A nation of travellers

Kia ora,

Over the past few months, I’ve had the privilege of attending international conferences, representing our community in Australia, the United Kingdom and most recently as a guest of Hong Kong. This involvement is crucial because as exporters, it’s essential to showcase our fintech capabilities globally.

Alongside New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE), I was delighted to lead a delegation of eight Kiwi-founded fintechs to Hong Kong FinTech Week 2023 – Fintech redefined. Our delegation (pictured above) included Immersive, Dacreed, TaniaAI, PayitNow, Superpay, CoGo and Findr.Digital with main stage speaker Janine Granger from Easy Crypto.

Despite past challenges, Hong Kong is now repositioned as a thriving hub for fintech, focusing on digital and tech prominent with strategic nationwide investments in AI, MedTech, advanced manufacturing, new energy and sustainability.

Hong Kong’s fintech sector is sending a clear message: all banks must embrace fintech by 2025. The government is leading by example with a dedicated focus on digital and Web3, and gearing up for the MVP implementation of a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The sector’s vision is backed by substantial investment in capability, with well-funded venture capital and incubation centres like Cyberport, welcoming Kiwi companies. There’s certainly an opportunity for New Zealand to learn from countries with dedicated international strategies. With the incoming Government, fostering a bipartisan approach will accelerate our sector’s value. Read more about how we can collaborate with Hong Kong.

Voting for our Executive Council has now closed and I look forward to announcing our new appointments at next week’s online Annual Meeting. I will also update you on our strategy and focus for the year ahead.

Welcome to this month’s new members IDVerse, Octave and Whai Rawa Fund Limited.

Ngā mihi
Jason Roberts
Executive Director, FinTechNZ

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Read the full news here: A nation of travellers

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