A telecommunications and technology expert with extensive overseas experience has joined the board of the Bermuda Business Development Agency.

Fiona Beck, who hails from New Zealand, has been a non-executive director and board member on several telecoms companies in Bermuda, Cayman Islands and Mauritius.

She is deputy chairwoman of KeyTech and chairwoman of the telecommunication group of the America’s Cup Bermuda Ltd.

Ms Beck will act as a liaison between the BDA and the telecommunication and technology industry.

“I am delighted Fiona has agreed to join our board as she brings a very different experience than most of our other current board members who are primarily from a financial services specialism,” said Caroline Foulger, chairwoman of the BDA board.

“Fiona’s career has been focused on technology and telecommunication and we believe these areas may hold good potential for Bermuda in the medium term as a diversifier for our economy. With her involvement in the America’s Cup, she also brings an important synergy between the two operations over the key next two years.”

Beck is the past president and CEO of Southern Cross Cable Network, a multinational telecommunication company providing internet connectivity from Australia and New Zealand to the West Coast of the US. She is also past president of Sub Optic, the international not-for-profit organisation that acts as industry body for the global submarine cable industry.

“I am delighted to have been invited to join the BDA board. It’s an exciting opportunity to help Bermuda develop as a base for fintech, ICT and technology,” said Ms Beck. “The island is strategically very well positioned to be the Atlantic hub for submarine cable corridors, allowing cable systems to capitalise on Bermuda’s unique location, infrastructure and commercial benefits.”

She noted cutting-edge areas of potential economic development include cloud computing, data centres, fintech, information management, application development and research and development — all sectors in which global tech companies are rapidly investing.

“These companies need stable jurisdictions to locate in that also have an outstanding commercial value proposition, and Bermuda fits that bill,” she added. “Among its many other advantages, Bermuda offers a wealth of talent in fintech, ICT and technology. We can tap into that talent to diversify the international business sector and capture this new generation of thinking, while providing opportunities for Bermudians to grow in the IT and STEM space.”

Ms Beck, who has been an island resident for 15 years, also chairs the Bermuda arts and culture group, The Chewstick Foundation, and in her spare time is a keen deep-sea fishing aficionado who serves as secretary of the Bermuda Anglers Club. She holds two world records, both for Almaco jack — one a 37-pounder caught on 12-pound test line, the other 27 pounds on 16-pound test.

“I got both records here in Bermuda on Challenger Bank,” she said. “I am a very keen angler from my childhood days, and it’s another reason I enjoy living in Bermuda so much.”