ACTUARIES - Key Persons
Aidan Nguyen is an actuary working in policy who is passionate about aligning and improving the financial wellbeing for all. He currently works on superannuation topics at the Financial Services Council to advocate for better superannuation policy and the use of effective regulation. He joined the Financial Services Council from EY where he spent four years as a consultant to the Life Insurance and Wealth Management industries.
Alan Merten FIAA, FNZSA, FSAS With a background including corporate general management roles in financial services in various countries across APAC, he leads multi-disciplinary teams to help clients improve performance of their businesses. His main area of focus is life insurance and his over 35 years' experience in broader financial services includes leading or consulting on the full value chain from customer and distribution, through to product and operations as well as the financial aspects of running businesses.
Amelia joined YAAB in 2023. She is currently working as a health insurance actuary at Bupa, after previously working in consulting at Deloitte. Amelia is a qualified Fellow and is passionate about ensuring the adaptability and longevity of the actuarial profession. She wants to help young actuaries to feel more empowered within the profession and to branch into new areas in which the actuarial skill set and brand can add value. Outside of work Amelia enjoys playing tennis and spending time with family and friends.
Job Titles:
- Member of the YAAB
- Chairman YAP, New South Wales
- Senior Actuarial Advisor at Suncorp
Andrew is a Senior Actuarial Advisor at Suncorp, leading the development of cutting-edge pricing solutions for home and motor insurance. He is passionate about ensuring that insurance products and premiums best meet the needs of customers and stakeholders in evolving environments. As the Chair of YAP NSW, he is eager to help young actuaries flourish in their careers.
Anthony Asher was an academic at the University of New South Wales from 2011 until October 2020, and now continues his research as Associate Professor. He has divided his working life between practice and academia. Living in Australia from 2003, he first served in the policy and research division of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and then as a consulting actuary with Deloitte. His early work in life insurance culminated in four years as Chief Actuary of a medium sized insurer in South Africa. He has also served a variety of other financial service organizations as consultant and director.
Job Titles:
- Cannings Corporate Communications
Job Titles:
- Chief Risk Officer
- Senior Vice President
David is the Chief Risk Officer - Advice and Insurance for CBA. He has had 30 years' experience in the insurance industry spanning general and life insurance, multinational insurers and consulting firms plus roles in reserving, pricing, underwriting and general management and risk management. From 2013 to 2018 David was Chief Reserving Actuary for Zurich's Asia-Pacific general insurance business across nine countries and prior to that he was a KPMG Partner and held senior roles at Allianz Australia.
Greg is a qualified actuary with over 20 years of professional experience in the life insurance, wealth management and investment industries. He was the Chief Actuary and Chief Investment Officer for Resolution Life Australasia and the Appointed Actuary for AMP Life. Previously he was Chief Actuary for AMP Group, and has held roles in the areas of finance, risk management and strategy. He is currently a Partner with EY NZ. Greg has worked in Australia, New Zealand, India and the United Kingdom.
Job Titles:
- Member of the YAAB
- Chairman YAP, Victoria
- Victoria
Gurpreet is an Actuary consulting insurance and government clients in PwC's Actuarial & Analytics team, with prior experience across pricing and reserving in the general insurance industry. As the President of YAP VIC, he's excited to help guide younger actuaries in making informed career decisions..
Jeffrey is an actuary with more than 12 years of experience in data and analytics, helping clients to build end-to-end data solutions which result in significant business impact. He has served various industries in corporate, start up, and management consulting environments, including FMCG, retail, government, banking, insurance, and loyalty programs. His latest position was Head of Advanced Analytics for DFI Retail Group, a retail conglomerate based in Hong Kong with operations across Asia. Jeffrey joined the Young Actuaries Advisory Board (YAAB) in 2020 and was the President of the YAAB in 2021.
John's experience includes extensive senior management, Board and consulting roles in superannuation, insurance, Australian and international financial regulation, actuarial and risk management plus managing professional and industry associations. He has been employed by large and small employers and consultants, within the private and public sectors, within Australia and internationally and he also was self-employed for several years while he developed a successful consulting firm. Key roles include CEO of the Actuaries Institute, Australian Government Actuary and Head of Capital and Solvency at the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, which is hosted by the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland.
Job Titles:
- Member of the YAAB
- Deputy Chair, Young Actuaries Advisory Board
- Director in the Valuation Team at Pacific Life Re
Lucy is a Director in the valuation team at Pacific Life Re with extensive experience in the Life and Wealth Management industry through her current role and prior consulting roles. She is passionate about building high performing teams and people development, and with YAAB she hopes to help drive better support for young actuaries moving through their career.
