Fintech about to accelerate economic growth

Fintech about to accelerate New Zealand’s economic growth and international connections

February 15, 2017

The setup of the national fintech organisation will accelerate New Zealand’s economic growth, tech leader and software services company director Mitchell Pham says.

New Zealanders should care about fintech as an exciting new sector because electronic interactions underpin all commerce across the national economy, Pham says.

With the support from NZTech and the government, FinTechNZ was officially launched last week and received the backing of the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Jacqui Dean.

Pham, who is director of Augen Software Group and chair of NZTech, says e-commerce as a subset of fintech, is the future of small to medium enterprises, enabling Kiwi businesses to export globally with ease and speed.

“Next month, two of the fastest growing fintech communities in the world, United Kingdom and Australia, will visit New Zealand and connect with FinTechNZ members,” Pham says.

“This will help expand connections for our fintech community to grow, which in turn will contribute to New Zealand’s economic growth.

“Knowing what’s going on around the world enables Kiwi businesses to focus on the biggest and most strategic global opportunities when we innovate with fintech. Knowing how financial innovation and technology development in other countries grew globally will give ours the knowledge to do the same. All of this helps grow the economy which is great for New Zealanders.

“Through the Kiwi Connection Tech Hub in South East Asia, we are also inviting financial and fintech experts from the region to leverage the opportunity to join the UK-Australian visit in Auckland on March 24.

“This whole visit will raise international awareness of FinTechNZ well before our Kiwi fintech business delegation goes to Singapore and Vietnam in November.

"We have also been approached by passionate Kiwis who lead fintech innovation overseas, wanting to be involved and help build connections to opportunities for New Zealand in those foreign markets. This is just fantastic.

FinTechNZ is leading the initiative with support from the New Zealand Technology Industry Association and in collaboration with the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund, New Zealand Trade & Enterprise, Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development, Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency, Canterbury Development Corporation, and Canterbury Technology Cluster.

UK’s Department for International Trade has confirmed it will send a trade delegation of eleven of the country’s fintech companies to Australia and New Zealand next month. The eleven companies selected are Aire, Clarus FT, Clearmacro, FundApps, ingage, iwoca, neyber, ObjectTech, Onfido, Sybenetix and Tradle.

Over the past 15 years, the financial services industry has seen many fresh innovations, new products and services, new technologies and capabilities, new types of customers, entirely new markets as well as business and revenue models, sometimes at the expense of existing ones.

“New Zealand has a diverse financial services industry and a thriving ecosystem for innovation. Our biggest and smartest financial businesses have joined forces to become key contributors in shaping and driving the fintech revolution.

“Fintech will totally transform New Zealand through its impact on the financial services industry which carries the economy. We want to bring Kiwi fintech innovators together to strengthen the whole sector which will in turn accelerate growth of our national economy,” Pham says.

ends

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