New Zealand's Financial Market's Authority Podcasts

In this edition of 5 mins with the FMA Head of Financial Advice Romil Ghelani speaks to Heidi Norman about the Financial Advice Review. Regulatory Returns data signals a healthy financial sector. This is the first time the FMA has collected a comprehensive snapshot of the financial advice sector since the new Financial Advice regime came into effect in March 2023.    This data is derived from the...

A managed fund is a type of investment where your money is pooled together into a larger investment fund with other investors. A fund manager with expertise in investing then manages that money and decides what assets to buy and sell on your behalf. Learn this and more as Jess learns how to get started in a managed fund.  This episode features Sorted.org.nz’s Personal Finance Lead, Tom Hartmann. J...

In this special episode of our 5 mins with the FMA podcast, we take a look at outcomes- focused regulation with Liam Mason, FMA Executive Director of Evaluation and Oversight and General Counsel.  Today we’re releasing a document that provides you with an update on our approach to Outcomes-Focused Regulation. An outcomes-focused approach means we focus on the end results that regulation is aiming...

As we approach International Women’s Day, we’re thrilled to bring you the second episode of our Jess Learns to Invest podcast series. In this episode, Jess sits down with financial Journalist and educator Frances Cook to discuss how women often approach investing differently. They chat about the opportunities women can embrace, and how women are increasingly shaping the future of investing. “Women...

Are you ready to kickstart your investing journey in 2025? Dive into our new podcast series.  Join Jess, a 27-year-old newbie in the world of investing, as she navigates the ups and downs of becoming an investor. Just like you, she's learning the ropes. Each month, Jess will team up with a different expert who will share invaluable insights and tips about investing.  At the FMA, we believe in...

Jess and Stuart are back for episode 4 of our Navigating KiwiSaver series. Last week they discussed contributions, this week Stuart explains KiwiSaver fees, he also touches on active and passive investments. The fee is calculated as a percentage of the net asset value of each fund, and is already deducted from your investment, so returns will be reduced. Actively managed funds are where investment...

Did you know there are five contribution rates when it comes to your KiwiSaver — 3%, 4%, 6%, 8% or 10?   Along with your personal contributions, your employer contributes to your KiwiSaver as well as the Government. Episode 3 of our Navigating KiwiSaver series is out now! This week Stuart explains to Jess the importance of contribution rates and why a yearly review could be beneficial. This podcas...

In this episode, Jess asks Stuart to break down the different types of KiwiSaver funds. Funds are grouped by how much of the riskier investments they hold, like shares and property (also known as "growth assets"). Whether you're looking to dial your risk up or down, it's important to pick the right fund that aligns with your savings goals.  Stuart also shares where to find out...

Want to learn more about KiwiSaver? This is episode 1 of our new navigating KiwiSaver series. This first episode is a KiwiSaver 101, you will learn what KiwiSaver is and how it works.  Jess asks Chief Economist Stuart Johnson how much she should be contributing and when to review her contributions. This podcast has been prepared by the FMA. The advice is of a general nature, and is not intended to...

The FMA has just published its latest piece of research from the economics team, looking at Commercial Real Estate and the Managed Funds Industry.    We’re joined by FMA chief economist Stuart Johnson to tell us more. 

KiwiSaver has just reached a huge milestone! According to our latest KiwiSaver Annual Report, the KiwiSaver funds under management have soared to $111.8 billion as of March 31, 2024, marking a 19.3% jump from last year’s $93.6 billion. This is a big win for New Zealanders who rely on KiwiSaver for their retirement savings.  The growth this year came from a mix of $13.1 billion in investment return...

In the first episode of our new podcast series ‘Occasional Conversations,’ Chief Economist, Stuart Johnson and Senior Adviser, Sophia Scragg discuss a new piece of research around fairness in financial services. Overall, this research has shown that when presented with specific customer focused scenarios, consumers have a remarkably consistent understanding of what constitutes fairness in financia...

In the second episode of our new podcast series ‘Occasional Conversations,’ Chief Economist, Stuart Johnson discusses a new piece of research around AI in financial services. To download the research paper in full head over to www.fma.govt.nz.  

In this special episode of our 5 mins with the FMA podcast, we take a look at outcomes- focused regulation with Liam Mason, FMA Executive Director of Evaluation and Oversight and General Counsel.  The FMA is moving towards an outcomes-focused approach to regulation and part of this change is setting out ideas around fair outcomes for consumers and markets.  Our new guide: "Fair outcomes for c...

In this episode, to mark World Investor Week, we take a look at ethical investing, with Paul Gregory, Executive Director, Response & Enforcement at the FMA.  We talk with Paul about the challenges facing investors looking for ethical investments and the role of a regulator in making sure fund managers really are doing what they promise. We also explore the main things that investors should thi...

In this episode, we look at the latest KiwiSaver Annual Report, with John Horner , Director of Markets, Investors and Reporting at the FMA. The FMA’s latest KiwiSaver Annual Report shows that KiwiSaver has held firm through a continuing period of market volatility. Total funds in KiwiSaver have grown again this year, by $4 billion, due to contributions of $10.5bn from members, employers, and gover...

Today we’re looking at scams – particularly those investment scams that have led to Kiwis losing a lot of money – we’re talking retirement savings, house deposits and hard-earned savings being stolen by overseas criminals.   We’re speaking to Sam McGuire, the FMA’s Regulatory Services manager. She sees a lot of the scam complaints that come in and she’s got some good advice for keeping safe.    Ch...

Today we discuss the licensing of Financial Advice Providers (FAPs) with the FMA’s Michael Hewes.    From March 17, 2023 all financial advice providers (FAPs) must hold or operate under a full licence from the FMA if they want to provide regulated financial advice to retail clients.   With full licensing now in effect, this will continue to give Kiwis greater confidence in consistent standards acr...

Today we discuss New Zealand’s new climate-related disclosures regime with the FMA’s Jenika Phipps.  Organisations covered (known as Climate Reporting Entities or CREs) will soon have to make annual disclosures covering governance arrangements, risk management, strategies and metrics and targets for mitigating and adapting to climate change impacts.   This applies to the larger publicly listed com...

FMA Director of Capital Markets Paul Gregory discusses the FMA’s recently-published review of the wholesale property investment sector, which led to the FMA issuing formal warnings to several entities. He explains why the FMA conducted the review and what the major findings were, particularly in relation to some firms using deficient eligible investor certificates. Mr Gregory says the report and w...

FMA Director of Investment Management Paul Gregory talks about the FMA’s latest KiwiSaver Annual Report, for the 2021-22 financial year. The report includes figures and trends found in KiwiSaver providers’ consolidated data, and summaries of the FMA’s key activities and ongoing focus areas. Here we talk about the key stats, including the early impact of lower fee settings for default members, anot...

FMA Director of Banking and Insurance Conduct Clare Bolingford discusses the incoming Conduct of Financial Institutions (CoFI) regime, which will require New Zealand's retail banks, insurers and non-bank deposit takers to treat customers fairly at all stages of the relationship. Here she outlines the key changes CoFI will bring about, what treating customers ‘fairly’ means in practice, and wh...

FMA Director of Supervision James Greig discusses the FMA’s new message to financial service providers to ensure their cyber defences are robust, in an age of increasingly sophisticated and successful cyber attacks.  Here he explains why the regulator issued the “Cyber Security & Operational Systems Resilience” information sheet in June 2022, which includes details around standard FMC Act lice...