National Financial Wellbeing Summit 2025
The Mint, Sydney I Thursday, 6 November
Building an integrated approach to financial wellbeing
Join leaders from government, business, community, education and academia at the National Financial Wellbeing Summit - a one day event dedicated to shaping a shared approach to financial wellbeing in Australia.
With Australians facing economic challenges including cost of living, digital disruption, inequality, and global uncertainty, now is the time to work together across sectors to prioritise financial wellbeing.
Together we will explore:
strategies and approaches to help support people at every life stage
policy and systems level actions to reduce exclusion and increase economic security
how financial wellbeing intersects with broader wellbeing domains including mental, physical, digital, community and environmental health
how to improve access to financial education, tools and trusted support
insights from programs and innovative approaches delivering outcomes in communities, schools and other learning environments
With keynote speakers and expert panels, the Summit will highlight practical solutions and pathways to build a better financial future for all Australians.
Financial Wellbeing Summit 2025: Keynote speakers and panellists
Hon Dr Daniel Mulino, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services (pre recorded address)
Born in Brindisi, Italy, Daniel was a young child when he moved with his family to Australia. He grew up in Canberra and completed his first degrees – arts and law – at the ANU. He then completed a Master of Economics (University of Sydney) and a PhD in economics from Yale.
He lectured at Monash University, was an economic adviser in the Gillard government and was a Victorian MP from 2014 to 2018. As Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer of Victoria, Daniel helped deliver major infrastructure projects and developed innovative financing structures for community projects.
Alan Kirkland, ASIC Commissioner
Alan commenced as an ASIC Commissioner for a five-year term on 20 November 2023.
He has more than 20 years experience in consumer protection, social services, law reform and justice in the public and not-for-profit sectors.
Most recently, Alan was the CEO at CHOICE where he represented the interests of Australian consumers for more than 11 years.
Effie Zahos, 9News Money Editor
Effie is one of Australia’s leading personal finance commentators with more than two decades of experience helping Australians make the most of their money. She is a regular money expert on Channel 9s Today show and on radio stations across Australia.
Effie is the 9News Money Editor at the 9Network where she works across 9News, A Current Affair, Today, and Today Extra; and an independent director of InvestSMART and Ecstra Foundation.
Caroline Stewart, CEO, Ecstra Foundation
Caroline is a philanthropic leader with over 25 years of corporate, legal, financial services, governance and not-for-profit experience.
Caroline is the inaugural CEO of Ecstra. Prior to joining she led the UBS Australia Foundation, a corporate private ancillary foundation. She has worked with multiple stakeholders across the community, financial services, corporate, government and charity sectors and was a banking and finance lawyer.
Dr Cassandra Goldie AO, CEO, ACOSS and Adjunct Professor with UNSW Sydney
Dr Cassandra Goldie AO has held senior roles in the NFP and public sectors, including with the Australian Human Rights Commission, where she worked on the inquiry into pay equity and paid parental leave, Darwin Community Legal Service and Legal Aid in WA.
Cassandra is Co-Chair of the ACOSS and UNSW Sydney Poverty and Inequality Partnership and a member of the Federal Government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee.
Miles Larbey, Head of Financial Consumer Protection, Education & Inclusion Unit, OECD
Miles Larbey is the Head of the Financial Consumer Protection, Education & Inclusion Unit at the OECD. In this role, he is responsible for the OECD’s research, policy analysis and international co-operation to support policymakers and other stakeholders in developing effective financial consumer protection, financial education and financial inclusion policies. This includes supporting the OECD Working Party on Financial Consumer Protection, Education & Inclusion; FinCoNet, an international network of market conduct supervisors; and OECD International Network on Financial Education (OECD/INFE).
Roslyn Russell, Hon. Professor, Financial Wellbeing, RMIT University
Dr Roslyn Russell, Honorary Professor at RMIT University and founder of Wellbeing Research, has spent nearly 25 years studying Australians’ financial capability and financial wellbeing. Her work, largely commissioned by government, finance, and community sectors, has informed policy and practice to promote fairness, equity and inclusion.
Roslyn’s research covers financial challenges experienced by women, people with disabilities, young and older Australians, people living on low incomes, and survivors of family violence and economic abuse.
