Financial Markets Authority to prioritise supporting innovation

The Financial Markets Authority says it will give priority to supporting innovation while maintaining strong consumer protection and confidence in financial markets.

"This includes improving access to financial advice, supporting innovation through our regulatory sandbox pilot,

stepping up our response to scams, and taking strong enforcement action where misconduct has occurred," FMA chief executive Samantha Barrass said.

She said the FMA's second annual Financial Conduct Report (FCR), outlines progress made over the past year and its regulatory priorities for 2026/27 to continue improving outcomes for consumers, investors, and businesses.

"Over the past year, we're proud to have delivered a significant amount of work to strengthen and improve New Zealand's financial markets.

The focus was on four themes aimed at addressing key risks and lifting conduct standards, as follows:

managing conflicts from remuneration structures

product design for new and redesigned products

complaints

fraud detection and prevention

"By publishing this report annually, we provide transparency on the key risks and opportunities on our radar, and how we intend to address them, so industry understands our priorities and what they can expect from us," she said.