About

The legal team of the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) of New Zealand has the opposite relationship to regulations than other in-house lawyers in the financial sector, being on the drafting and enforcing side of legislation rather than being involved in compliance. To do this, it relies on an experienced, versatile and highly knowledgeable legal team. Nick Kynoch is general counsel of the FMA and bears ultimate responsibility for the coordination of legal services, a role he is ideally suited for given his previous career as a partner at Berwin Leighton Paisner and head of conduct risk and contentious regulatory compliance when he was based in the City of London. Alongside him, Vanessa Simons (head of corporate legal) and Peter Nielsen (principal advisor- legal) were described as standout members of the team on the back of their expert support of the FMA’s goals.