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FinTechNZ

FinTechNZ – Digital Identity

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Newsletter

Kia ora *|FNAME|*,

I am constantly meeting smart people with great ideas and fresh products. The financial industry is constantly evolving, with a focus on improving efficiency and the consumer experience. Mostly, these innovations fulfil an unmet market opportunity or a more competitive offering. Meanwhile, the impact of Government activity and regulators plays a crucial role in supporting sector growth.

Digital identity is becoming increasingly important and in my view, now is the time for our sector to pay even closer attention, especially considering the recent legislation announcement. Looking ahead, we need to consider the opportunities for our sector.

The Digital Identity Services Trust Framework Bill (DISTF) aims to establish a framework for trustworthy and inclusive digital identities that prioritise privacy and security. Ultimately, this could lead to a user-owned, permission-based, transferable digital identity, but this is still in the early stages. The  legislation could also lead to digital identity being used to establish trust and mitigate risk in a number of use cases. Options for the likes of AML/KYC (anti-money laundering/know your customer), for example, are probably quite a way off as there would need to be some fundamental changes to (inter)national practice. It could also potentially address issues of financial exclusion by providing a transferable proof of identity that could be used across approved providers and sectors. Regardless, as we have seen with Open Banking, the market value and opportunities are likely to accelerate when legislation comes into force. What does this mean for FinTechs now and in the future? I’m looking forward to joining the conversation with our Tech Alliance friends at the Digital Trust Hui Taumata on 1 August in Wellington. It’s the annual must-attend event for the digital identity ecosystem and this year they’re exploring growth opportunities in finance and retail.  

FinTech for FinTechs

One of the post-event insights from our recent FinTech Hui was the need to focus more specifically on early stage FinTechs. At the Hui, we saw strong support for our pitching and innovation alley, but we’re now asking if there is potential to do more? 

We’re exploring the concept of a mini-conference specifically focused on the interests, issues and needs of early stage fintechs. This would be a half day event for up to 60 people and likely hosted in Auckland or Wellington in late July/August. It’s an ideal opportunity to create valuable connections and share insights. The format may include facilitated roundtable discussions, ongoing development, production demos, developing an action plan, and more. If you’re interested in attending, please complete this quick multi-choice survey to help us determine the best options. We’ll also require a venue and support, so if you’re interested in partnering with us please contact me.

In other member news, Akahu says open banking could help tackle banking mistakes and scams, but New Zealand is lagging. Read more. Plus, it’s great to see DOSH New Zealand featured on a global map of digital wallet providers.

Welcome to our newest members: AlphaCert Labs Ltd, CBM Advisors Ltd, Monoova, Pinch Payments NZ Ltd, SortMe, Sportino International Limited, The Compliance Company, UpSkill, VComply, Authsignal and NewFound Global.

Avoid compliance breaches! Register now to join RegTechNZ’s webinar on 28 April. Plus, it’s not easy being green! In this month’s update, RegTechNZ reflects on greenwashing tech sprints.

Read the full update here.

Create global connections. The New Zealand Israel Innovation Hub (NZIIH) facilitates communication and trade between our two tech sectors. If you would like to know more please email Josh Brown.

Our Sustainable Finance working group is  focussing on three projects including information portals, data and research scoping.

Read the full update here.

The FinTech Findr is available to all FinTechs, so if you’re not on our ecosystem map, please use this link to add yourself. Members have full options for the digital card display, data export and more

Coming soon: FAQ videos and expanded map capability for Regtech and Sustainability categories. 

FinTech discovery: want to know what goes on under the hood? During Techweek23, watch a live stream of FinTechs in Aotearoa New Zealand: Solution and Product fast flyovers. We’ve partnered with Akahu to host lightning product demos to help viewers understand products and their business use case. Learn more.

Ngā mihi 

Jason Roberts

Executive Director

News and Events

Join NZTech on 2 May to discuss geopolitical impacts on tech exports. Register for this FREE online event.

Real intelligence, practically applied. Prepare for Aotearoa’s inclusive, world leading AI-powered future! The Aotearoa AI Summit returns 20-21 September 2023. Register now for updates.

Congratulations to this year’s Hi-Tech Awards finalists. Winners will be announced at the Gala Dinner on 23 June in Christchurch.

Register to attend the Financial Services Council (FSC) Conference, 15-17 August in Auckland. The conference includes fintech and regtech streams, plus startup pitching. This year’s theme is Building Consumer Confidence.
Submit your Techweek23 events now!

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