Karine Hirn is co-founder and chief sustainability officer of leading emerging and frontier markets investment firm East Capital. She has been based in Hong Kong since 2010, where she heads the firm’s Asia operations.

Euromoney speaks to 10 key figures who shaped the development of banking and finance in emerging Europe.

Leszek Balcerowicz served as minister of finance in Poland from September 1989 to December 1991, and again for three years from October 1997. He was governor of the National Bank of Poland from 2000 to 2007.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

From communism to unbridled capitalism, from command economy to chaos to convergence, Euromoney’s coverage provides a unique insight into an unparalleled half-century in emerging Europe.

Ilhami Koç started his career at Isbank in 1986. He was chief executive of Iş Private Equity between 2001 and 2002, before returning to Is Investment as chief executive in 2002. Since November 2016, he has been chief executive of Turkish insurer Anadolu Sigorta.

Well-capitalized, liquid and digitally sophisticated, banks in emerging Europe today are far from the clunking incumbents and fly-by-nights of the post-socialist era. A fragmented, diverse and politically volatile region is a challenge for smaller banks – is a new wave of consolidation on the way?

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Grigory Marchenko served two terms as governor of Kazakhstan’s central bank – from October 1999 to January 2004 and from January 2009 to October 2013. He was chairman of the board of Halyk Bank from 2005 to 2009. He retired in 2013 and divides his time between Barcelona, Baku and Almaty.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Andreas Treichl started his banking career in 1977 at Chase Manhattan. From 1986 to 1993, he headed the US bank’s Austrian operation, before moving to Credit Lyonnais in 1993. He became chairman of the board of Erste Bank in 1997 and chief executive of Erste Group in 2008.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Herbert Stepic joined Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich (RZB) in 1973. In 1978, he took over the group’s international banking division and from 1986 led its expansion into emerging Europe. He stepped down as chief executive of RZB’s legal successor Raiffeisen Bank International in 2013.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Ivan Miklos was minister of privatization for Czechoslovakia from 1991 to 1992. He was minister of economy of Slovakia between 1998 and 2002 and minister of finance 2002 to 2006 and 2010 to 2012. Since 2016 he has served as adviser to the Ukrainian government.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Viktor Gerashchenko served as chairman of the Gosbank from 1989 to December 1991 and head of the central bank of Russia from 1992 to 1994 and 1998 to 2002. He was chairman of International Bank of Moscow from 1996 to 1998 and Russia’s IMF representative 1998 to 2000. He was elected to the State Duma in 2003.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Since 2008, rising local players have gained the upper hand over risk-averse global investment banks in emerging Europe as the flow of larger deals has declined, but that could change as regional firms start to flex their muscles on the global stage and China looms large.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

Petr Aven served as minister of foreign economic relations for the Russian Federation between 1991 and 1992. He was president of Alfa-Bank Russia from 1994 to 2011 and is currently chairman of the board, a position he also holds at ABH Holdings, Alfa Group’s financial holding company.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

András Simor became chief executive of Creditanstalt Securities in Budapest in 1989. He was chairman of CA-IB from 1997 to 1998 and head of Deloitte Hungary from 2003 until being appointed governor of the Hungarian central bank in 2007. Since October 2014, he has served as CFO at the EBRD. He will retire from the bank in May this year.

Asia’s ability to adapt has made it the current engine of world growth. The next decades could see it become the leader in global banking.