Application criteria for acceptance of NZ Government Guaranteed Bank Debt (NZ denominated) in Reserve Bank Domestic Operations
Thank you for your interest in the Reserve Bank of New Zealand accepting your issuance as security in its liquidity operations. Please provide the information noted below and attest to the following statements:
Information
- Background on the issuer (including all ratings);
- Details of the issue, as per an Issue Notice, Prospectus and/or Information
Memorandum. This should include:
- Full legal name of Issuer;
- Physical and postal address;
- Description;
- Issue size;
- Pricing convention (full details)
- Currency;
- Arranger;
- Dealers;
- Registrar;
- Paying agent;
- Term;
- Clearing system;
- Governing law;
- Redemption;
- Payments and record date; and
- Listing (Stock exchange if any).
Attestation
Confirm that the issue meets the following criteria:
- For debt issuance (fixed rate bonds or floating rate notes), the issue must have a long term AAA rating from at least one rating agency and obtained a NZ Government guarantee under the Wholesale Guarantee Scheme.
- For CP issuance, the issue must have a A-1+ rating from at least one rating agency and obtained a NZ Government guarantee under the Wholesale Guarantee Scheme.
- Issue is plain vanilla (e.g., a bond with no optionality and not sub-ordinated).
- Issue’s pricing convention follows price and yield formulae as used by the Reserve Bank – in particular fixed rate bonds should have either a quarterly or semi-annual coupon. This formula can be found on the Reserve Bank website at http://www.rbnz.govt.nz/finmarkets/domesticmarkets/3287159.pdf.
- Issues will be lodged in NZClear. Eligibility criteria for lodgement into NZClear include having a suitable registrar, and paying agent (not Reserve Bank).
- Issue has more than three days to maturity.
Also as is usual for securities in NZClear, only NZClear members who have a valid resident withholding tax certificate are allowed to hold these securities in the NZClear depository.
Subsequent issues of the same security will not require Reserve Bank approval.
The Reserve Bank reserves the right to refuse an application for any reason and is not required to disclose such reasons. In particular, it should be noted that if the credit rating of the issuer/issue falls below the Reserve Bank’s threshold, then the issue will cease to be eligible in the Reserve Banks’ operations.
The above information must be signed by authorised signatories of the Issuer. The Reserve Bank will require a list of authorised signatories for the Issuer and evidence satisfactory in form and substance to the Reserve Bank of the authority of the authorised signatories of the Issuer to execute this Agreement, any other notice or communication issued in respect of this Agreement on behalf of the Issuer.
Please post applications to:
The Manager
Domestic Markets
Financial Markets Department
Reserve Bank of New Zealand
PO Box 2498
Wellington
New Zealand
