The Hub: Whāia te Pae Tawhiti – Pursue the Horizon

Overview
Speakers

On 26 November 2026, we’re hosting a special session of

The Hub: Whāia te Pae Tawhiti – Pursue the Horizon.  

We’re coming together to celebrate our achievements as an industry over the past 15 years, and explore the legacy we’re shaping.

Our collective decisions today will define the future of payments in Aotearoa New Zealand – and we’re looking to the horizon with purpose and energy.

Join us for an exciting, forward-looking event featuring insightful speakers, bold conversations, and quality networking with fellow leaders in payments.

Confirmed sessions and speakers

Transitioning to an open data ecosystem 

Jessica Venning-Bryan – Independent Member, API Council 
Terese Tunnicliffe – Independent Chair, API Council 
Moderated by Phil Cass – API Centre Manager

The big picture: Evolving systems, shared responsibilities 

Charlotte Montgomerie – Senior Associate, Chapman Tripp 
Nicola Raynes-Pene – National Industry Lead – Financial Services, KPMG 
Victoria Richardson – Partner, ID Partners 
Moderated by Jane-Renee Retimana – Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer, Payments NZ

Payments NZ update: looking ahead and future vision 

Steve Wiggins, Chief Executive, Payments NZ

Vanessa Ronan-Pearce, Head of Marketing and Communications at Payments NZ, will be our event MC. 

Event details 

Location: Grand Millennium Auckland, 71 Mayoral Drive 

Event date/time: Wednesday 26 November 3.00pm – 8.30pm  

If you would like to attend this event, you can register here.

Sign up to our mailing list to receive future invitations to The Hub and other Payments NZ events, as well as news and updates about the company and our work. 

Transitioning to an open data ecosystem 

Jessica Venning-Bryan

Jessica is the CEO and Co-founder of Factor, a AI-powered, API-driven product management platform for global energy utilities. She has spent over 20 years advising executive teams and boards on how to engage consumers with emerging technologies, new projects, and innovative brands. From beer to electricity, voting systems to software, she’s led successful projects across New Zealand, Australia, the United States, and the UK.

As part of the founding team at Flick Electric Co., she played a key role in its disruptive market entry, culminating in a successful acquisition by Z Energy in 2018. Following that she built a new data-driven software solution for Meridian Energy’s commercial and industrial retail business. She has served on the Board of PledgeMe, New Zealand's first crowdfunding platform, the National Council of Women, and as a mentor with the Ministry of Awesome and Creative HQ start-up accelerator programmes.

Terese Tunnicliffe

Terese has 30 years of experience in the payments industry, including senior executive roles in banking, industry and start-up governance and advisory. She is also passionate about leadership and works with executives to develop effective leadership practices and high-performing cultures.

Phil Cass

As API Centre Manager, Phil works collaboratively with the Payments NZ team and the industry to design and deliver the API Centre’s framework and lead open banking for Aotearoa. Phil has a financial services background spending 15 years in the UK working on mergers and acquisitions and also setting up target operating models within large global banks. Phil led a team which designed and implemented the UK Open Banking Implementation Entity target operating model and later held the role of head of operations.

The big picture: Evolving systems, shared responsibilities

Charlotte Montgomerie

Charlotte is part of Chapman Tripp’s financial services regulatory team, specialising in regulation and compliance, fintech, and payments. In addition to her focus on open banking, Charlotte advises on licensing, anti-money laundering, and climate change disclosure obligations for a broad range of financial services providers. As well as over a decade’s experience in financial services with leading law firms, Charlotte has held senior operational roles at an online investing platform and with a licensed insurer and managed fund provider.

Nicola Raynes-Pene

Nicola is the National Industry Leader for Financial Services at KPMG New Zealand, a role that operates pan-firm across banking and finance, insurance, wealth management and property funds. Nicola has worked in and with the financial services sector in New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom for the last 20 years, with ten of those years being within banking institutions with a focus on capital management and stress testing, financial and regulatory reporting, risk and compliance management and regulatory affairs.

Nicola’s work as an external advisor to the industry has focused on financial, risk and regulatory management across both small and large banking and finance institutions. Nicola’s knowledge of financial services operations and industry trends and challenges ensures KPMG brings practical and value-add solutions to its clients. Nicola is also on the Executive Council for FintechNZ.

Victoria Richardson

Victoria Richardson is a consultant specialising in digital identity, payments, and digital assets. She is a Partner at ID Partners, co-founder of the OpenID Foundation’s Australian community group, and joint author of ‘Money in the Metaverse’. She advises governments, financial institutions, industry bodies, and technology providers on corporate and product strategy for the digital economy and contributes to research and policy discussions internationally.

Jane-Renee Retimana

Jane is a transformational leader, strategist and innovator with executive and governance experience across the private and public sectors. As a leader in the payments industry, Jane is an expert on international and local payments ecosystems and networks. As chief strategist heading up a portfolio of business areas at Payments NZ, she helps empower Aotearoa NZ’s payments future. She also leads the collaborative industry efforts at the intersection of strategy and innovation developments across the payments network including in open data, open banking and finance, digital identity, data sovereignty, fintech and paytech innovation, trade and cross border, next generation payments and emerging technologies. Jane is a champion for women, equity and the foundational role Te Ao Māori can play in achieving intergenerational outcomes and driving a progressive and prosperous Aotearoa for all.

Payments NZ update: looking ahead and future vision 

Steve Wiggins

As Chief Executive of Payments NZ and the Payments NZ API Centre®, Steve is responsible for ensuring the New Zealand payments industry remains innovative, progressive, interoperable and self-governing. He came to the role with extensive experience in senior executive roles through a career spanning more than three decades in industries as diverse as finance, energy, and consultancy services including leading large transformation across these sectors, bringing new innovation and technology to drive change that improve an industry in the long term.

Event MC

Vanessa Ronan-Pearce

As Head of Marketing and Communications at Payments NZ, Vanessa drives the company’s brand, marketing, and communications strategy, working with the leadership team to strengthen its reputation and industry leadership. She oversees all corporate communications and is the executive sponsor of the The Point Conference, Gala Dinner and new awards programme. With over 20 years of experience, Vanessa has a proven track record of driving impactful work, innovation, and brand growth. In addition to her role at Payments NZ, she serves on the advisory board for Wych Money, is a Trustee for The NZ Dance Company, and advises Creative Caring Australia. Vanessa is also a mentor for The Founders Institute and UTS Rapid Value Creation. Her fintech expertise includes founding FinTech Australia's Intersekt FinTech Festival and the Finnie Awards, earning her recognition as one of the Top 100 Global Women in Fintech. She continues to support the industry as a judge for the Finnie and Pause Awards, celebrating excellence in finance and tech. Vanessa’s first career was in the performing arts as a dancer, singer, pianist, and songwriter, and she brings the creativity, collaboration, and storytelling skills from her artistic background to her leadership roles today. She is also completing her studies in gender equity as part of a psychology degree, with a focus on implementing actionable solutions for a more inclusive future.

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