently, he served as Product Portfolio Manager, overseeing all KYC, QES, and EUDI Wallet solutions from Postident for the banking sector.