Liam Dann: Market integrity depends on investor confidence

KiwiSaver has certainly added a competitive edge to the sector. Photo / Thinkstock

Speculation that a leading player in the funds management sector is facing a Financial Markets Authority investigation for market manipulation is concerning if true.

But it is important to acknowledge that we know very little about the nature of this investigation.

The FMA won't comment, although its unflinching refusal to confirm or deny in the face of widespread media coverage suggests there is something for it to not comment about.

It may be a technical breach or naive error that is ultimately dealt with privately by the regulators. Or it may be more serious. It may be a rogue individual or it may be a wider issue reflecting a trading culture that has become too aggressive and crossed lines.

We just don't know.

But what we do know is that the integrity of markets depends on all investors - including the smallest - having confidence that trading is fair and reflects the performance of companies and genuine demand for their stock.

Manipulation involves any attempt to artificially inflate or deflate a share price for the express purpose of creating a false impression.

It might be done to boost one's own investment returns over a specific period or it might be done to deflate a share and damage a rival's performance.

Certainly in these days of KiwiSaver league tables competition between fund managers is intense.

But it is not necessarily easy to determine at what point trading crosses a line from aggressive to illegitimate.

All competitive endeavour, be it sports or the Man Booker Prize, can be complicated by the potential for subjective interpretation of the rules.

At what point does Richie McCaw's genius at retrieving the ball from the ground become cheating?

You're more likely to think a ruck has formed and McCaw has infringed if you are an England supporter than if you are an All Black fan.

Also we expect our sports stars to push the rules to the limit so we're typically quite forgiving when they do get caught - as long as they keep delivering good results.

In sports we can afford to indulge this kind of bias.

When it comes to equity markets we really can't. With more than $20 billion of retirement savings tied up in KiwiSaver it is crucial that fund managers play fair.

KiwiSaver has certainly added a competitive edge to the sector. It is great that more people then ever before are becoming investors in the equity markets. It is good for our national savings rate and it is good for the growth of Kiwi companies.

But with that growth comes added responsibility.

We have to trust that the FMA will be robust in its handling of this matter and reassure us of that, whether the outcome remains private or not.