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Page last updated: 28 March 2025

Innovation

The financial technology (FinTech) sector continues to evolve rapidly. Our aim is to ensure that the New Zealand regulatory system facilitates innovation that improves outcomes for customers and increases the efficiency and competitiveness of the financial system.

Innovation thinking, enabled by technology adoption, can create benefits for consumers, businesses and New Zealand as a whole. Developments in technology and the evolving data economy have led to a wave of innovation and continue to reshape traditional financial products and services.

The Council of Financial Regulators (CoFR) have cooperated to provide a central website for the Fintech community to view all regulation relevant to that sector.

View the Fintech.govt.nz website

FMA fintech regulatory sandbox pilot 

In 2024 we announced the development of a fintech sandbox pilot project.  

Read an article from Executive Director Strategy and Design Daniel Trinder on the sandbox pilot here

Sandboxes can help spur innovation by allowing both startups and established licensed financial institutions to test new products and services in a controlled environment. Firms can test their systems in a monitored space, allowing them to obtain a deeper understanding of supervisory expectations. It will also give them the opportunity to adjust a product or service before full commercial launch, which may help reduce their costs. For the FMA, it gives us the chance to gain greater insights into the benefits and risks of financial innovation and new technologies. 

The pilot is designed for firms that:  

  • have a product ready to be tested in the New Zealand market with customers,
  • understand what aspects of existing financial regulation apply to their product or service, and
  • have considered where they need guidance from the FMA and why participation in the sandbox will help ‘go to market’ plans. 

The pilot will help us understand the barriers facing firms bringing financial products and services to market. The findings from the pilot will be invaluable in helping us refine our fintech service and the design of future iterations of the sandbox.   

FMA sandbox pilot update – March 2025 

The FMA received 24 expressions of interest in the pilot, and we were impressed by the quality and breadth of the applications. We are currently in the process of evaluating the first group of candidates to take part in the pilot and will be posting updates about the project on this page and on our social media channels. 

Fintech sandbox pilot FAQs 

  • A regulatory sandbox is a controlled environment where businesses can test innovative products, services, or business models under the supervision of a regulator, allowing for experimentation without immediately incurring full regulatory obligations.
  • FMA’s approach to this sandbox is to facilitate market innovation and growth by learning about the regulatory barriers your business is facing and seeking to design regulatory solutions. 
  • We have a range of formal and informal tools that we are seeking to use in normal and innovative ways. What solutions we can offer will ultimately depend on the regulatory barriers involved.
  • The sandbox experience will be different for each candidate, depending on how the FMA can help and the type of product or service in the sandbox, and the type of regulatory solution that might be put in place.
  • We are anticipating that firms will be able operate within the terms of the Sandbox for a period of between 12 and 24 months.   Because the experience is tailored to each candidate, exit from the sandbox will look different for different products and services.
  • We will work with each firm individually to agree a tailored approach to exiting the sandbox. 
  • There is no cost for the regulatory sandbox pilot itself. Some regulatory tools (such as individual exemptions) do have some costs involved. Before we get to that stage, we will be clear on what the expected costs involved are. 
  • The FMA is the fintech point of call for the Council of Financial Regulators (CoFR). A product or service may run into areas regulated by one of these different agencies, but firms don’t have to figure that out for themselves. They can contact us at the FMA, and we’ll make sure the queries get to the right people in one of our fellow regulators.