David Richwhite

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David McKellar Richwhite is a merchant banker, originally from New Zealand, who left for Switzerland in the late 1990s.

[edit] Fay Richwhite

From a wealthy family, Richwhite was educated at King's College, Auckland and the University of Otago. Along with Michael Fay, Richwhite is considered something of a bete noir among the New Zealand left and others that associate him with the privatisation of state-owned assets that took place during New Zealand's structural adjustment of the 1980s and 1990s. The swimming pool of his house in the fashionable Auckland suburb of Remuera was occupied by protesters against these reforms, including Metiria Turei, who later entered Parliament as a Green MP. Among his other involvements in the reforms during this period, Richwhite was involved in the New Zealand activities of the Australasian new right think-tank, the Centre for Independent Studies.

Throughout the 1990s he was routinely considered as is one of New Zealand's wealthiest businessman, with an estimated personal wealth of NZ$660 million. He part owns Great Mercury Island in New Zealand with business partner Sir Michael Fay.

[edit] Securities Commission case

In June 2007, Richwhite and Midavia Rail Investments, a company he co-owned with Michael Fay, paid $20 million to the New Zealand Securities Commission to settle insider trading proceedings relating to Tranz Rail. In October 2004 the commission accused Midavia of insider trading and Richwhite of tipping off Midavia to sell $63 million worth of shares whilst knowing Tranz Rail faced financial problems, then undisclosed to the public. The commission stated that the payments had been made "without any admission of liability"^[1]