KEY POINTS:
He may be working in high-stakes banking in Europe nowadays, but Timaru-raised Anthony Wright has never forgotten his New Zealand roots.
An expert in IT security, disaster recovery and contingency planning, Wright is currently in charge of Business Continuity Planning for the large BNP Paribas Group, based in Rome, Italy.
"A few years ago I had the idea of creating an association whose main aim was information sharing among security experts in banking", he said.
"Since then, professionals belonging to major banking groups in Italy joined the association, whose name is ANSSAIF. More then 400 professionals receive our monthly newsletter.
"In 2004 the Italian Banking Association joined the association as a sponsor.
"ANSSAIF is being now invited to congresses and seminars, and recently I have been asked to appear on television to do interviews about the rising trend toward cybercrime - phishing, pharming, identity theft, etc."
Wright said the newsletter and documentation is mainly in Italian, but if banks or similar associations in New Zealand want to share experiences, he would be "very glad" to facilitate such sharing.
Although his name is very Anglo-Saxon, Wright's first language has been Italian since childhood.
Born to a British military family in Padua, Italy in 1946, Wright's family emigrated to New Zealand when he was an infant, settling in south Canterbury.
He returned to Rome to complete his schooling and stayed on in Italy, gaining qualifications in engineering and computer programming before entering the field of banking and commerce.
He doesn't forget his ties with New Zealand, either. Despite living in Europe since the early 50s, Wright decided to have his son educated at a boys' school in Christchurch, before going on to study mechanical engineering in Rome.
He said kiwi values are worth cherishing.
"Here in Europe, there are almost daily scandals, and corruption is rife - all of which has a detrimental effect on children growing up.
"The self-centred attitude I see among teenagers here is alarming. They all expect an easy life.
"I believe New Zealand is still a country that can give great opportunities to all those who want to 'produce' instead of 'waiting to receive' only", he said.
