Former ANZ NZ head of digital and transformation, Liz Maguire, has joined the Implemented Investment Solutions (IIS) group of companies as director.
IIS founder, Anthony Edmonds, said Maguire would serve as an independent director on the boards of both IIS and subsidiary firm InvestNow.
Edmonds said securing Maguire on the dual boards was a “real coup” for both IIS and InvestNow as the companies embark on a new period of technology-led growth.
“Liz brings a huge amount of experience in the digital space including more than five years heading up ANZ bank’s digital team,” he said. “She also was on the senior leadership team, and had governance responsibility for the custody part of ANZ’s NZ business.”
Maguire replaces former IIS director, Lee Mauger, who, ironically, resigned earlier this year to take up a top technology role at ANZ NZ.
According to Edmonds, Maguire would bring a depth of technological and industry insight as both InvestNow and IIS develop further.
“InvestNow recently passed $500 million in assets under management, and continues to grow rapidly,” he said. “We are also about to launch our KiwiSaver offering which will enable people to select a range of active, indexed, and socially responsible funds from a range of different investment managers.”
The IIS fund-hosting business, which currently has nine underlying clients, was also on a growth curve with an increasing number of offshore managers looking to establish a presence in NZ, Edmonds said.
“Wholesale clients have pretty limited choices when it comes to being able to access really good global equity managers in tax effective solutions, and a number of global equity managers are seeing this as an opportunity to come into the NZ market,” he said.
Maguire said the IIS group was a good example of how businesses using smart technology coupled with deep industry knowledge can operate on level terms with established institutions.
“The digital transformation of the financial services industry means that companies like InvestNow can compete head-to-head with established market players, which makes an exciting and interesting dynamic,” she said. “It is fascinating to look at this from the perspective of the growth opportunity for a new generation of businesses like InvestNow, rather than the defensive perspective of a large incumbent firm like ANZ.”
Elsewhere, AMP Life has confirmed Greg Bird as chief investment officer after the NZ regulator waved through the A$3 billion sale of the insurance operation last week.
Bird has served almost 20 years with AMP in various roles across Australia and NZ including the last three as chief actuary, a title he retains.
Former AMP Life chief investment officer, Jeff Brunton, has stepped down a rung to the deputy position. Megan Beer will stay on as AMP Life chief post sale, which should close on June 30.
Last week the Reserve Bank of NZ (RBNZ) approved the sale of AMP Life to Resolution Life – an agreement first inked in 2018 – after rejecting an earlier version of the deal last year.
Under the revised terms set by the RBNZ, Resolution Life will establish a “bespoke trust” in NZ with assets held locally.
“In addition, the model will see the establishment of a new, locally incorporated insurer Resolution Life New Zealand (RLNZ),” the RBNZ said in a statement. “The RLNZ board will have a majority of New Zealand resident, independent directors. RLNZ will act as Trustee to the Trust and will effectively manage the assets held in the Trust.”
It is understood, AMP Capital would continue to manage assets on behalf of Resolution Life for a certain period of time. According to the 2019 AMP annual accounts, the group would transfer at least A$985 million of regulatory capital to Resolution on completion of the life business sale. As well, AMP would pass on to Resolution “any capital that was required to support AMP Life’s balance sheet as at the June 30, 2018 sale date”.
AMP was trading at about A$1.85 on Friday, down slightly from the A$1.90 it jumped to after confirmation of the life sale but still well above the all-time low of A$1.11 recorded on March 24.