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Monday 28 June 2021 08:00 - 09:00

Dr Patrick Sun Cheong Poon, lead sponsor of the IFoA’s 2021 Thought Leadership Programme, will be discussing his motivation for supporting the new events programme with Immediate Past President Tan Suee Chieh. The IFoA’s Thought Leadership Programme seeks to reposition the IFoA at the centre of key societal debates, providing a forum and voice for actuaries to address the social and strategic issues confronting the profession. 

Dr Poon will share his views on the value of thought leadership and why the IFoA’s Thought Leadership Programme is so important for the future development of the profession. Dr Poon is also a generous supporter of the IFoA Foundation, the independent charitable arm of the IFoA, which aims to establish a fund in Greater China and South-East Asia to provide bursaries for actuarial students at eligible IFoA-accredited universities. Dr Poon will reflect on what he aims to deliver through his philanthropic partnership with the IFoA so that the Foundation can achieve its goal of ‘Actuaries supporting others’. He will be joined by Kartina Tahir-Thomson, IFoA Foundation Chair.

Patrick Poon

Dr Poon graduated from King’s College in 1967 and joined the Hong Kong Civil Service after graduating from the University of Hong Kong in 1970. He left the Civil Service in 1972 to join the life insurance industry as an actuarial trainee at AIA in HK. In 1975 he became the first HK-born citizen to obtain the professional qualification of Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries in the UK. Later he also obtained the fellowships of actuaries in Australia, China, Taiwan and the USA. He was Past President of the HK Actuarial Society and Past President of the Actuarial Society of Malaysia. During his 40-year career with the life insurance industry, he served as General Manager and CEO at many international insurance companies, including AIA Insurance, Aetna, ING Insurance, ING An Tai Life Insurance and China Pacific Life Insurance Company.

Dr Patrick Poon is Chairman of Shing Cheong Charitable Foundation Limited and Harvest SCP Group Company Limited, his family owned investment enterprise. He is a Council member of The University of Hong Kong, and Deputy Chairman of Foundation for Educational Development & Research and Chairman of HKU Convocation. 

In 1984 he won 'The Hong Kong Ten Outstanding Youth Persons Award' and 'Personality of the Year Award in Asia Insurance Industry' in 2000. 

Dr Poon is a well-known philanthropist, particularly in the areas of tertiary education and community service.

Kartina Tahir-Thomson

Kartina is a Director in PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Insurance Regulation Directorate, assisting companies with various aspects of UK, European and international regulation. She has 20 years experience in the insurance market, specialising in risk and capital in general insurance.  

Kartina is a Fellow of the IFoA and sits on Council and the Audit and Risk Committee. She chairs the IFoA Foundation and has seen it progress dramatically since its inception in 2019. She has also sat on the Board of the Actuarial Association of Europe and the IFoA General Insurance Board. Kartina also gives her time to the Worshipful Company of Actuaries and is passionate about volunteering for the actuarial profession.

Event organiser

Contact Niki Park for more information.

Niki.Park@actuaries.org.uk

020 7632 2152