Money20/20 Europe 2026: Giesecke+Devrient's Gabrielle Bugat on Securing Payments

Quick Summary

The modern payment landscape is increasingly diverse, creating complexity for users, banks, and merchants alike. Gabrielle Bugat of Giesecke+Devrient explains at Money20/20 Europe 2026 how the company is bridging physical heritage with a digital future to make these ecosystems simple and secure.

How is Giesecke+Devrient addressing the complexity of modern payments?

With the rise of new payment methods and ecosystems, the focus for Giesecke+Devrient is on the underlying infrastructure, scalability, and security. Gabrielle Bugat notes that the company draws on its deep understanding of physical payments, such as cash and cards, to inform its digital strategy. Through offerings like Fusion, the company aims to:

• Connect the dots between different payment methods and usages.
• Ensure seamless transitions between physical and digital e-commerce environments.
• Maintain a foundation of trust while navigating digital currencies.

How is technology reshaping the company core offerings?

Technology is not merely an add-on for Giesecke+Devrient: it is being used to revisit the foundational layers of issuance, risk management, and consumer experience. Gabrielle Bugat highlights a shift from reactive data management to proactive intelligence embedded by design. This approach allows the company to reinvent and rewire its services rather than just adding digital layers to existing products.

What is Giesecke+Devrient doing to counter future cryptographic threats?

As a security tech company, Giesecke+Devrient is actively preparing for the threats posed by quantum computing. Gabrielle Bugat points to Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) as a critical area of focus. The company is developing solutions to defeat the harvest now, decrypt later strategy used by bad actors. By embedding PQC algorithms into their systems today, they are creating a shield against the security challenges of tomorrow.

Why is ecosystem innovation essential for the industry?

Gabrielle Bugat expresses a strong belief that innovation in a silo does not scale. Instead, Giesecke+Devrient prioritises collective intelligence and ecosystem-wide collaboration. This involves:

• Participating in consortiums and partnering with other technology companies.
• Contributing technical expertise to customers who are closer to the end consumer.
• Connecting insights from different countries to solve global payment challenges.

FF NEWS TAKE:

Giesecke+Devrient is successfully pivoting from its traditional roots in physical currency to become a cornerstone of digital payment security. By focusing on Post-Quantum Cryptography and proactive intelligence, the company is addressing high-level security risks before they become mainstream. Their emphasis on ecosystem innovation suggests that the future of secure payments will rely on deep technical partnerships rather than isolated proprietary solutions.