Luigi Wewege firm appeals against FMA move

A firm directed by Luigi Wewege has been kicked off the Financial Service Providers Register. Photo / Doug Sherring

A firm directed by Luigi Wewege, one of the central protagonists in the Len Brown infidelity scandal, is back on the Financial Service Providers Register while it appeals being kicked off.

New Zealand registered Vivier & Company was incorporated in 2001 and offers savings accounts featuring "above average returns without market risk volatility", according to its website.

In June the Financial Markets Authority said Vivier & Company had been deregistered as part of the regulator's ongoing review of the register.

The FMA would not say why.

However, Vivier is challenging the move and earlier this month appeared in the High Court at Wellington seeking a halt on its deregistration pending the appeal.

Justice David Collins ordered the temporary stay be put in place ahead of the appeal against the deregistration, which is scheduled to be argued next month.

"This is because the effect of the FMA's decision is that Vivier is no longer registered and it is reasonably arguable that Vivier is likely to suffer serious harm if it is unable to be registered..."the judge said earlier this month.

As well as this, he ordered the registrar of Financial Service Providers to reinstate the company to the register.

"Unless I make this order the stay is futile," Justice Collins said.

Wewege, who helped expose Auckland mayor Len Brown's affair with Bevan Chuang, is one of Vivier & Company's five directors, according to Companies Office records.