Bravura Solutions has appointed two new Asia Pacific directors and secured a $100 million senior facility from HSBC to support its global expansion. Nicole Kennedy has been promoted to managing director, APAC, based in Melbourne. She joined Bravura in 2021 as head of Sonata Alta and has held several leadership positions since. Kennedy previously worked at CareSuper and VicSuper (now Aware Super). Shawn Blackmore has been appointed director of growth, APAC. He brings over 25 years of financial services experience and was previously chief retirement officer at AustralianSuper between 2022 and 2024. The HSBC facility will enable Bravura to pursue investment and innovation as it continues its international growth. HSBC's Ranga Ediriwickrama said the flexible financing will support Bravura's global ambitions whilst meeting customer needs.

Bravura appoints global and APAC execs for next growth phase. Reading Time: 3 mins read Bravura has made three senior appointments in its APAC leadership team including a chief executive for global wealth. Chris Spencer has been appointed as chief executive for global wealth at the financial software company. Spencer joined in 2022 and previously led the EMEA team at the firm's London office with which he will continue to interact. In his new role, he will ensure the strategic alignment of the global wealth businesses including the sharing of expertise, technological innovation and client insight across teams. Meanwhile, Nicole Kennedy also benefited from an internal promotion. She has been appointed as managing director for APAC as well as joining the global executive leadership team of Bravura. The statement announcing her appointment also stressed the importance of collaboration across global teams, to support growth and innovation across APAC. Kennedy joined Bravura in 2021, where she previously served as managing director of the 'Wealth & Advice' division. "Her client focus, commitment to excellence, strong leadership and operational expertise have helped guide Bravura through a significant period of change while building the foundations for future growth," read the Bravura statement. Finally, Shawn Blackmore joins Bravura as the inaugural director of growth for APAC. Client relationships and growth will be a focus for Blackmore, notably to expand the reach of the Sonata Alta and Midwinter products. These are superannuation and advice platforms to unify systems, teams, and data. Blackmore is joining Bravura from 'The Thinkery', a boutique strategic advisory firm where he was a partner, and has 25 years experience in financial services. He also spent almost 17 years at AustralianSuper until 2024, where he led the development of its retirement income strategy. Overall, Bravura flagged it wants a more connected global wealth business to grow its reach. In the words of Bravura CEO, Colin Greenhill, "enabling greater collaboration and information flow between all regions, [allows us] to respond even faster to our clients' needs and create greater opportunities for business expansion". Earlier this year, Bravura partnered with Future Group. The latter launched app-based personalised retirement advice tools in partnership with Midwinter, targeting scalable, lower-cost member engagement across its six brands. The ASX-listed financial software company also joined the UK's AIM start-up index two months ago.

Bravura names new APAC leaders to boost global wealth. Mon, 28th Sep 2026 (Today) Bravura has made three senior appointments to its Asia Pacific leadership team, in a move that also links the region more closely with the group's global wealth business. Chris Spencer has been appointed Chief Executive Officer, Global Wealth; Nicole Kennedy has become Managing Director, APAC; and Shawn Blackmore has joined as Director of Growth, APAC. The appointments reshape leadership across the business, which supplies software to wealth management, life insurance and funds administration firms. The changes are intended to strengthen connections between Bravura's operations in Asia Pacific and Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Spencer takes on group-wide oversight of the wealth business after serving as Chief Executive Officer, Wealth, EMEA. Already a member of the executive leadership team, he is expected to work with regional leaders in both APAC and EMEA. Kennedy, who joined Bravura in 2021, will lead the APAC business and join the global executive leadership team. Her remit covers the company's regional operations as it seeks tighter coordination across business lines. Blackmore joins in a newly created role focused on growth in Asia Pacific. He will oversee client relationships and identify commercial opportunities across Bravura's APAC operations, including Sonata Alta and Midwinter. Regional focus The management changes reflect a broader effort to align Bravura's wealth activities across markets. The company operates in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Europe, Africa and Asia, with more than 950 staff. Its software is used by financial institutions across wealth management and administration. Institutions using its systems oversee trillions of dollars in assets, giving the leadership changes significance beyond a routine management reshuffle. In APAC, Kennedy's promotion puts an internal executive in charge of one of Bravura's most important regional businesses. She has played a central role in building the business in the region and guiding it through a period of change. Her expanded responsibilities suggest Bravura wants closer links between regional execution and group strategy. By placing the APAC leader on the global executive leadership team, it is tightening reporting lines between local management and central leadership. Executive moves Spencer's appointment gives Bravura a single executive overseeing the global wealth operation. He brings two decades of experience in business transformation, growth, client engagement and operations across financial services. That background may prove significant as software suppliers to wealth managers face pressure to update products, manage costs and respond to changing regulation. Bravura's description of the role suggests Spencer will focus on strategy across regions rather than day-to-day local management. Blackmore joins from AustralianSuper, where he served as Chief Retirement Officer and led development of the fund's retirement income strategy. His career has also included roles in superannuation, fintech, private wealth and consulting. That mix of experience suggests Bravura is placing greater emphasis on client access and sector knowledge as it seeks to expand in Asia Pacific. The new growth role also indicates the company sees scope to cross-sell products and services across its existing customer base. Leadership view Colin Greenhill, Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, outlined the rationale for the changes. "These appointments strengthen our leadership and growth focus, while creating deeper connections across our global Wealth business. By enabling greater collaboration and information flow between all regions, we will be able to respond even faster to our clients' needs and create greater opportunities for business expansion," Greenhill said. Bravura has been positioning itself around software for institutions handling investments, retirement savings and insurance administration. In that context, stronger links between product, regional leadership and sales could help the group present a more unified offering to clients operating across multiple markets. The creation of a dedicated APAC growth role is also notable because it separates regional commercial development from overall operational leadership. That structure allows the Managing Director to focus on delivery and organisation while another executive concentrates on winning new business and broadening existing accounts. For clients in Asia Pacific, the immediate effect is likely to be seen in account management and executive oversight rather than product changes. Internally, the appointments create a clearer division between global wealth leadership, regional management and growth responsibilities. Blackmore's role will cover opportunities across Bravura's APAC businesses, including Sonata Alta and Midwinter.