Indeed, the new Velocity program is quite generous. IMHO there are only two things that are missing:
- upgrades with miles on V Australia
(Every mature FFP allows you to use miles for intercontinental upgrades.)
- lifetime membership (see Qantas)
(Of course there are other things that are way better than with Qantas, for example. It is just that these two aspects have a high priority for me.)

Regarding the "new little alliance", it would make sense for Velocity to get a partner in Europe. The rest of the world is covered surprisingly well given the number of FFP partners. (Of course, you could also have an airline from Africa and South America on board, but it seems to me that this would be asking a bit too much.)