The next chapter – the Kharon Global Summit returns in 2025

The Kharon Global Summit is not an annual fixture. It is convened when the stakes, and the questions, warrant it. When the pace of change in global risk and decision-making outpaces the systems and frameworks built to manage it. When the people shaping policy, leading global institutions, and building compliance infrastructure need to be in the same room.

It has happened twice, and it’s back again in 2025.

2019 — A First Convening in New York

The first Summit was held in Manhattan in April 2019, during a period of accelerated sanctions activity and institutional uncertainty. At the time, the U.S. had recently withdrawn from the JCPOA and fully reimposed sanctions on Iran, while the Trump administration was escalating pressure on Venezuela through sweeping sanctions on its state-owned oil company.

The event brought together senior thought leadership and expertise from OFAC and FinCEN, national security policymakers, former intelligence officials, C-suite executives from HSBC, Citi, and global sovereign wealth, and international compliance leaders. The discussions moved from headline developments to structural implications and how institutions were responding in real time. Where enforcement might expand next and how far existing systems could stretch.

Exchanges throughout the day made clear that even at the highest levels, there are different approaches to complex policy decisions. Conversations also examined sanctions evasion through digital assets, human rights as a compliance risk vector, and the practical limits of rule-based programs. 

The application of technology to improve efficiency and outcomes was a throughline.

2023 — Expanded Scope in London

The second Summit convened in London in February 2023. The global risk environment had changed, and the Summit’s scope reflected that shift.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had forced a rapid expansion of trade controls and financial restrictions. Enforcement bodies were extending their reach beyond financial institutions, placing new expectations on corporations and investors with global operations. Compliance was no longer just a regulatory function – it was becoming a strategic input.

In response, the agenda expanded – sanctions remained central, but were joined by topics on supply chain, investment risk, cryptocurrencies, and export controls. Speakers included senior officials from the U.S. Departments of the Treasury, Justice, and State, the UK’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation, Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, and Members of Parliament, as well as executive and compliance leadership from Microsoft, Bank of America, Binance, and HSBC.

Across sessions, several themes emerged, including:

• The increasing overlap of policy domains: where national security, human rights, trade, and technology now intersect in regulation.
  
  
• The demand for real-time decision support, driven by regulatory velocity and geopolitical volatility.
  
  
• The growing role of insights and analytics in identifying risk before enforcement defines it.
  

As in 2019, the conversations continued beyond the panels. The Summit’s value came not only from what was discussed on stage, but from what was exchanged privately, among participants with aligned responsibilities but different vantage points.

2025 — Washington at the Forefront of Global Security Policy

The next Kharon Global Summit convenes in Washington, D.C. – where securing interests is at the epicenter of global policymaking. Its agenda will reflect the next evolution in global risk management, shaped not just by regulatory priorities, but by operational complexity, technology disruption, and geopolitical acceleration.

Topics under consideration include:

• Integration of defense and industrial policy into supply chain oversight.
  
  
• A deep dive into the precursor chemical suppliers, trafficking organizations, and money networks driving the global fentanyl crisis, and the compliance implications for financial institutions and multinational companies.
  
  
• Senior leaders from across finance and industry will discuss the evolving challenges, emerging opportunities, and practical strategies for building effective, scalable compliance programs in today’s complex regulatory environment.
  
• The institutional use of AI in compliance and regulatory enforcement.
  
  
• A discussion with the most seasoned national security leaders on the strategic priorities shaping U.S. national security today, examining the evolving relationship with China as well as broader challenges spanning technology competition, economic statecraft, supply chain resilience, and sanctions enforcement.
  

Each Summit reflects the realities of the moment, but it also looks ahead – identifying where the next pressures will emerge, and how institutions, policymakers, and industry leaders can position themselves to meet them.

Explore the 2025 agenda and request an invitation: kharon.com/summit