Speakers

Niki Paramor

Founder and Director, Leftfield Investments

Niki is a founder and director of Leftfield Investments, a family-owned and run investment manager with a portfolio spanning real estate, private equity, listed equities, venture capital and social impact.

Before Leftfield, Niki held various roles in real estate funds management and development, with more than 15 years' experience across a range of asset classes.

Niki holds a Bachelor of Public Communications and a Certificate in Finance and Property Development from the University of Technology Sydney and Finsia.

Sarah Wells

Head of Family Advisory, Strategy Partners, Forsyth Barr

Sarah joined Forsyth Barr in August 2026 as Head of Family Advisory, Strategy Partners. She has more than a decade of experience as a strategic adviser to high-net-worth individuals, family businesses and family offices.

She helps families with the complexities of holding, building and transitioning private wealth, working closely with Forsyth Barr investment advisers and a family's wider advisory team on succession strategy, family governance, family office design and review, next-generation preparedness, family enterprise and agribusiness advisory, and business exit and liquidity planning.

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Otago and is a Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP). Before joining Forsyth Barr she worked in the private wealth team of a leading international law firm.

Ruth McKenzie

Host and Convenor, Family Capital Design Forum

Ruth McKenzie is the founder and convenor of the Family Capital Design Forum and principal of KenzieCo, an independent consultancy working across philanthropy, family office strategy and private capital.

She has spent much of her career working with private wealth, family offices, foundations and advisory firms across Australia and New Zealand, helping organisations build relationships, shape strategy and bring the right people together around complex questions of capital, governance and impact.

Ruth created the Forum to provide a practical, independent environment for families and family office leaders to explore how significant wealth is structured, governed and managed over time.

Arne Hilke

Founder, Apollinaris

As a next-generation member of a family enterprise, Arne Hilke understands firsthand the complexities of managing family wealth, navigating different expectations and making decisions with future generations in mind.

Drawing on his own family’s experience, Arne recognised that traditional wealth management models didn’t necessarily reflect the needs, priorities or ambitions of families like his own. Rather than accept the conventional approach, he set out to create something different.

Having previously led investment research covering more than US$100 billion in strategies for organisations including Morningstar and the New Zealand Stock Exchange, Arne combined his professional expertise with his personal experience to establish Apollinaris, an independent wealth management firm focused on the long-term success of families.

At the Family Capital Design Forum, Arne will share insights drawn from his own experience as a member of a family enterprise, exploring the practical realities of family wealth and the thinking behind creating a structure that better reflects a family’s needs and aspirations.

Hamish Edgar

Principal, Edgar Capital Family Office

Hamish Edgar manages the Edgar Capital Family Office which, alongside various private investments, supports a number of charitable organisations in New Zealand, particularly in the arts, sport, education and health.

His background spans law, investment banking and global portfolio management, including Russell McVeagh in Wellington, investment banking at First NZ Capital and hedge funds in London, before returning home in 2015 with his wife Victoria and their two daughters.

He then established Edgar Capital Family Office, which he continues to lead today.