Faafoi will have responsibiltiy for guiding the new Financial Services Legislation Amendment Bill through Parliament.

While adviser numbers, particularly of AFAs, have dwindled over recent years, Faafoi said he was not worried about the quantum of those offering advice to New Zealanders.

He was more concerned that people who were getting advice were getting it from someone who had their best interests at heart, he said.

It was problematic that the obligations on advisers were not uniform across the board at present but that was one of the things that FSLAB would tackle.

The success of the financial advice sector would come down to whether consumers were protected and getting good advice from people who put their interests first, he said. 

“There is a need for change in these areas,” he said. “Whether there should be more financial advisers is not a question I can answer right now.”

There needed to be clear, sufficient oversight of the sector.

“Essentially that’s what the bill does.”

Faafoi said it was too early to talk about whether there should be a ban on commission, but that was likely to be a question that would be asked “at some stage”.

He said people were entitled to know what they were being charged for a service and how those payments were made up.

That transparency is something that will be tackled under the new disclosure requirements.

Transparency would also be key to keeping a lid on KiwiSaver fees, he said, as providers realised that what they were charging was being made clear to members. Faafoi said the FMA should be commended for its work in developing its new tool, which tracks fees and returns.

It was reported this week that FSLAB could be delayed by six months from its original proposed timeframes. But Faafoi said that was not yet clear.

The new government had different priorities and would be focusing first on health, housing and education, he said.  There had not yet been any discussions about how other work would line up after that.

Faafoi said the FMA was concerned at having a timetable for transition that gave market participants time. “It’s my job to make sure we get the process right,” he said.