Have your say: Consultation on payment services regulation

About the consultation

We are asking whether New Zealand’s rules for payment services are clear, fit for purpose and support a healthy, competitive payments market.

Payment services help people and businesses make and receive payments. They include services such as money transfers, digital wallets, e-money accounts, and services that help businesses accept payments.

When payment services work well, people and businesses can pay and get paid quickly, safely and at reasonable cost. When they do not work well, the impacts can be immediate.

New Zealand does not have a single set of rules designed specifically for payment services. Different laws and requirements may apply depending on the service, how it is structured, and whether the provider is a bank or not.

Having unevenly applied or unclear rules that don’t match the reality of modern business models may make it harder for providers to enter and succeed in the payments market. This affects business and consumer access to innovative new payment services.

We want to understand what is working well, where there may be gaps or uncertainty, and what outcomes should matter most if further work is needed.

We welcome feedback on some or all of the consultation questions, depending on your area of interest or expertise.

Who we want to hear from

We invite submissions from anyone with an interest in payment services, including:

• consumers
• small and large businesses
• banks and non-bank payment service providers
• industry bodies
• academics, advisers and advocacy groups
• community organisations.

Read the discussion document

MBIE has published a discussion document to support this consultation. The discussion document explains the issues we are seeking feedback on and sets out consultation questions. It does not propose a preferred solution.

Webinar

We will be hosting a webinar to provide an overview of the discussion document, with an opportunity for stakeholders to ask questions. The webinar will be recorded and published on this webpage after the event. 

Further details, including timing and registration, will be published shortly on this webpage. If you would like to be notified when registration opens, please email financialmarkets@mbie.govt.nz with the subject line "Register interest - Payment services webinar".

How to make a submission

What happens next

After the consultation closes, MBIE will analyse submissions and consider whether further work is needed on payment services regulation. Any future policy decisions would be subject to the usual government decision-making processes.