Board of Directors
Barry Whiteside - Independent Chairman
CF, MA (CA), BA (Fiji)
Barry is a Fiji citizen and is the recently retired Governor of the Reserve Bank of Fiji. Barry joined the Central Monetary Authority of Fiji (the forerunner of the Reserve Bank of Fiji) in March 1977 and was the first staff member to achieve 40 years’ service in the bank in March 2017. Having held many senior positions at the Bank since 1991 including; economics and research, foreign reserves management and exchange rates, currency, administrative operations, domestic markets, exchange control, and financial institutions supervision, Barry is highly skilled in Financial Services. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Fellow of the Fiji Institute of Bankers, and President of the Fiji Badminton Association. Mr. Whiteside has also been awarded the Companion of the Order of Fiji Medal for his work and contributions towards the economy of Fiji.
Barry represented Fiji in Hockey and Badminton and managed Fiji Badminton teams to two Commonwealth Games, two Pacific Games, and three Oceania Championships. Barry is an Independent Director of KFL.
Glen Craig - Director
MAICD
Glen is a Vanuatu citizen. He is the Managing Partner of the Specialist South Pacific Corporate Advisory firm, Pacific Advisory. He is a Licensed Securities Dealer and holds a CSP Licence from the Vanuatu Securities Commission.
Glen has on extensive private sector background in Climate Finance, Policy Development, Tourism, Agriculture and Property Industry with practical hands on knowledge of the intricacies of doing business in a Pacific context. He offers a broad range of advisory and strategic services to Governments, Financial Institutions, Corporates, Regional Agencies, and Institutional Investors.
Glen has resided in Vanuatu for 16 years and sits on numerous Private and Public Boards and Committees including the current Chairperson of the Vanuatu Business Resilience Council and on the Board of the Vanuatu Surfing Association. Glen is passionate about driving development in the South Pacific through direct investment in developing countries.
Peter Dixon - Director
SA Fin, MAICD
Peter is an Australian citizen with over four decades of experience in banking and finance, primarily in Papua New Guinea and Fiji. His extensive management background in the banking sector has provided him with a deep understanding of local commercial conditions and a vast network of regional business contacts. His expertise encompasses finance and management, business and strategic planning, and staff training and development.
Peter’s most recent role was as the Managing Director of Credit Corporation (Fiji) Pte Ltd (CCFL), where he served on contract until his retirement on 31 March, 2023. While with CCFL he served as Chair of the Fiji Finance Companies Association and until recently, was on the Board of Credit Corporation (Vanuatu) Pty Ltd for several years.
Before joining the Credit Corporation Group, Peter worked for four years as the General Manager of Corporate Banking at BSP (Bank of South Pacific), commencing in January 2007. His leadership contributed to record lending growth during his tenure in charge of the Corporate area at BSP.
Peter is a Senior Associate member of FINSIA (Financial Services Institute of Australasia) and a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Peter is a Director of KFL.
Griffon Emose - Director
BCom, Grad Dip App Fin & Inv., CFA
A Fiji citizen, Griffon is the Managing Director of Kontiki Capital. He was previously the Manager Public Awareness & Investor Education at the Capital Markets Development Authority and an economist at the Ministry of Finance where he served with the Economic Policy Analysis Unit and the Financial Management Reform Project. He is licensed by the RBF as an Investment Adviser Representative and serves as a Director of the South Pacific Stock Exchange and on several other Boards. Past Directorships include for Fiji Gas and Pleass Global.
Griffon graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Auckland, New Zealand and completed the Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance & Investment through the Securities Institute of Australia (now the Financial Services Institute of Australasia). He is a member of the CFA Institute and earned the CFA Charter in 2005.
Desmond Kearse - Director
Dip Man, NZCC
Desmond Kearse is both an Australian and NZ Citizen. Having served as the Head of Product Management at Bank South Pacific Ltd in Papua New Guinea from 2008 to 2013, playing a pivotal role in expanding the bank’s operations by establishing the Product Management SBU to manage retail banking products including cards and electronic channels with support systems, policies and procedures.
His experience also extends to Indonesia, where he worked as the Director of Consulting Services at Arthur Andersen, focusing on IT business consulting for major banking clients.
In addition, he was the Business Development Manager at PT Mincom Indoservices in Jakarta, Indonesia, managing accounts for major mining companies. In Thailand, he also served as the Head of Operations at Sitca MBF Limited, overseeing the establishment of card operations and ensuring compliance with MasterCard International and IT system requirements.
Desmond’s extensive experience in Papua New Guinea included roles such as National Sales & Marketing Manager/Contracts Manager at Datec (PNG) Ltd and Advisor Billing & Credit Operations at PNG Post and Telecommunications Corporation. Desmond is a Director of KFL.
Chirk Yam - Independent Director
BCom, CA (ANZ), CA (Fiji)
A Fiji Citizen, Chirk is a graduate of the University of Auckland. His career spanned 37 years in the Chartered Accountancy profession commencing in PricewaterhouseCooper’s predecessor firm of Coopers & Lybrand in Auckland, New Zealand before transferring to Fiji. He retired as a Senior Partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers in December 2015.
Over his career he has overseen liquidations, receiverships, IPOs, business start‐ups and insurance claims while providing consultancy advice on mergers & acquisitions to a broad cross-section of clients in the retail, manufacturing and financial sectors of the economy. He was one of the initial representatives licensed by the Reserve Bank of Fiji as an Investment Adviser. Chirks’ other area of expertise is in audit and taxation. Chirk is an Independent Director of KFL.