The NZ Financial Markets Authority (FMA) continues to build its leadership teams and has also expanded its professional conduct committee for advisers.

New appointments to the leadership team are Nick Williams as Acting Head of Enforcement,

Duncan Smith as Head of Business Performance and Diane Maxwell as Head of Stakeholder Management.

Mr Williams has been “loaned” to the authority by lawyers Meredith Connell, where he is a partner. His role at the FMA will be to overseas the management and development of the authority’s enforcement services.

FMA CEO Sean Hughes says Meredith Connell is also seconding two other litigation lawyers during the coming months to help with establishing the enforcement service.

Mr Smith is currently COO at NZ law firm Minter Ellison Rudd Watts. He will be in charge of the authority’s human resources, finance, IT and administration services.

Ms Maxwell is currently Head of Brand and Corporate Affairs at BNZ, and her role at the FMA will be to manage the authority’s communications activities.

The FMA has also appointed Dimity Kingsford-Smith from the University of NSW to the Code Committee for Authorised Financial Advisers.

Professor Kingsford-Smith is an expert in corporations law, the regulation of securities and financial products, corporate governance and the regulation of online investing, and is also Chairman of the Financial Planning Association’s Conduct Review Commission and a member of the Australian Financial Advice Advisory Panel.

She has also advised the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and consulted to the Canadian Investment Dealers Association.

Mr Hughes says her experience and expertise will be invaluable and “help foster closer trans-Tasman relations”.

The Chairman of the code committee, Ross Butler, has been reappointed, as have committee members Gary Young and David Ireland. Mr Young is CEO of the Insurance Brokers Association of New Zealand, and Mr Ireland owns financial services law firm Kensington Swan.