EML Payments non-executive director Kirstin Ferguson has stood down from the board, effective this week. Ferguson joined the EML board in 2018 and is the chair of the culture, governance and nominations committee.

 

FINSIA has returned to New Zealand as an education provider, with the launch of its Professional Banking Fundamentals qualification, which it claims is a first of its kind in NZ. FINSIA said BNZ has already committed to the program. The Australian version of the program has 5000 practitioners currently enrolled.

 

Non-bank lending start-up TechLend has launched with what it hopes is a product that fills a gap in the mortgage market. It is offering bridging loans with terms of up to six months and no repayments until maturity. TechLend CEO is Aaron Bassin, the former head of strategy at MoneyMe. The company also offers commercial property loans.

 

Pepper Money has appointed Barry Saoud as its new general manager mortgages and commercial lending. Saoud is moving from Aussie, where he spent 11 years and held positions including general counsel and head of products. He has also worked at GE Capital, HSBC and Norton Rose Fulbright.

 

New Zealand's Parliamentary Finance and Expenditure Select Committee is launching an inquiry into cryptocurrencies. In a Facebook post, the chair of the committee, Duncan Webb, said the inquiry would aim to: look into the environmental impact of ‘mining’ crypto-currencies; identify risks to users and traders, identify risks crypto-currencies pose to the monetary system and financial stability, including tax implications, in New Zealand; establish how crypto-currencies are used by criminal organisation; and establish whether means exist to regulate crypto-currencies, either by sovereign states, central banks, or multi-lateral co-operation.