Grant Willis
Chief Executive Officer – Asteron Life
Grant brings over 30 years of experience in both life and general insurance. He has held a variety of senior leadership roles within Asteron Life and the Suncorp Group since joining in 2011, including Executive General Manager, Head of Life and Chief Financial Officer. As well as being CEO of Asteron Life, he sits on the leadership team of Resolution Life Australasia.
Earlier in his career, Grant held senior finance roles at AIG, ASB Bank, Sovereign, and Colonial Fiji. He currently serves as a Director of the Financial Services Council (FSC) New Zealand and is a member of the FSC Life Chief Executives Forum.
Grant holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Auckland, is a Chartered Accountant (NZ), and has been a member of the NZ Institute of Directors since 2015.
Claire Sutton
Executive Manager – Life Portfolio & New Business
Claire has broad leadership and governance experience across life and general insurance, wealth management, and the not-for-profit sector in New Zealand. She is passionate about customer experience and service design.
In her current role, Claire is responsible for the performance of Asteron Life’s portfolio, including product development, pricing, underwriting, and customer onboarding. Her previous roles span customer insights, culture, operations, advocacy, change leadership, HR, and communications, both in New Zealand and overseas.
Kathie Tutty
Chief Underwriter
Kathie has nearly 30 years of life insurance experience, with deep expertise in underwriting and senior leadership. She joined Asteron Life as Chief Underwriter in 2024, following senior roles at AIA and Partners Life.
Kathie leads Asteron Life’s underwriting strategy, performance, design of rules engines, and quality assurance – all with a strong focus on delivering customer-centric outcomes.
Kristy Redfern
Chief Risk Officer & Executive Manager Legal
Kristy has more than two decades of experience across legal, executive, and governance roles within financial services, insurance, law, energy, and sport, both in Australasia and internationally. Prior to joining Asteron Life, she led AIA’s Legal and Regulatory teams in both Australia and New Zealand and was named on the GC Powerlist and Elite Women.
Kristy is qualified to practice law in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, and is a Chartered Member of both the Australian and New Zealand Institutes of Directors. She has also served on the Boards of Hockey New Zealand, the Financial Services Council New Zealand and the Australian Science Media Board.
Scott Jensen
Executive Manager - Claims and Customer Solutions
Scott has over 17 years of experience in claims and customer service across the financial services sector in Australia and New Zealand. He has held leadership roles at Suncorp Insurance, Zurich Financial Services, and Asteron Life, where he most recently served as Claims Team Manager for the Northern Region.
In his current role, Scott oversees claims operations and customer service delivery across Asteron Life.
Stefan Azzopardi
Chief Financial Officer
Stefan is a seasoned senior executive with extensive experience in finance, risk, and leadership roles across the financial services industry including the insurance, retail and investment banking and credit card sectors.
Before joining Asteron Life, Stefan was CEO of Donaldson Brown Insurance Brokers and CFO/CRO at Southern Cross Health Society. He has also held executive roles at Westpac New Zealand, Southern Cross Group, and American Express across the Asia-Pacific region.
Stefan is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
Tony Arthur
Executive Manager – Life Distribution
Tony joined Asteron Life in March 2024 and brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in New Zealand’s banking and insurance industries. He currently leads Asteron Life’s distribution teams across Financial Adviser, Affinity, and Group risk channels.
Previously, Tony was Chief Commercial Officer at Partners Life, overseeing distribution, marketing, and product functions. He also held the role of National Sales Director – Retail Banking at the Bank of New Zealand.
Catherine Henshall
Appointed Actuary
Catherine is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries with over 25 years of experience in the life insurance industry, including more than 20 years in actuarial leadership roles. Her career includes leading major regulatory change programs such as global Solvency II and Australasian IFRS 17 implementations. She previously served as the Resolution Life Australasia People and Technical Actuarial Lead, and Appointed Actuary for Resolution Life New Zealand.