© Reuters/DAVID GRAYA security guard stands in the main entrance to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand located in central Wellington, New Zealand
(Reuters) -The Reserve Bank of New Zealand on Wednesday raised concerns around risk governance processes in Westpac's operations in the country and instructed the lender to commission two independent reports to address them.
The central bank said it was raising Westpac NZ's required holding of liquid assets until it was satisfied that the lender's remediation work was complete and effective.
"We have experienced ongoing compliance issues with Westpac NZ over recent years, most recently involving material failures to report liquidity correctly," RBNZ Deputy Governor and General Manager of Financial Stability Geoff Bascand said.
The first independent report required from the lender would assess Westpac NZ's risk governance processes and practices applied by its board and executive management.
The second report would have to provide assurances that the actions Westpac NZ takes to improve the management of its liquidity risks, and the culture surrounding it, are effective, the RBNZ said.
Westpac did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Rashmi Ashok in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)