Maathu Ranjan FIAA Maathu is a qualified actuary with over twelve years' experience in the disability, general insurance and government sectors. She leads the Actuarial Strategic Initiatives team at the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) assisting with the evaluation and delivery of key government initiatives and priorities. Maathu is a keen researcher, winning the Actuaries Institute Melville Prize and the International Actuarial Association's Bob Alting von Geusau Prize. She is currently pursuing a PhD on a topic of national significance as a Sir Roland Wilson scholar at the ANU.
Job Titles:
- Member of the YAAB
- Chairman of the Young Actuaries Advisory Board
Mark is the Chair for the Young Actuaries Advisory Board and is a consulting actuary at Mercer who joined in 2018 following his move from Scotland to Australia in 2016. He advises trustees and sponsoring employers on their defined benefit and accumulation superannuation plans and provide strategic advice relating to member outcomes requirements. He graduated from Heriot Watt University in Scotland and is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries in Australia and the UK. Outside of work I am keen runner and hope to run a marathon on every continent of the world.
Job Titles:
- President
- Professional Company Director
Naomi Edwards is a highly regarded professional company director. She has chaired listed ASX companies, industry super funds, and not-for-profits.
Naomi currently sits on the boards of TAL (Australia's largest life insurer), Propel Funeral Partners and Yarra Funds Management Ltd.
An actuary by training, with an executive background in the financial services industry, Naomi has an Australia wide reputation in the financial services industry, having advised on many major life insurance and funds management acquisitions in Australia and New Zealand. She is a former partner of Deloitte, where she ran the Australian financial services Industry Group.
Naomi also has a strong reputation in the responsible investing industry, having sat on the Boards of two ASX listed industry leaders - Australian Ethical Investment and Hunter Hall.
Naomi's financial analysis and accounting skills are complemented by a strong commercial focus. She contributes strong risk assessment skills to a Board as well as insights into long term strategy in times of uncertainty, particularly in regard to mergers and acquisitions.
Naomi has a first class honours degree in mathematics from the University of Canterbury.
Ruvinda is an accomplished actuary with a passion for solving problems and tackling challenges. Originally from Sri Lanka, Ruvinda became interested in the actuarial profession after a chance encounter with an actuary at a family function. With a love for math and a desire to try something different, Ruvinda set out to become an actuary, ultimately leading to a successful career with experience as a consulting actuary, quant analyst, and product and innovation specialist. In his current role, Ruvinda is responsible for product innovation at Spirit Super and has played a pivotal role in designing new retirement income products. Ruvinda is a firm believer in taking risks and trying new things, knowing that the knowledge gained from these experiences is invaluable.
Job Titles:
- Chairman YAP, Queensland
- Senior Consultant at Quantium
Ryan is a Senior Consultant at Quantium, specialising in pricing and data analytics consulting for personal and commercial lines insurers. As the Chair of YAP Queensland, Ryan's focus is to connect young actuaries with the actuarial profession to support their career development through networking, mentoring and learning. Ryan is passionate about improving the experience for young members, previously volunteering on the working group in 2020 to establish the first YAAB. He is a Fellow of the Actuaries Institute and sits on the Queensland Actuarial Community Organising Committee.
Job Titles:
- Head of Underwriting at Munich RE Australia
Scott is the Head of Underwriting at Munich RE Australia, responsible for leading underwriting teams to deliver technical assessment of Property & Casualty reinsurance deals. As a Fellow of the Actuaries Institute, he has extensive experience in actuarial and non-actuarial roles over more than 30 years. This includes broader roles in reinsurance Client Management, business management in the GI sector, and in consulting outside of insurance. Scott has gained valuable cultural experience through working in Australia, pan-Asia, North America, and Europe.
Job Titles:
- Senior Associate at PwC Sydney
Sophia is a Senior Associate at PwC Sydney. She is a new Fellow of the Actuaries Institute and works in health analytics and workers compensation. She was part of the UNSW Actuarial Co-op Program. Outside of work, Sophia enjoys dancing, especially ballet.
Tim is a Director at Taylor Fry, and has worked in the general insurance industry since 2012. He has extensive experience providing reserving, M&A, pricing and capital management services to general insurers. He also specialises in providing actuarial advice to corporate workers' compensation self-insurers across all Australian jurisdictions. Tim is also part of the Workers' Compensation COVID-19 Working Group and the Interest Rate Working Group."