The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) - Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko – has released two Kaupapa Māori research papers in its first steps to better understanding of the experiences of Māori consumers and providers in Aotearoa New Zealand’s financial markets.
FMA CEO Samantha Barrass said: “Our te ao Māori strategy, Matangirua, is designed to help the FMA enable Māori to participate as Māori in financial markets, and in so doing, strengthen our ability to fulfil our regulatory obligations.
“The Māori asset base has grown at a significantly faster rate than the overall economy, from $69 billion in 2018 to $126 billion in 2023. Yet there are significant gaps in data and knowledge about Māori consumers’ and providers’ experiences across the sector.
“The FMA is committed to understanding the perspectives of Māori participants in the financial services sector in Aotearoa New Zealand to ensure that the FMA’s vision that more New Zealanders than ever believe the financial sector is working well for them is true for Māori.
“This research is a beginning for the FMA, our first step into this realm, and we want to listen, to learn, to understand and to make changes.”
The first report, Matangirua research wānanga: a case study on Māori consumer experiences of investment and savings, presents the kōrero of three wānanga held with Te Ora Hou Centres in Ōtautahi (Christchurch), Whanganui and Pōneke (Wellington) about
Māori consumer experiences with investment and savings.
FMA Pou Ahurea, Jacob De Berry, who co-facilitated the wānanga, said wānanga participants showed a common desire for collective participation, particularly around saving as a whānau and how this was impacted through a lack of appropriate products and services.
“A lack of te ao Māori values and the lack of opportunity for Māori to engage and act collectively, contribute to negative perceptions and feelings of exclusion.
“Participants viewed KiwiSaver products and services as failing to understand or incorporate Māori values and collective identities, especially around collective decision making and whānau-centred investment approaches.
“Some participants thought online share trading platforms and cryptocurrencies offered greater opportunity to exercise their rangatiratanga and mana motuhake. These options were also viewed as beneficial because they enabled participants to avoid direct contact with providers where, due to widespread experiences of prejudice or bias, prejudicial treatment is largely expected.”
Co-author and FMA Strategic Adviser Māori, Hannah Chapman said the FMA undertook the second report, titled He Kākahu Whenua: a case study of Toha Network and East Coast Exchange, to understand the opportunities, challenges and barriers encountered by innovative Māori providers in their pre-licensing context.
She said the research with Māori Fintech provider Toha Network demonstrated an innovative approach to embedding te ao Māori values in financial systems. It also highlighted the complex legal and legislative landscape that exists for Māori, particularly Māori landowners.
“There is a growing number of Māori providers who are addressing barriers to Māori participation in financial markets by developing business models that are conducive to a Māori worldview.
“The case study shows how by embedding te āo Māori principles, fostering innovative partnerships, and embedding Māori Data Sovereignty into their business model, Toha aims to enable Māori landowners to overcome regulatory challenges, diversify land-based revenue, and assert self-determination, while advocating for broader market reforms that recognise collective benefits,” said Ms Chapman.
“Both case studies have produced evidence and intelligence that is actionable for the FMA. We intend to apply what we have learned from this research to our ongoing regulatory engagement and risk awareness, to address market failures and promote fair, efficient and transparent markets.”
FMA General Counsel Liam Mason said both reports emphasised why financial services providers and advisers should have a strong understanding of the worldview, collective identities and values that drive financial decision-making for Māori consumers.
“He Kākahu Whenua highlights how Māori consumers and providers build and redistribute their resources to practice cultural values and exercise their responsibilities to their whānau and whenua, supporting their collective ability to thrive and be self-sustaining. This is echoed in all three Te Ora Hou wānanga,” he said.
“By utilising Kaupapa Māori research methods for this research it has revealed new insights and identified unmet needs which also have broader application, teaching us more overall about our role as an enabling regulator.
About the research
The research was led by FMA Principal Adviser Kaupapa Māori Research, Kahukore Baker.
Co-author and FMA Strategic Adviser Māori, Hannah Chapman attended the Kotahitanga hui called by the late Kīngi Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII and the following hui-ā-motu hosted by Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngai Tahu in 2024. Insights from these hui helped inform the focus of this research.
About Toha Network
Toha Network is one of a growing number of Māori providers whose business models reflect a Māori worldview and are designed to address barriers to Māori participation, such as complex regulatory processes that limit Māori access to capital, innovation, and participation in financial markets.
The Toha Network connects investors, scientists and communities in a collaborative ecosystem for environmental regeneration. It uses digital public infrastructure and a dual-token system (MAHI for verified environmental work, TOHA for data/governance rights).
Te Kautuku is a land trust on the East Coast that is a partner in Toha’s pilot project with Air New Zealand and Te Puni Kōkiri for regenerating the native ecosystem.
The East Coast Exchange (ECX) operationalises Toha’s model, prioritising Indigenous Data Sovereignty and trust-based economies.
About Te Ora Hou
Te Ora Hou is a network of five kaupapa Māori centres who have worked with rangatahi and their whānau through a community development approach for decades.
