Christchurch lender 4J Enterprise Limited that mainly served members of the city’s Filipino community has been fined $15,000 for providing consumer credit without being registered on the Financial Service Providers Register. The prosecution was concluded by the Financial Markets Authority – Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko (FMA).
In the Christchurch District Court, Judge Elkin also sentenced 4J Enterprise Limited (4J) director Mrs Hope Suan to 140 hours of community work, and senior manager Mr Juvy Suan was sentenced to 150 hours of community work.
The lender offered loans of $500 to $15,000, with terms ranging from six months to two years. While 4J said it charged an annual interest rate of 33%, its records show some borrowers were charged up to 55.61%.
4J pleaded guilty on 5 June 2026 to a representative charge under section 11 of the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008. Mr and Mrs Suan pleaded guilty as parties to the company’s offending. FMA Executive Director Response and Enforcement, Louise Unger, said that lenders providing consumer credit must meet the applicable registration and licensing requirements.
“These requirements are there to help ensure lenders meet minimum standards and can be held accountable for complying with New Zealand’s consumer credit laws.
“If you need a licence and registration, have them in place before you lend. Despite 4J being told in May 2024 that it couldn’t lend without being registered, or being certified by the Commerce Commission, which was the requirement at the time, it carried on for another 18 months.”
During that period, it issued 46 new loans totalling $81,110 to 27 borrowers and collected about $65,000 in interest on 50 new and existing loans. It stopped collecting interest from November 2025.
The Commerce Commission investigated 4J and initially filed the charges. Under the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Amendment Act 2026, the FMA assumed responsibility for the prosecution from 1 July 2026, when consumer credit regulation transferred to the FMA.
