Board & Management

Isikeli (Keli) Taureka

Non-Executive Chairman

Member of the Remuneration and Nomination Committee

Mr Taureka was appointed as a Director of Kina Securities Limited in April 2016.

He currently holds the position of Managing Director of Kumul Consolidated Holdings which is the trustee and shareholder for the Government of PNG in major state owned entities including Air Niugini, Water PNG, PNG Power Limited, Kumul Telikom Holdings,Ports PNG, Post PNG and Motor Vehicles Insurance Limited.

He provides extensive knowledge and networks across Papua New Guinea and Fiji.

Isikeli previously held a number of senior executive roles with Chevron Corporation including:

• President Chevron Corporation Geothermal;
• President Chevron South East Asia and President of ChevronTexaco China Energy Company with responsibility for Chevron’s oil, gas upstream and geothermal power activities.

Before joining Chevron, he managed the PNG-owned Post and Telecommunication Corporation and held senior management positions in the Bank of South Pacific Limited.

He holds a Bachelor of Economics degree from the University of Papua New Guinea and is a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Andrew Carriline

Non-Executive Director

Member of the Remuneration and Nomination Committee

Mr Andrew Carriline was appointed as a Director of Kina on 16 August 2018.

Andrew is an experienced business executive, highly skilled at operating successfully in regulated environments. He recently retired from a major Australian bank, where he spent most of the last decade in senior risk roles. He was also most recently Chairman of the bank’s business in PNG.

Before his focus on pure risk roles, Andrew practised corporate law in the public and private sector and has held a number of senior legal and operational roles.

Andrew holds Bachelor degrees in Law and Commerce from UNSW and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company of Directors.

Paul Hutchinson

Non-Executive Director

Member of the Audit & Risk Committee

Mr Paul Hutchinson was appointed as a Director of Kina on 16 August 2018.

Paul was the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Rural Bank, following over nine years leading the business. Before joining Rural Bank, Paul was Chief Operating Officer with New Zealand Post Limited, responsible for the sales and distribution capabilities of the group and notably the key origination capability for Kiwibank.

Paul's prior experience has included senior appointments with Westpac Banking Corporation (Australia), National Australia Bank and Bank of New Zealand.

Paul is currently employed by the University of Adelaide in the capacity of Executive Director for the Faculty of Professionals.

Karen Smith-Pomeroy

Non-Executive Director

Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee

Ms Karen Smith-Pomeroy is an experienced non-executive director, with involvement across a number of industry sectors. Karen has over 30 years of experience in the financial services sector, with senior roles in Queensland and South Australia, including a period of 5 years as Chief Risk Officer for Suncorp Bank.

Karen has specific expertise in risk and governance, deep expertise in credit risk and specialist knowledge of a number of industry sectors, including energy, property and agribusiness.

Karen is currently a non-executive director of Queensland Treasury Corporation, Stanwell Corporation Limited, InFocus Wealth Management group and National Affordable Housing Consortium Limited. She is also a member of the Qld Advisory board for Australian Super, Australia’s largest industry super fund.

Karen holds accounting qualifications and is a Fellow of the Institute of Public Accountants, Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia, a Member of Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, a Certificate member of Governance Institute of Australia and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Ila Temu

Non-Executive Director

Dr Ila Temu was appointed as a Director of Kina on 14 December 2020.

Dr Temu is the Executive Director (PNG) of Barrick (Niugini) Limited (BNL), a role he has held for some time now, which places him as one of the senior Managers within BNL Management. Dr Temu has held various senior roles with Placer Dome Niugini since 2000 including General Manager Government Relations, Director Corporate Affairs and Country Manager Tanzania. With Barrick Niugini Ltd, Dr Temu has held similar roles since 2006.

Prior to joining Placer Dome, Dr Temu was Managing Director of Mineral Resources Development Company (MRDC), a state-owned organization that held PNG’s equity in major mining and petroleum projects throughout PNG. He has also held senior positions within a number of public organizations, including a term as a Director of the National Research Institute in PNG, Research Director for the Pacific Islands Program at the Australian National University, Canberra and Senior Lecturer at the University of Papua New Guinea.

