About the Financial Policy Committee
The Financial Policy Committee (FPC) is a new committee of the Board of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. The FPC has specific statutory decision-making authority delegated by the Board for financial policy.
The decision-making authority of the committee includes:
- The issuance and review of standards under the prudential legislation.
- The macro-prudential policy framework and decisions to implement, remove, or change the calibration of macro-prudential tools, for example loan-to-value ratio restrictions and debt serviceability restrictions.
- Advice to the Minister of Finance on legislative reform, regulation or other regulatory activity.
- The approval of our Financial Stability Reports.
FPC structure
The FPC is chaired by a member of the RBNZ Board. It consists of the RBNZ Board Chair, the Governor, 3 other RBNZ Board members, and up to 2 external members.
The first meeting of the FPC is scheduled for late February 2026.
Heidi Richards - external member
Heidi Richards is a former senior prudential regulator and internationally respected regulatory, risk and compliance leader with experience across private industry, government and not-for-profit sectors in the US, Australia and international policy-making organisations.
Ms Richards has been appointed to the Committee for a 4-year term, beginning on 1 January 2026 and ending on 31 December 2029.
Heidi Richards is a former senior regulator with experience in Australian and international organisations. Her career has spanned more than 30 years in financial services policy and regulation.
Ms Richards led the policy function at the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, where she implemented major pillars of international banking policy and financial sector regulatory reforms in response to the Global Financial Crisis, including working closely with the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision.
As an independent consultant, Ms Richards advises financial institutions, fintech and regtech start-ups, non-profits and government agencies on regulatory strategy. She was appointed as the independent reviewer of Australia's credit reporting framework in 2024. She is a member of the Australian Government's Data Standards Advisory Committee on open banking.
Previously, she held senior roles across banking, payments and securities regulation at the US Federal Reserve Board, the US Treasury Department and the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Ms Richards holds a Bachelor's degree in Economics and a Masters of Public Administration, both from Harvard University, and a Diploma of Financial Counselling. She is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.