Fuze hires Serena Sebastiani from PwC to serve as Chief Strategy & Venture Officer
Serena Sebastiani, a former leader in PwC’s Advisory business, has been appointed to a new role at Fuze, an Abu Dhabi-based company providing blockchain infrastructure to businesses.
It was in early 2011 when Serena Sebastiani first walked through PwC’s doors, beginning her career at the Big Four firm in its Milan office. An Italian national, she spent six years with the business, progressing to the role of Manager within its Advisory practice.
After relocating to the Middle East in 2018, she spent two years at the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority (QFCRA), gaining first-hand regulatory experience before returning to PwC, this time in Dubai. There, she spent more than seven years, specialising in financial services advisory. Sebastiani played an important role in building PwC’s Virtual Assets practice and went on to lead the practice for several years.
Throughout her consulting career, Sebastiani worked closely with banks, asset and wealth managers, securities services providers, governments, and regulators. She contributed to the development of securities market infrastructure and helped shape the regulatory foundations for fintech and digital assets, including advising on the creation of the first Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority.
Sebastiani also supported multiple governments and regulators in developing policy frameworks, advised banks and virtual asset service providers as they entered new markets, and guided the creation of digital asset and fintech propositions.
From PwC to Fuze
As of this month, she has joined Fuze as Chief Strategy & Venture Officer. In this role, she will draw on her deep expertise in blockchain, virtual assets, and cryptocurrencies, alongside her advisory and analytics background, to support the company’s next phase of growth.
Founded in 2022, Fuze is a regulated digital assets infrastructure provider that enables financial institutions and businesses to integrate digital asset services into their operating models. The company was established by industry experts with backgrounds spanning traditional finance, decentralised finance, and fintech.
Sebastiani’s remit includes driving expansion and scaling Fuze’s core infrastructure offerings, including its institutional over-the-counter (OTC) desk, digital assets-as-a-service (DaaS) platform, and payments capabilities. She will additionally play a central role in shaping Fuze’s long-term vision and roadmap for its API-integrated financial services offering for banks, institutions, and enterprises.
“Having been part of the early build-out of the UAE’s digital assets ecosystem and witnessing its emergence as a global hub, joining Fuze feels like a natural progression,” Sebastiani said.
“After years of advising and helping shape the industry, I’m stepping into the arena to scale a business I deeply believe in. I’m excited to join a leadership team that has shown relentless commitment to this vision – one I witnessed being born and built. This is a commitment I fully share and am ready to accelerate.”
Mo Ali Yusuf, CEO and Co-Founder of Fuze, said: “Welcoming Serena to the business is like hiring three world-class experts in one. Her strategic advisory capability, deep expertise in virtual assets, and extensive regulatory experience will be invaluable as we scale the future of finance in the region and beyond.”
