Craig Stobo has resigned as Financial Markets Authority (FMA) chair following a five-month long government investigation that found some of his public commentary did “not meet the standards of political neutrality”.
In a release this afternoon, Commerce Minister Cameron Brewer, said the independent review carried by Kings’ Counsel Wendy Aldred for the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), dismissed most of the allegations against the now ex FMA chair that saw him stand down from most public governance roles last December.
The MBIE probe found no evidence of an inappropriate relationship with an FMA staff member, or unjustified travel booked to the regulator.
Stobo “acted reasonably in disclosing a governance-related interest and later in agreeing to resign from it, but he should not have delayed it for as long as he did”, the release says.
“However, aspects of Mr Stobo’s public commentary did not meet the standards of political neutrality expected of the Chair of an independent Crown entity and financial markets regulator.”
Brewer said in light of the findings it was “therefore appropriate for Mr Stobo to resign from the role”.
Steven Bardy would remain as interim FMA chair, a role he assumed in December.
Stobo serves on a number of other high-profile boards including the Local Government Funding Authority and the Auckland Future Fund.
Among other comments that triggered his downfall, the 45-page report notes Stobo “should not have questioned the requirement for a mandatory Climate Related Disclosures (CRD) regime in an external forum”.
Meanwhile, former FMA senior adviser, Kyla Bottriell, has issued a statement calling for a review of the regulator’s culture after an alleged leak implicated her in the Stobo case.
The report “confirms I had an entirely professional relationship with Mr Stobo,” Bottriell said in the release.
“That finding matters because false and damaging rumours about me were allowed to circulate within the FMA and to media, causing me both personal and professional harm.
The report corrects the public record, but it does not repair the harm, or answer wider questions about how a conduct regulator allowed misinformation to escalate causing lasting damage to my reputation,” she said.
“I have raised legitimate concerns through proper channels about the FMA’s internal culture, rumour-spreading, lack of accountability and leaking of internal matters. Those concerns predate this investigation and remain unaddressed.”
Bottriell said the FMA should “acknowledge the harm caused to me” and conduct an independent probe into the “conduct and culture” of the regulator.