November 1, 2023 | New York

Open Source Finance Forum (OSFF), organized by FINOS and the Linux Foundation, is the only conference dedicated to driving collaboration and innovation in financial services through open source software and standards. We bring together experts across financial services, technology, and open source to engage our community in stimulating and thought-provoking conversations about how to best (and safely) leverage open source software to solve industry challenges.

Dates to Remember:

• CFP Closes: Friday, June 23 at 11:59 PM PDT
• CFP Notifications: Week of July 24
• Schedule Announcement: Tuesday, August 8
• Presentation Slide Due Date: Friday, October 27
• Event Dates: Wednesday, November 1

Suggested Topics:

We welcome talks on a wide range of topics relevant to open source in financial services. Our tracks this year center around our strategic initiatives.

Open Source Readiness:

• We launched the Open Source Readiness Initiative to support financial services organizations in their open source maturity journey, so they can realize the benefits of open source code and collaboration. 
• Open Source Readiness is leading activities that enable safe and compliant open source consumption and contribution in financial services firms. 

Open Regulation Innovation:

• The Open RegTech Initiative explores and promotes opportunities for open collaboration between financial institutions, technology firms, service providers, and regulators. It aims to use open source standards and software to change how financial regulation is implemented and supervised.

Interoperability / FDC3:

• Interoperability and FDC3 aim to provide an open standard for interoperability on the financial desktop. This includes standardized verbs to invoke actions between applications (called "intents"), a standardized data format, an OpenAPI app directory standard, and standardized API operations.

OTHER TOPICS - We also have a mix of tracks around wider areas of emerging technologies, payments, DEI, identity, mainframe, and a special track on cloud operations for the FinOps Foundation.

Below are potential/suggested topics that speakers may use as guidelines within the conference tracks above. Please note product/sales pitches will not be accepted.

Developing Open Source Maturity in an Organization

• Developing and Delivering Open Source Tooling, Training & Best Practices
• Addressing Open Source Legal, Compliance, and Policy Concerns
• Leveraging OSS to Attract and Retain Talent
• Upskilling and Becoming More Employable for Contributors
• The Journey through Open Source Readiness for Financial Institutions
• Innersource

Making Open Source Secure

• Secure and Collaborative Innovation using Tooling and Processes for Identifying Vulnerabilities
• How to Build a Robust Community around Software Projects to Maximize Eyeballs on Issues, as well as Solutions

Building Successful & Sustainable OSS Communities 

• Tools, Advice, and Approaches for Creating Diverse and Equitable (DEI) Communities
• Building and Sustaining OSS Communities in a Highly Regulated Industry
• Attracting and Rewarding Contributors

Hot Topics for OSS in Finance 

• Topics relevant for the Industry Use as AI, Machine Learning, Automation,  ESG, Banking in the Cloud, Credit, Identity Management, CBDC, Blockchain, Governments, and OS
• Shaping the next generation of OSS in financial services
  • How to shape and guide open source policies and projects to be more inclusive of ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) concerns

Language in Finance (Relevant to FINOS Projects)

• Java
• Python
• Javascript
• C++

OSS Projects & Standards - Please note that the talks can be technical or business-focused

• FINOS Projects and Standards
• Non-FINOS OSS Projects and Standards with Specific Relevance for Financial Services

Case Studies 

• “Real-World” Examples of How OSS has Added Value in any of the Areas Above

  • Should be Focused on Financial Services or Have a Highly Relevant “Read-Across” from a Similarly Regulated Industry

Solving Industry Challenges

• Using OSS to Deliver Business and/or Tech Value to Your Organization & Consumers
• Open Source Collaboration to Tackle Pervasive Challenges or New Opportunities; 
• Application Interoperability
• Areas of Interest Include Regulatory Interpretation and Compliance, Open Data, Leveraging Industry Standards like the CDM

Delivering Business and/or Tech Value  

• Specific Examples of How OSS has Delivered Business and/or Tech Value to Your Organization & Consumers
  • Areas might include Operations, Interoperability, Commercial OSS
• Leveraging Commercial Open Source; OSS ROI and Speed to Market (with Newest Tools)
  • Case Studies from Project Managers who are working on a project that includes open source technology
  • Case Studies from Product Managers managing a product leveraging open source technology (but not a product pitch, please)

Submission Types:

• Session Presentation (typically 30 minutes)
• Panel Discussion (typically 30 minutes)
• Round Table Discussion Session (typically 30 – 60 minutes in length)
• Workshop/Tutorial (typically 60 minutes)
• Lightning Talks (typically 15 minutes - ideal for first-time speakers)

For any questions, please do not hesitate to contact cfp@linuxfoundation.org.