Leah Bennett, Managing Director, First Nations Foundation
A proud Wiradjuri woman with a hugely successful career spanning over 14 years, Leah is a long-standing Board Director for First Nations Foundation, drawing on a depth of experience across superannuation and wider financial services, modern slavery, financial crimes, data breaches, industry legislation, risk and compliance to provide leadership and guidance to the Foundation.
Originally one of the only First Nations women working in superannuation, Leah has worked with the Foundation as it evolved from a team of two, to an industry-leading organisation of over 15 ambitious and highly experienced staff.
Roset Khair, Vice President, Economics and Business Educators NSW
Roset Khair is the Vice President of Economics and Business Educators NSW and has convened and presented many of their Commerce & Business Studies courses around assessment, literacy, and creative approaches to financial literacy learning. She is also the NSW Affiliate for Business Educators Australasia, the professional organisation representing all states relating to Business and Economics education in schools. Currently she is also the Head of Teaching and Learning at Unity Grammar. Prior to this she worked in corporate banking and in the legal field.
Xavier O'Halloran, CEO, Super Consumers Australia
Xavier O'Halloran is the founding CEO of Super Consumers Australia. He is a consumer advocate whose role it is to keep industry and regulators focussed on the needs of consumers in financial services markets. He works with a team of consumer finance experts to better understand how people engage with these markets and how these markets can be designed to meet consumer expectations.
Janet Liu, Group Head of Social Impact and Community Partnerships, ANZ
Janet Liu is an accomplished sustainability professional with over 15 years’ experience in ESG matters. Janet is responsible for the strategy, governance, delivery and reporting of ANZ’s social sustainability programs.
Janet is a trained partnership broker, a Director of Australia’s largest digital inclusion charity Good Things Australia, and the Chair of Business for Societal Impact Steering Committee.
Phil Gardner, CEO and Director, Australian Business and Community Network (ABCN)
Phil is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of the Australian Business and Community Network (ABCN), a not-for-profit supporting educational and career outcomes for students in low socio-economic schools across Australia.
He began his career in the finance sector, first with Macquarie Bank in Sydney then working for Goldman Sachs in London, Singapore and Sydney. He joined NSW Treasury in 2015 where his final position was as Deputy Secretary, Commercial and Procurement Group.
Gerard Brody, Commissioner and Chairperson, Essential Services Commission Victoria
Gerard was appointed commissioner and chairperson of the Victorian Essential Services Commission in August 2024. A leading consumer rights lawyer, Gerard has deep consumer policy, regulatory and legal experience, and a longstanding passion for improving the consumer experience.
Gerard is a former CEO of the Consumer Action Law Centre, an independent, not-for-profit consumer organisation.
Georgie Harman AO, CEO, Beyond Blue
Georgie Harman is one of Australia’s most influential and trusted figures in the mental health sector.
As the CEO of Beyond Blue, she believes passionately in doing better for people and communities affected by mental health issues and suicide. Like for most of us, it’s personal. Georgie has steered Beyond Blue through significant change – expanding its services and supports, strengthening advocacy and community connection, and harnessing digital innovation.
Dr Tracey West, Financial Education Manager, Ecstra Foundation
Dr Tracey West is a financial literacy and financial education expert with over 11 years’ experience investigating consumer knowledge and behaviours. Tracey joined Ecstra from Griffith University, where she was a lecturer in behavioural finance in the Griffith Business School. In this role she managed many funded projects, established the behavioural science major, developed finance curriculum and was involved in student competitions and committees.
Tracey is a strong advocate of accessible financial education and for informed policymaking. As an established expert, she is regularly invited to comment on financial literacy matters on panels, podcasts, radio and print media, including The Conversation.
Michelle Wright, Deputy Head of Communications and Education, RBA
Michelle currently works in the Reserve Bank of Australia’s Communications Department, focussing on the role of central bank communication in monetary policy transmission and broader economic literacy outcomes. This includes work to promote the study of economics in secondary schools as the Executive Lead of the Bank's Public Education program.
She also has experience in research on the international monetary and financial system, commodity and foreign exchange markets, and the Australian banking sector and housing markets.
James Kirby, Associate Editor - Wealth, The Australian
With a career spanning decades of expertise in business, economics, and investment journalism, James is currently the Associate Editor - Wealth at The Australian and host of the popular twice-weekly ‘Money Puzzle’ podcast. He is a former managing editor and co-founder of Business Spectator and Eureka Report and has previously worked at the Australian Financial Review and the South China Morning Post.
James is currently a Non Executive Director of Ecstra Foundation.