No class exemption for international custodians, OIO says

No class exemption for international custodians, OIO says
Paul McBeth
By Paul McBeth April 4 (BusinessDesk) - The Overseas Investment Office can't issue a class exemption for foreign-owned custodian firms, even if they hold shares for a majority of locals.  The unit of Land Information New Zealand which assesses foreign investment has always interpreted the law as meaning any company with more than 25 percent of its shares held offshore as triggering the definition of an "overseas person", including international custodians that may be holding shares on behalf of New Zealanders. In the past, it has granted...