Bell Gully's specialist derivatives practice, is headed by David Craig, who is New Zealand counsel to both the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (IDSA) and the International Capital Market Association (ICMA).
Our team has partners and solicitors in both the Auckland and Wellington offices who specialise in derivatives law.
Our understanding of, and track record in, this rapidly-evolving industry is unrivalled in New Zealand. We are New Zealand counsel to most of the major industry associations and most of the global investment banks. We are continually in touch with developments in products, policy and regulation in the derivatives markets, and our partners are regularly invited to speak at international derivatives conferences and contribute to global derivatives publications. Bell Gully is an ISDA member and acts as New Zealand counsel to ISDA - providing the New Zealand law netting opinion on the ISDA master agreements and the New Zealand law collateral opinion on the ISDA credit support documents.
ISDA documentation is the preferred method for documenting derivatives transactions in New Zealand. Our team acted for the New Zealand Bankers' Association (NZBA) in preparing standard form documents widely used in the New Zealand derivatives market.
Our clients include banks, insurance companies, hedge funds and other financial institutions, as well as state-owned corporations. We have also advised the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, New Zealand's central bank, and the New Zealand Treasury on derivatives-related issues.
In addition to ISDA, we provide the New Zealand law netting opinions to a number of other international industry and sponsor organisations such as:
The Futures and Options Association (UK), on their master netting agreement,
ICMA, on the global master repurchase agreement,
the British Bankers' Association, the Members of the Foreign Exchange Committee (US) and the Canadian Foreign Exchange Committee, on the IFEMA, ICOM and FEOMA master agreements, and
the Securities Lending and Repo Committee (UK), on the overseas securities lenders agreement.