The interim appointment of Karen Chang follows the appointment of Liam Mason, the FMA's current general counsel, as acting chief executive.

Mason will take up the acting chief executive role when the current chief executive Rob Everett leaves the FMA at the end of October.

Chang will lead the policy and governance, corporate legal, investigations and enforcement functions for the FMA and joins the executive team.

Previously a senior Crown prosecutor at Meredith Connell, Chang joined the FMA as head of enforcement in 2017.

She has extensive experience in commercial litigation, regulatory litigation and criminal prosecution, in New Zealand, Australia and New York.

She has been responsible for executing the FMA's enforcement strategy, leading cases ranging from fair dealing breaches and insider trading to AML/CFT Act contraventions and several fraud cases.

Margot Gatland, a manager in the enforcement team, will be appointed as acting head of enforcement while Chang carries out her new role.

Gatland joined the FMA in 2017 from the Serious Fraud Office and has a background in regulatory, criminal and civil litigation predominantly acting for the Crown.

The changes take effect on November 1.

Samantha Barrass was announced as the FMA’s new chief executive earlier this month and will join the regulator in January 2022, subject to Covid-19 practicalities.