Dr Temu has also held a number of Board Directorships/Memberships in PNG including Dome Resources Ltd, MRDC, Kina Finances Ltd, PNG Incentive Fund, National Economic Fiscal Commission, Independent Public Business Corporation, the Employees Federation of PNG and Bank of South Pacific where he was Director for 13 years. He was Chairman of PNG Ports Corporation for five years, Chairman of Bank South Pacific (BSP) Capital for three years, and President of the Chamber of Mines and Petroleum for three years. He is currently a Director of Kina Petroleum Ltd, Director of Kumul Petroleum Holdings Ltd, and a Council Member of the Divine Word University.

Dr Temu holds a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Papua New Guinea, a Masters in Agricultural Development Economics from the Australia National University, Canberra Australia and a Ph.D in Agricultural Economics from the University of California, Davis, USA.

Jane Thomason

Non-Executive Director

Chair of the Remuneration & Nomination Committee

Dr Jane Thomason was appointed as a Director of Kina on 27 April 2018.

Jane has worked in international development and policy and implementation in the Asia Pacific region for 30 years. Her international career has included work for governments and donors including the Asian Development Bank, WHO, World Bank, USAID and AusAID.

As an entrepreneur and innovator, Dr Thomason has built a $50 million revenue company and merged this with Abt Associates in 2013. Since the merger, Dr Thomason has led the growth and diversification of the company to achieve a tripling of revenue and diversification into new sectors and is now CEO of a $200 million revenue company with 650 staff across Asia and the Pacific. She has held senior appointments including Queensland Director of Women’s Health, CEO of the Queensland Royal Children’s Hospital, Commissioner on the Commission of Inquiry into Child Abuse in Queensland, Chairman of the Wesley Hospital Board, Member of the Uniting Health Care Board, the International Operations Committee of the Red Cross, the Consultative Council of the Australian Centre for International Tropical Health and Nutrition and the Aid Advisory Council to the Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Alexander Downer), She has been a Member of the Burnett Institute Board, and an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Queensland.

Jane is an active role model for future women leaders and an active supporter of innovation and new technologies, especially blockchain, and their application to the problems of the poor.

Greg Pawson

Chief Executive Officer/Managing Director

Greg Pawson was appointed CEO of Kina Securities Limited in 2018. He joins the Group with an extensive knowledge of the financial services industry in Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia and the Pacific.

Before his appointment, Mr Pawson was Regional Head of South Asia Pacific for the Westpac Group and held senior executive roles in retail banking, corporate financial services, financial planning and funds management.

Chetan Chopra

Chief Financial Officer

Chetan is Chief Financial Officer, reporting to the CEO. Chetan is a Chartered Accountant from India and a widely experienced finance executive. He joins Kina after spending the past two years as CFO of PNG’s largest superannuation fund, Nambawan Super.

An accountant by profession, Chetan previously worked for many years as a PNG partner for KPMG and as CFO for Dunn and Bradstreet South Asia. He also has held a number of senior leadership roles in both private companies and public sector organisations, including the Australian Taxation Office.

Chetan holds a Bachelor of Science from Mumbai University and an MBA from Melbourne Business School, University of Melbourne. Chetan is also a member of Certified Practising Accountants Australia, PNG and India

Deepak Gupta

Executive General Manager of Business Partners and Wealth

Deepak Gupta is Executive General Manager Wealth and has had a long and successful career in financial services, having held a variety of senior executive roles in leading financial services institutions including Westpac, AMP and domestic New Zealand institutions. These roles have spanned all facets of institutional funds management, private equity investment, funds administration, financial planning and corporate trusteeship.

In addition Deepak has strong governance experience having acted as a non-executive director on the boards of NZX and ASX listed companies, and private businesses in a variety of industries. He has also been active with industry bodies and has represented New Zealand on international analyst bodies. He brings substantial experience and a track record of success and innovation across a number of areas in financial services including successful development of New Zealand's first institutional private equity fund for retail investors and leading the commercial development and success of New Zealand's largest registry business for its workplace based retirement savings scheme.

Deepak holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Administration from Victoria University, New Zealand, and an MBA from Massey University, New Zealand. He has a Certificate of Investment Analysis from the University of Otago, New Zealand and is a Fellow of the Institute of Finance Professionals New Zealand.

