Mélanie Gagné

Mélanie is the founder of Brains Capital, a consultancy born from 20+ years at the forefront of financial crime prevention. After leading FinCrime initiatives for global powerhouses including KPMG, Equifax, Interac, and RBC, in Canada and international markets, she launched her own firm to address a critical gap: the deep silos separating fraud, cyber, and AML functions. Her expertise lies in orchestrating convergence, having spent recent years architecting fusion centers and governance programs that unite these historically fragmented practices into cohesive, intelligence-led operations.

Her track record includes creating Canada's largest multi-sector fraud data consortium at Equifax, spearheading a major payment fraud detection system at Interac, and developing RBC's online fraud strategy. At Brains Capital, she leads multidisciplinary teams in implementing 360-degree Financial Crime Programs. She has guided Chief Security Officers in standing up fraud management and prevention systems with a focus on sustainable governance and cross-functional collaboration.

Today, Mélanie and her team of AML, fraud, analytics, and risk management specialists partner with organizations of all sizes to build layered, resilient defences against escalating threats. In an era where political and economic volatility amplifies financial crime risks, her mission is to embed protection through internal alignment and external intelligence sharing, thereby transforming security into a strategic advantage.