The rapid rise of tech companies working in the insurance market and investment by traditional insurance firms into new advanced technologies is expected to lead to better deals for customers in coming years, InsurTechNZ chair Jason Roberts says.

The 2018 selloff in cryptocurrencies deepened, wiping out about US$42 billion (NZ$60 billion) of market value over the weekend and extending this year's slump in Bitcoin to more than 50 percent.

New Zealand may finally implement deposit protection as part of a review of the Reserve Bank.  New Zealand is currently the only country in the OECD without any kind of deposit insurance reports Thomas Coughlan for Newsroom.

Teams from six secondary schools have been chosen as finalists in the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Challenge.

Virtual currency sales ballooned to US$9.1 billion so far this year, exceeding the $6.6 billion total for all of 2017, a financial technology data provider reported on Monday, but it said the monthly trend actually showed a slowdown if the two biggest offerings are excluded.

After months of intense attention on blockchain technology and the Ethereum blockchain, we pull together statistics from across the network to provide a snapshot of Ethereum today, its past, and its roadmap ahead.

Christchurch-based BitPrime has signed a partnership with the NEM Foundation. BitPrime will be working with NEM Foundation Australia and New Zealand to provide a secure and compliant platform for New Zealand residents to buy and sell the XEM cryptocurrency with ease. BitPrime is trusted by over 9,000 Kiwis and is New Zealand owned and operated, The cryptocurrency retailer boasts over 50 Cryptocurrencies in their ecosystem.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) and the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) today briefed the Finance and Expenditure Select committee on the Australian Royal Commission (RC) into Misconduct in Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry, and the response by regulators in New Zealand.The Australian RC was established on 14 December 2017 in response to a series of known, misconduct incidents widespread within financial services over a lengthy period. The RC is expected to issue an initial report in September 2018 and a final report, with recommendations, by February 2019.New Zealand regulators’ responseNew Zealand regulators have been monitoring the RC since it was initiated, and have discussed matters with Australian regulators on a number of occasions. The FMA has been implementing and supervising conduct regulation in NZ since the passing of the Financial Markets Conduct Act in late 2013. This was followed by the publication of the FMA Conduct Guide in February 2017. Our concern about the RC’s impact on confidence in our financial institutions and the potential for complacency in the New Zealand industry led us to take action. On 30 April, the RBNZ Governor and the FMA Chief Executive met with 16 chief executives of New Zealand banks, including the four major Australian-owned banks. We sought assurance that the issues identified in Australia were not evident in New Zealand.Following the meeting with bank CEOs, the RBNZ and the FMA, with the support of the Commerce Commission, wrote to 10 locally-incorporated New Zealand banks with major retail operations on 3 May, initiating a “review of conduct and culture by New Zealand financial services entities”. Banks were given a deadline of 18 May to respond. Notwithstanding that insurance has not featured in the RC at this stage, we wrote similarly to 15 major life insurance companies on 23 May, asking that they respond by 22 June.In our monitoring work to date we have not seen evidence of widespread, systemic issues to warrant a commission of inquiry in New Zealand. However, the work we have initiated may test this view.Assessment of bank responses11 banks provided their responses by the 18 May deadline. A joint working group of FMA and RBNZ staff is reviewing the responses. The Commerce Commission is also reviewing matters relevant to its remit.Initial observations· The submissions are generally extensive and for the most part appear relevant to our request.· Preliminary assessment has identified some variance in detail and the extent of work already completed and expected to be conducted in the future.· Some responses indicate a proactive approach to conduct risk, while other banks have not yet begun to fully embed conduct risk, governance or oversight into their operations. We will be following up with all the banks on these aspects.· The responses also cover: a description of internal and external reviews conducted in recent years future programmes of work to address a number of areas and provide additional assurance examples of issues identified and their remediation processes.

Following the initial assessment, we will be requesting further information and verification where necessary. A high bar will be set in meeting our expectations and demonstrating a sufficient level of assurance in regard to good conduct and culture. Currently we consider it is appropriate to prioritise our work on banks and life insurers, we haven’t made any decision as to whether to expand that focus in the future. It is important to note that a number of relevant legislative frameworks are already under review, and both the FMA and RBNZ have significant existing work programmes across a number of relevant sectors. As we progress our inquiries, we will also identify any areas within the framework for regulation of retail financial services where we consider there are regulatory or supervisory gaps or inefficiencies. We expect to report on these findings in October/November. This timing partly reflects the timing of the initial report from the RC, by 30 September, 2018.

New Zealand’s financial system remains sound. The banking system holds sufficient capital and liquidity buffers, guided by our prudential regulatory requirements. These buffers reduce New Zealand banks’ exposure to adverse shocks.

The Investor’s Guide to the New Zealand Technology Sector makes a strong case for investment in New Zealand’s technology sector.