This site is for the 2019 Assembly of Investment Chairs event.
2020 Assembly of Investment Chairs website
University of Otago Business School
Craig Stobo, Taumata, Otago Business School; Associate Member CFA Society NZ; CFInstD
Educated at the University of Otago and Wharton Business School, Craig Stobo has worked as a diplomat, economist, investment banker, and as CEO. He has authored reports for the Government on “The Taxation of Investment Income”, chaired the Government's International Financial Services Development group in 2010, and chaired the Establishment Board of the Local Government Funding Agency in 2011. Craig is a professional director and entrepreneur.
In addition to chairing Precinct Properties, he is chairman of the New Zealand Local Government Funding Agency (LGFA) and director of AIG Insurance New Zealand Limited and a number of private companies including Saturn Portfolio Management, Elevation Capital Management and Biomarine Limited.
Associate Professor Ivan Diaz-Rainey, Director of CEFGroup, Otago Business School
Associate Professor Ivan Diaz-Rainey joined the University of Otago in 2012. He is the director of the Climate and Energy Finance Group (CEFGroup) and is a founding member of the Global Research Alliance for Sustainable Finance and Investment (GRASFI). He researches and teaches extensively on Climate Finance, Energy Finance among other topics.
Dr Sebastian Gehricke, Co-Director CEFGroup, Otago Business School
Sebastian joined the University of Otago as a Lecturer in 2018 after finishing his PhD there. He has produced several research publications in the area of derivatives and is now very active in researching climate finance and sustainable investing. He is now a co-director of the CEFGroup and member of the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Fund Research Group.
Hamish Kennett, Master of Finance student, Otago Business School
Hamish Kennet is a current Master of Finance student at the Otago Business School and is doing research on Climate risk in NZ Equities, supervised by Associate Professor Ivan Diaz-Rainey.
NZ Super Fund
Matt Whineray, CEO, NZ Super Fund
Matt was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Guardians in July 2018. He is responsible for the general management of the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation and of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund under delegation from the Board.
Stephen Gilmore, CIO, NZ Super Fund
Stephen joined the Guardians in 2019. As Chief Investment Officer, he is responsible for overseeing the Asset Allocation, Responsible Investment, External Investments & Partnerships, and Direct Investment teams.
Sarah Owen, General Manager Corporate Strategy, NZ Super Fund
Sarah joined the Guardians in 2007 from Westpac/BT Funds Management where she was senior legal counsel/company secretary for the Westpac wealth management companies. Prior to this Sarah was a Senior Associate at Minter Ellison Rudd Watts, and before that DLA Phillips Fox, specialising in funds management/superannuation and commercial law.
Anne-Maree O'Connor, Head of Responsible Investment, NZ Super Fund
Anne-Maree has over 20 years of experience and has held senior roles in the Responsible Investment (RI) and corporate responsibility fields including Managing Director of CoreRatings, Associate Director RI at Morley Fund Management and Head of RI Research at Henderson Global Investors.
Her main role at the Fund is the development and oversight of the Guardians' RI framework which includes integrating environmental, social and governance considerations across the Fund's investments. Anne-Maree is a board member of the RI Association Australasia.
Mike Frith, NZ Super Fund investment committee Chair
Mike Joined the Guardians in 2015 from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, where he held a number of roles within the Bank's Prudential Supervision and Economic departments, and managed the Reserve Bank's Auckland office.
At the Guardians, Mike's primary role is to provide the macroeconomic advice that underpins investment analysis and broader investment decisions.
Mark Fennell, former NZ Super Fund investment committee Chair
Mark joined the Guardians in 2007 as General Manager, Operations. In 2012 he was appointed General Manager, Portfolio Completion, where he oversees the team's implementation of the Reference Portfolio, as well as currency overlay, rebalancing, and liquidity management.
External speakers
Dr David Hall, Climate Innovation Lab, Auckland University of Technology
David Hall is a Senior Researcher with The Policy Observatory. He has a D.Phil in Politics from the University of Oxford and experience in journalism, publishing and the non-governmental sector. His research interests include ethics and public policy, and environmental policy.
Fiona Mackenzie, Head of Direct Wealth, Jarden
Before joining Jarden, Fiona was Head of External Investments and Partnerships at the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation fund, overseeing a $6 billion portfolio and chairing the investment committee.
Simon O'Connor, CEO, Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA)
Simon O'Connor is the Chief Executive of the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA), bringing with over a decade of international experience from both financial services and sustainability spheres.
Simon has worked as Director and Senior Economist for the public-interest economic consultancy, Economists at Large, a Senior Responsible Investment Analyst in the UK and Australia at Innovest Strategic Value Advisers (now MSCI) and most recently as Economic Adviser in the leading Australian environmental organisation, the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF).
Simone Robbers, Assistant Governor, Strategy and Corporate Relations, Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ)
Simone is Assistant Governor and General Manager of Governance, Strategy and Corporate Relations. She is responsible for the Bank's strategic planning and performance, communications, legal, risk and audit teams, and the Board secretariat.
Simone brings with her a wealth of public and private sector experience, most recently successfully managing the role of Director of Strategy, Risk and Assurance at the Financial Markets Authority, as well as previous experience with the Securities Commission and in the private sector in banking and wealth management, and legal firms.
