Whether you're looking to gain strategic knowledge, connect with over 450 of your peers, or contribute to thought leadership, the INFINZ Conference is where New Zealand’s financial community comes together to inspire progress and drive impact.
Master of Ceremonies
Steven Joyce CNZM, Former Minister of Finance
Technology and AI in achieving success in financial services
The financial services industry is being reshaped by technology and AI at pace, and larger offshore markets are often further down this path. Dee McGrath sits on the boards of both Revolut Australia and the ASX, giving her a front-row seat to how these shifts are playing out. She’ll share what she’s seeing overseas, what’s working, what’s coming, and what it means for how financial services are delivered and consumed here in New Zealand.
Keynote Speaker:
Dee McGrath, Director, Revolut Australia
Lifting global ambition through technology and an AI enabled future
New Zealand has the talent and the ideas, but are we thinking big enough? Bowen Pan built products at global scale as the founding product leader at Facebook Marketplace, and he’s not shy about pushing New Zealand to aim higher. He’ll challenge the audience to lift their ambition and examine how technology and AI can help local businesses punch above their weight internationally, and what’s standing in the way of moving from local ambition to international impact.
Keynote speaker:
Bowen Pan, Founding Product Leader, Facebook Marketplace; Board NZME, Milford Asset Management
Opportunities in an AI world - investing in ideas that matter
Paul Newfield will cut through the hype and focus on identifying the ideas that genuinely matter. Jason Boyes the Chief Executive of HRL Morrison managed Infratil has recently said that demand for efficient AI infrastructure was striking and may be the investment opportunity of a lifetime. With AI rapidly influencing how capital is allocated, businesses are built, and markets evolve, this session will examine where the smart money is heading and what New Zealand needs to do to position itself in a rapidly shifting global environment.
Keynote speaker:
Paul Newfield, CEO, H.R.L. Morrison & Co
Entrepreneur – succeeding on the global stage
Gallagher Group is one of New Zealand’s standout success stories, growing from its Waikato roots into a global business. With revenue of $600m currently, Gallagher is on track to become a billion-dollar turnover tech exporter within a few years. Kahl Betham will share his perspective on what it takes to scale a New Zealand business internationally, the challenges of competing in global markets, and the opportunities that lie ahead for homegrown companies with global ambitions.
Keynote Speaker:
Kahl Betham, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, Gallagher Group
The Global Economic Backdrop
Northern Trust manages almost US$2 trillion in assets and is one of the world's largest global custodians and institutional asset managers. Carl Tannenbaum brings an international lens to the economic and geopolitical forces shaping global markets. He’ll give an honest read on the global forces at play right now, from trade tensions to shifting monetary policy and geopolitical uncertainty, and what all of it means for New Zealand’s economy.
Keynote speaker:
Carl Tannenbaum, Chief Economist, Northern Trust USA
Māori business – Case Study: Inside Ruakura: Delivering Critical Infrastructure through Iwi Partnership
The Ruakura Superhub is a significant piece of New Zealand’s infrastructure puzzle, and it’s being delivered through iwi partnership with Brookfield. The completed value of the 70 hectares of new logistics development is some $1 billion. Hinerangi Raumati-Tu’ua and Craig West will go behind the scenes on this project, exploring how Tainui Group Holdings has developed the Superhub through strategic partnerships, what the project means for regional and national economic development, and what lessons it holds for how we deliver critical infrastructure in New Zealand.
Speakers:
Hinerangi Raumati-Tu'ua, Chair, Tainui Group Holdings
Craig West, CEO, Tainui Group Holdings
Governing for success – how financial services can support their clients in achieving success
It’s not often you get the chairs or senior directors of all five major banks in the same room. This panel brings together some of the most experienced governance voices in New Zealand’s financial services sector to discuss the role of governance in supporting clients and the broader economy. How can financial institutions better enable their customers to succeed? What is the role of strong governance in navigating an increasingly complex operating environment? Their perspective drawn from across their governance portfolios will provide an excellent perspective of how the financial services sector can make the New Zealand waka travel faster.
Speakers:
Dame Therese Walsh, Chair, ASB
Pip Greenwood, Chair, Westpac NZ
Scott St John, Chair, ANZ NZ
Kevin Kenrick, Non-executive Director, BNZ
Susan Peterson, Chair, Kiwibank
Debate: That the market is best placed to deliver energy sector resilience
Energy sector resilience is one of the defining challenges of the coming decades and is in sharp relief given the disruption to oil supplies from the gulf. New Zealand is also facing a decline in domestic gas production and electricity prices spiked a couple of years ago. To manage dry-year risk in electricity production, a previous government explored development of a large pumped hydro scheme, and the current government is looking to enter into a contract for the installation and operation of an LNG facility. This debate will put the proposition to the test: is the market best placed to deliver the resilience our energy sector needs, or does the scale and complexity of the challenge demand a different approach? Speakers will argue for and against the moot.