High-profile Panellists To Take Part In APEC CEO Summit 2021

A group of panellists whose expertise covers trade, energy, trust in business, economics, technological innovation, global monetary policy, banking and the Māori economy join a heavy-hitting line up of keynote speakers at this year's APEC CEO Summit, being hosted from Auckland, New Zealand.

Eight panellists have been announced and will be part of the two-day Summit, which is a virtual gathering of the world’s most powerful CEOs, business leaders, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, prime ministers and presidents of APEC economies.

The CEO Summit is being hosted from the Aotea Centre in Auckland on 11 and 12 November 2021 (NZT) and will be broadcast “as live” to multiple time zones across the Asia Pacific region.

Fraser Whinerary - Chief Operating Officer of Fonterra, one of the world’s leading dairy exporters. Fraser has enjoyed a diverse international career across agriculture, investment banking and energy. He was previously Chief Executive of Mercury. In 2019 He was named as the Deloitte New Zealand Chief Executive of the Year. Fraser will be on the panel discussing trade in a Covid world.

Dr Alan Bollard - New Zealand based economic leader. Alan is a Professor of Pacific Region Business at Victoria University of Wellington and inaugural Chair for Pacific Region Business. As Governor of the Reserve Bank from 2002-2012, he was responsible for monetary policy and bank regulations, helping steer New Zealand through the global financial crisis, before leaving the Reserve Bank to become the Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat in Singapore between 2012 and 2018. Alan is moderating the Economic State of the World panel.

Dr Heekyung (Jo) Min - Executive Vice-President and head of Corporate Social Responsibility of CJ CheilJedang in South Korea. She holds an MBA from Columbia University, a Ph.D. from Seoul School of Integrated Sciences and Technologies (aSSIST) and was awarded the UNESCO Certification of Appreciation for her commitment to improving girls’ education. Dr Min is contributing to the Sustainable Future panel.

Anna Curzon - Chief Product Officer at accounting software platform Xero. Anna has more than 20 years' experience in finance and technology including as General Manager Internet Banking at ASB Bank, and General Manager Digital First at Spark New Zealand. She became a member of the APEC Business Advisory Council for New Zealand in January 2021 and served on the Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Council from 2018 to 2020. Anna’s panel will discuss the Opportunities of Transformation, from a technology and innovation perspective.

Rachel Taulelei - Prominent business leader and a strong advocate for the Māori economy and sustainability in the food and beverage sector. Rachel founded sustainable seafood company Yellow Brick Road in 2006, served as CEO of Māori-owned food and beverage company Kono and co-founded business design and brand strategy firm, Oho. She presently chairs the APEC Business Advisory Council and the Wellington Regional Stadium Trust. Rachel’s panel will be discussing the sustainability imperative.

Diane Wang - Founder, Chairperson, and CEO at DHgate, one of the leading B2B e-commerce marketplaces in China. Diane is also Convenor of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) Inclusion Working Group. Diane will join Fraser Whinerary on the panel discussing recovery with and post Covid-19.

Shiro Armstrong - Associate Professor of economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy in the College of Asia and the Pacific at The Australian National University. Shiro is Director of the Australia-Japan Research Centre, Editor of the East Asia Forum and Director of the East Asian Bureau of Economic Research. Shiro will be contributing to the conversation around digital trade.

Hafimi Abdul Haadii - Executive Director of LVK Group of Companies. Her formative years were spent in Brunei, New Zealand and Australia. She has been an Appointed Member of the Legislative arm of Brunei Darussalam since 2016 and is the Chairperson of the Competition Commission of Brunei Darussalam since 2018. A champion for young entrepreneurs, Hafimi is a founding member of the Young Entrepreneurs Association of Brunei and helped start ASEAN-China Young Entrepreneurs Forum. Hafimi will be joining Shiro Armstrong on the panel discussing digital trade.

The APEC CEO Summit 2021 will focus on five themes:

The state of the world with and post Covid: economic recovery, trade and protectionism.

The Digital Disruption Opportunity: digital transformation, technology and innovation, and the importance of digital equity.

The Primacy of Trust: ESG (environmental, social, governance) – the next focus for business, and business as a force for good.

The Future of Energy: clean technology, renewable energy, and energy transition including hydrogen.

The Sustainability Imperative: sustainable growth, climate change, food sustainability and provenance.

The Summit is being supported by Premier Partners: PwC (Knowledge Partner), Contact Energy, Fonterra, Microsoft, and Westpac NZ.

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