The New Zealand government has announced plans to partner with peak technology lobby, NZTech, to launch a fintech industry group for the nation.

The New Zealand government and NZTech are finalising the developments of a fintech industry group to be known as FinTechNZ, which is being launch by the partners as an offshoot of NZTech, which currently has a membership base of close to 500 kiwi tech companies.

NZTech chair, Mitchell Pham, said: “We want to bring Kiwi fintech innovators together to strengthen the whole sector.”

“As a cohesive sector in New Zealand, it will be easier for us to engage with the global fintech community,” he said.

Pham said FinTechNZ would be a stand out in the founding of industry groups globally, as it would be funded by a larger lobby group, unlike international peers including Australia’s lobbies, Fintech Australia and Australian FinTech.

“Fintech is New Zealand’s fastest-growing technology sector, at 31 per cent per annum,” he said.

“This is almost twice that of the overall ICT sector, three times higher than agritech, and four times higher than the biotech sector.”