Administrators of financial benchmarks
On 30 August 2019 the Financial Markets (Derivatives Margin and Benchmarking) Reform Amendment Act 2019 received Royal assent. The Act introduces a licensing regime for administrators of financial benchmarks.
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A new opt-in licensing regime
A new opt‑in licensing regime for New Zealand administrators of financial benchmarks was introduced under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013. This regime is designed to provide additional assurance around the accuracy, integrity, reliability and continuity of New Zealand’s benchmarks, and to support their continued use in overseas markets, including the European Union.
The EU Benchmarks Regulation sets standards for the production and governance of benchmarks, including how EU supervised entities may use benchmarks provided from outside the EU. From 1 January 2026, the EU’s updated third‑country benchmark rules apply. The European Commission has adopted an equivalence decision for New Zealand’s legal and supervisory framework for financial benchmarks, supporting continued use of New Zealand‑regulated benchmarks in the EU.
The Financial Markets (Derivatives Margin and Benchmarking) Reform Amendment Act 2019 received Royal assent on 30 August 2019 and introduced the licensing framework for financial benchmark administrators.
Visit the NZ Parliament website to view the history of the Financial Markets (Derivatives Margin and Benchmarking) Reform Amendment Act 2019.
New Zealand Parliament(external link)
Regulations, which set out detail of the eligibility criteria and licence conditions for benchmark administrators, have been made.
The new regulatory regime for benchmark administrators came into force on 15 March 2021.
Read the documents behind the policy decisions: