Despite its relatively small size, the fintech sector in New Zealand is growing fast. In 2021, fintech was the second largest technology sector in the TIN Report in dollar value growth, generating nearly a quarter of all growth, and the third largest in terms of total revenue. The sector posted a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32%, or three times the five-year average of the country’s top 200 tech export companies by revenue (TIN200).
Within this dynamic landscape, several companies are gaining significant traction, and attracting backing from prominent partners. These ventures, which span verticals including mobile payment, wealth management, and risk management, reached key milestones in 2025 and 2026, securing significant funding, inking partnerships, and rolling out new, innovative products. These developments are making them worth following closely this year onwards.
Fintech Startups from New Zealand to Have on Your Radar in 2026
Sharesies
Launched in 2017 and headquartered in Wellington, Sharesies has evolved from a niche micro-investing app into a comprehensive wealth platform. Its original mission was to dismantle the financial barriers preventing ordinary people from investing through fractional share trading, and no minimum investment size.
But since then, Sharesies has evolved into a holistic platform for personal finance. The platform now seamlessly integrates diverse financial pillars, including KiwiSaver retirement accounts, high-yield savings pots, cryptocurrency access, car insurance, as well as a debit card with a 1% “Investback” reward, closing the loop between everyday spending and long-term wealth building.
This ecosystem approach has allowed Sharesies to record impressive growth, with the platform now managing over NZD 12 billion (US$6.9 billion) in wealth and serving more than 930,000 customers. As of early 2026, Sharesies hosted over 2,000 portfolios valued at more than NZD 1 million (US$577,000), demonstrating users’ growing financial sophistication. Around NZD 100 million (US$57.7 million) moves through the platform daily, according to Sharesies co-founder and co-CEO Leighton Roberts.
Looking ahead, Sharesies will expand its advice offering with ready-made portfolios of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and managed funds, prepared for investors based on their investment timeframe, risk appetite and values. According to Roberts, about 8,000 people joined the waitlist on the first day, the highest number for any Sharesies product.
He said in January that it would be a digital advice offering and was on the verge of being made widely available. Fees will likely to be based on a percentage of investments.
Sharesies will also be launching Sharesies Wills, a feature will let users nominate who will receive their investments if they pass away without needing a full legal will.
Centrapay
Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Auckland, Centrapay is a New Zealand fintech company that positions itself as critical infrastructure in the nation’s evolving digital payments landscape, building the backbone for next-generation financial services. The company operates as a business-to-business (B2B) payment infrastructure layer that connects digital wallets, open banking bank-to-bank transfers, brand loyalty points and digital gift cards, as well as tokenized and emerging digital assets.
Centrapay gained significant visibility in 2025 when it powered the launch of Payap, a QR-based mobile payment app backed by Bank of New Zealand (BNZ). Built on open banking, the app allows New Zealand customers to pay directly from their bank accounts without traditional card rails, and comes with payment control features including spending limits and account selection.
Payap also works alongside existing EFTPOS (Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale) systems and PayClip terminals, giving merchants a low-cost, flexible way to accept payments in store and online. For merchants, this eliminates checkout surcharges and costly hardware replacements, while customers benefit from greater control over how they pay.
Since its launch in late 2025, Payap has become the number one free finance app in the New Zealand iOS App Store, and the number three across all categories, demonstrating strong market demand for open banking payment solutions.
BNZ invested in Centrapay in 2024.
First AML
Launched in 2017 and headquartered in Auckland, First AML is a leading fintech company specializing in anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) compliance automation. The company produces end-to-end due diligence software for financial service providers, real estate agencies, law firms and accountants, which automates the identity verification process of their customers. It also provides biometric verification and visual tools to help users understand the ownership of complex company structures.
First AML claims the most complete AML data set across the globe, covering over 180 countries, 300 corporate registries, and 13 million verified entities.
In 2025, First AML strengthened its global product by forming a strategic partnership with business verification provider Know Your Customer, embedding real‑time company registry data into its workflows. In 2026, it continued to deepen its product capabilities through a collaboration with Aderant, a leader in business-of-law solutions.
Overall, First AML maintains its position as a widely adopted compliance technology solution for firms needing robust client onboarding and risk‑management support. Its latest round was secured back in 2021, raising NZD 30 million (US$17.3 million) in a Series B round.
Feijoa
Feijoa is a nascent fintech startup that’s rapidly gaining traction. Launched in September 2025, Feijoa focuses on automating retirement savings through micro-transactions. It provides a “Round-Up” and rewards app that connects to users’ credit or debit accounts to automatically round up everyday purchases to the nearest dollar, 2 dollars, or 5 dollars, investing the spare change directly into KiwiSaver accounts.
On top of that, Feijoa offers exclusive rewards and incentives from partners to encourage consistent saving and help you make the most of every dollar.
Feijoa is free to try for the first month. Afterward, a 0.5% fee is applied to the Round-Up feature, capped at 15% of the amount or 20 cents. Rewards remain 100% free.
Despite being a new startup, Feijoa has seen strong early adoption and strategic validation within the industry. This year, users are on track to contribute NZD 1.6 million to their KiwiSaver savings, a figure projected to grow to over NZD 60 million by retirement.
The app’s potential was recognized when it was selected for the Fintech Lab 2026 accelerator program by Creative HQ. This program has a strong track record of supporting New Zealand fintech success stories, with alumni including Sharesies and Hnry. Program startups have collectively raised over $300 million.
In March 2026, Feijoa won the Audience Choice award at the Kiwibank Start Up Pitch Breakfast, which showcased five startups from the Creative HQ Fintech Lab 2026 accelerator cohort.
Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Australia, based on image by Frolopiaton Palm via Freepik