Michael Van Dorssen

Chief Risk Officer

Mr Michael Van Dorssen joined Kina in 2009 and is currently the Chief Risk Officer for the group. As part of the good governance of Kina and consistent with the financial industry best practice Kina has established the Risk Division to assist the group in it risk management and controls. Michael has extensive experience in the banking industry in both Australia and PNG, with a career spanning more than 30 years.

Prior to joining Kina, Michael worked for Suncorp Limited as the District Manager for the bank’s agribusiness division (from 2004 to 2008) and Westpac Bank PNG Limited (from 1999 to 2002).

Nathaniel Wingti

GM Treasury and Financial Markets

Nathan joined Kina in February 2016 as GM Treasury and Financial Markets. Prior to joining Kina, he spent 15 years at ANZ Bank where his last role was Head of Global Markets PNG and Balance Sheet Manager for ANZ across the Pacific. Nathan has 20 years experience in foreign exchange, money markets and balance sheet management across the Pacific region having worked in PNG, Fiji and Australia.

Nathan holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in finance and commerce. He has also completed the AFMA Dealer Accreditation Program and the PNG Institute of Directors Program. He is a current serving Board Member of the Business Council of PNG.

Johnson Kalo

Chief Information Officer

Johnson Kalo was appointed Chief Information Officer in September 2019. Johnson has substantial industry experience in Papua New Guinea having previously held the positions of Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer for BSP.

Johnson played a central role in BSP’s acquisition of Westpac’s Pacific Island Nations and he brings to Kina Bank exceptional leadership qualities. His previous roles also include independent Director of the Board of Credit Corporation and Executive Director of the Port Moresby Stock Exchange (PNGX). He is a fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia and an associate member of Certified Practicing Accountants PNG.

Ivan Vidovich

Chief Transformation Officer

Ivan joined Kina Bank in 2019. In the role of Chief Transformation Officer Ivan is responsible for Group Strategy and Planning, People and Culture, Digital Channels, Innovation, Design, Product and Marketing.

Ivan has 20 years senior leadership experience in Australia, Asia and Europe in the financial services and logistics industries with companies including Suncorp, TNT Express and DBS Bank, where he has managed large-scale sales and service operations, strategy, customer experience, innovation and multi-country integration and transformation programs. He brings significant experience in people and culture transformational change and is a strong advocate of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Ivan holds a Bachelor of Arts from La Trobe University and is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Lesieli Taviri

Executive General Manager Banking

Lesieli joined Kina Bank in 2020 and is responsible for running the national branch network and a seamless banking experience to personal and small business customers. In her role, Lesieli leads the focus on customer service satisfaction in branch and through the contact centre, along with the development of digital concierge services.

Prior to joining Kina Bank, Lesieli was the CEO of Origin Energy and she is one of PNG’s most highly regarded executive leaders. She holds a number of high-profile board roles including Founding Chair of the Business Coalition for Women. She served as the Deputy Chair of Nambawan Super Limited, PNG’s largest superannuation fund and was formerly a director of Nationwide Microbank Limited.

Lesieli is also a graduate member of the Australian and PNG Institute of Company Directors.

Asi Nauna

Executive General Manager Lending

Asi joined Kina Bank in 2018 to assist with the acquisition of ANZ’s Retail, SME and Commercial operations leading the integration of the SME and Commercial customer streams. In the last two years she has held a senior leadership role in our Business Partners and Wealth team, establishing herself as a dynamic and successful leader with a track record of delivering exceptional results. In her role as Executive General Manager Lending, Asi is responsible for end to end retail and business lending. Prior to joining Kina Bank, Asi was ANZ’s Associate Director, Institutional Banking.

Gavin Heard

GM Corporate Affairs and Investor Relations

Gavin joined Kina Bank in 2018 with over 15 years’ experience as a communications specialist.

Gavin’s previous roles include working for the BBC in cultural and current affairs broadcasting; developing crisis planning policy for the Australian Government in PNG; and in communications for Westpac Pacific.

Judith Ugava-Taunao

Chief of Staff

Judith Ugava-Taunao was appointed Chief of Staff in June 2021.

She is responsible for developing and delivering key strategic business priorities. For 18 years Jude has built a career that spans across international borders and sectors. She has worked in international development, organisational transformation, and human resource development and leadership.

Prior to joining Kina Bank, she was at Oil Search where she served as the Vice President, Change Management Lead and as the General Manager for OSL’s Citizen Development Program.