Financial sector regulation
16 July 2010
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Chapman Tripp comments on the changes brought about by the Financial Advisers Act, including implications for AFAs and QFEs.
15 November 2011
Doing Business in New Zealand is a publication designed to provide the prospective investor with an introductory guide to the New Zealand legal framework as it applies to business. This chapter discusses the Reserve Bank of New Zealand; financial institutions; financial markets; raising finance; and repatriation of funds.
25 July 2011
Australian-regulated financial advisers will be exempt from the new financial services regulatory regime until 30 June 2013 so that they can continue to service their New Zealand-based clients while long-term arrangements for mutual “trans-Tasman” recognition are developed.
The Financial Advisers (Australian Licensees) Exemption Notice 2011 came into force on 1 July 2011. It exempts Australian licensees and their “specified representatives” from certain key provisions of the Financial Advisers Act 2008 (FAA) and the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008 (FSPA).
18 July 2011
Financial advisers can be more confident about what is expected of them in relation to their duty of care to clients as a result of the recent Armitage v Church case.
The decision is likely to form the benchmark for future cases under section 33 of the Financial Advisers Act as the Judge took the opportunity to comment extensively on the standard of care expected of competent financial planners and advisers.
This Brief Counsel draws some practical guidance from the judgment, including a suggestion that financial advisers revisit their disclaimers.
21 June 2011
The Ministry of Economic Development has released a discussion document on the fees and levies to fund the Financial Markets Authority, External Reporting Board, Companies Office and Insolvency and Trustee Service.
The amounts involved are significant, and the basis for calculation is contestable, so we recommend that you take the opportunity to have your say. Submissions are due by 5pm, 8 July.
16 July 2010
An updated draft Code of Professional Conduct for Authorised Financial Advisers (AFAs) has been released for consultation in the wake of the extensive amendments to the financial services regime. This is the final opportunity for stakeholders to comment on the Code before it is recommended to the Commissioner for Financial Advisers. Submissions are due before 5pm, Wednesday 21 July.
29 June 2010
Legislation passed last week to remedy defects in the new financial services regime represents a big improvement on the policy’s original design. But it has also added to the regime’s complexity, and compliance will require some skill and resource. This Brief Counsel describes in detail some of the key recent changes and how the new framework will apply.
11 June 2010
Eleventh hour substantial repairs to the Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill as reported back by the Commerce Committee this week will make the new regime much more workable, Chapman Tripp Partner Tim Williams said today.
29 April 2010
A tradition is developing that the Commerce Minister comes to the annual INFINZ awards dinner with something significant to say – and Simon Power didn’t disappoint last night. He confirmed the Government’s intention to move to a ‘Super Regulator’ for the financial markets, signalled that the concerns raised by Chapman Tripp and others regarding the new financial advisers regime will be addressed and outlined proposed changes to the KiwiSaver regime.
08 April 2010
Chapman Tripp Partner Tim Williams says proposed changes to the financial advisers regime will still hinder the sector and a workable solution must be found.
07 April 2010
Last ditch attempts to correct the flaws in the new financial advisers framework have failed to address many of the potentially damaging consequences for the financial services sector - and the much wider economy. The last hope is that the Commerce Select Committee or the Minister of Commerce will call for new changes to be drafted. The Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill and the subsequent Supplementary Order Paper do not resolve many of the problems identified in the Financial Advisers Act and the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act.
25 March 2010
A new regulatory framework for “broking services” under the Financial Advisers Act has been proposed through a Supplementary Order Paper. Submissions are due on 15 April 2010.
04 March 2010
Four Cabinet papers on the regulations to implement the Financial Advisers Act (FAA) and the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act (FSPA) have been publicly released. This Brief Counsel summarises the contents of the key Cabinet decisions, and a further Ministry of Consumer Affairs discussion document on reserve dispute resolution levies.
12 February 2010
The Securities Commission has recently released a QFE Adviser Business Statement Guide to assist entities who wish to become Qualifying Financial Entities (QFEs). An Adviser Business Statement (ABS) is a two part document outlining the QFE’s business structure and its compliance and governance practices. It must be submitted to the Securities Commission as part of the application for QFE status, any time from now until 30 July 2010.
29 January 2010
The Securities Commission says it recognises that financial advisers are confused about the Financial Advisers Act definition of a "financial planning service" and it is working on giving the definition more clarity.
21 December 2009
The Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill (the Bill) was introduced to Parliament last week. The Bill makes technical amendments to the Financial Advisers Act 2008 and Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008. Outside of any modifications to the regime which may emerge from the Capital Markets Development Taskforce report, submitting on the Bill may provide the last opportunity to seek changes to these Acts.
29 October 2009
The Code Committee for Financial Advisers has released a consultation paper on the proposed minimum standards of competence, knowledge and skills for Authorised Financial Advisers (AFAs). This is the first of its consultation papers on the minimum professional standards that will apply to AFAs once the Financial Advisers Act 2008 comes into force.
27 August 2009
Commerce Minister Simon Power’s acknowledgment that the Financial Advisors Act and Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act need to be changed is encouraging, says Chapman Tripp Partner Tim Williams.
31 July 2009
Financial advisers need to be aware that the new Financial Advisers Act will deny them the protection of operating through a limited liability company, making them personally liable for any financial advice they may give.
14 July 2009
Under the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008 most people who offer a financial service to members of the public will have to be a member of a dispute resolution scheme. Options are to join an applicable industry-led scheme which has been approved by the Minister of Consumer Affairs or to join the Government’s Reserve Scheme. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has released a discussion paper on the Reserve Scheme and draft guidelines for Approved Dispute Resolution Schemes (ADRS). Submissions are due by Friday 31 July 2009.
14 July 2009
The Securities Commission wants submissions by 30 July 5.30pm on the regulation and supervision of financial advisers, inparticular Qualifying Financial Entities (QFEs) under the Financial Advisers Act. The aim is to ensure that the same standards are met and maintained by advisers performing similar roles, regardless of whether or not a QFE is responsible for them. It is anticipated that the first applications for QFE status will be processed from the last quarter of 2009 and for potential Authorised Financial Advisers (AFAs) from mid 2010.
09 July 2009
Submissions are called for by 12 August on the disclosure regulations to be implemented under the Financial Advisers Act 2008. This Brief Counsel comments on the proposed disclosure regime, currently scheduled to come into force in December 2010, and identifies one area in particular where more detail may be desirable – namely, disclosure by Qualifying Financial Entities.
09 July 2009
The Securities Commission, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and the Ministry of Economic Development (MED) have all recently released discussion documents on regulations to support the Financial Advisers Act 2008 (FAA) and Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008 (FSPA), both of which are scheduled to be fully in force by the end of 2010. There is an important opportunity in this consultation process to influence and to improve the shape of the new regime.
26 February 2008
The new mandatory investment adviser and broker disclosure regime comes into force on 29 February 2008. From that date, advisers and brokers must give a “disclosure statement” to each client who is a member of the public mostly before they provide investment advice or accept investment money or property from that client.