Board of Directors
Our board of directors bring a wealth of industry experience and knowledge to Momentum Life, providing principled and strategic governance to the business.
Martin Philipsen is the Non-executive Chairman of Momentum Life. He is an experienced director and senior executive with over 30 years’ experience in financial services, governance and leadership across New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom.
In his executive career, where Martin has been a Chief Risk Officer and a Chief Financial Officer, he has developed a deep understanding of risk management, strategic planning and financial & regulatory reporting.
Martin is a Chartered Accountant and a member of the NZ Institute of Directors.
Russell Howden is the Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director of Momentum Life. He has over 30 years’ experience in the life and general insurance industry. He began his insurance career in South Africa, holding senior executive positions with Capital Alliance Life, AA Life and AIG.
In July 2000 Russell founded the Australian life insurance company PrefSure Life, and ran it until March 2004. He then founded BlueInc Group, which today provides innovative direct life insurance solutions to over 100,000 clients in Australia and New Zealand.
Russell holds a Bachelor of Accounting Science from the University of South Africa, as well as a Diploma of Financial Services (Financial Planning) from the International Institute of Technology.
Thomas Grogan is a Non-Executive Director of Momentum Life. He has over 45 years of insurance industry experience across Australia & New Zealand. He recently retired from Hannover Re, where he began his career in 1972.
With a wealth of industry experience that spans Reinsurance, Group, Retail & Direct insurance, Thomas retired from Hannover Re as the General Manager of Business Development. Thomas oversaw the growth and profitability development of Hannover Re’s life business portfolio in Australia and New Zealand, including the acquisition of the company’s largest direct distribution client. He was also directly responsible for managing the underwriting, claims and actuarial pricing teams.
He became a qualified accountant in 1977 and completed an Advanced Management Program through the University of Hawaii.
Lloyd previously held senior executive positions with Bank of New Zealand, NAB and Westpac. In 2014 he joined China Construction Bank (NZ) as Deputy CEO. Here he won the 2017 INFINZ award for “EY Debt Deal of the Year”.
He is a certified member of INFINZ and a member of the NZ Institute of Directors. Lloyd previously served as chairman of the NZ Financial Markets Association Board and as a board member for the NZ Chamber of Commerce, Singapore.
Executive Team
Momentum Life has an experienced and diverse team of executives, each with a long history in the insurance industry and their respective fields.
