New Zealand's financial services sector is at an inflection point. Open banking is moving from policy to practice. AI is being deployed at enterprise scale. Regulatory obligations under CoFI are tightening. The leaders navigating these decisions need a room where the conversation is candid, the peers are genuine, and the insights are actionable.
The FUTR of Financial Services New Zealand 2026 is that room. This summit on 11 August, open by invitation and application, brings 350+ senior leaders across banking, insurance, payments, wealth management, and regulation together for a full day of candid exchange at the Cordis Auckland.
A small number of partnership opportunities are available for organisations whose work is directly relevant to the challenges on this agenda. This prospectus sets out who will be in the room, what is on the programme, and how your organisation can be part of it.
About 
FUTR produces senior executive forums across New Zealand and Australia, built on the relationships, programme rigour, and delegate community developed across years of senior-level events in this market.
Sessions are practitioner-led and programme-driven. Attendance is by invitation. Partners are embedded in the programme as presenters, panellists, and roundtable hosts - not separated into a sponsor track.
| 31 Mar | FUTR of Insurance, Sydney | 300+ delegates |
| 11 Jun | FUTR of Financial Services, Melbourne | 400+ delegates |
| 11 Aug | FUTR of Financial Services, Auckland | 350+ delegates |
| 21 Oct | FUTR of Financial Services, Sydney | 400+ delegates |
Open banking moving from policy commitment to live implementation.
CoFI licences maturing and FMA consumer duty expectations intensifying.
AI deployments scaling from pilots to enterprise-wide programmes.
Core platform renewal accelerating across banks and insurers.
Cyber, fraud, and operational resilience under sustained pressure.
Climate risk and ESG reporting obligations tightening.
Where investment decisions are being made
New Zealand's financial institutions are no longer experimenting. They are deploying, procuring, and building at scale. The 2026 programme is structured around six themes, each representing active investment decisions being made right now.
Open banking, real-time payments, and shared data frameworks moving from policy to implementation. Institutions are actively sourcing the infrastructure to deliver it.
The pilot phase is over. Institutions are evaluating enterprise-wide AI in lending, operations, and fraud and the vendors capable of delivering at that scale.
Maturing CoFI obligations and rising fraud exposure driving urgent investment in security, identity, and detection capabilities across every institution in the room.
FMA conduct expectations and consumer duty creating immediate demand for compliance, governance, and transparency solutions that meet the regulator's bar.
Legacy platform renewal accelerating. Banks and insurers evaluating modular, API-enabled, cloud-ready architectures and the partners who can deliver them.
The sector moving from reporting intent to measurable impact. Institutions seeking partners who can integrate climate risk and ESG into core lending and investment models.
Who is in the room
Every registration is reviewed. The room spans the full breadth of New Zealand's financial services sector - from the major banks and insurers to payments specialists, wealth managers, fintechs, and regulators. Roles range from C-suite through to the senior managers, product leads, and specialists making and influencing technology and investment decisions.
Technology · Digital · Data & Analytics · Product · Risk & Compliance · Cyber Security · Architecture · Payments · Operations · Transformation · Finance · Strategy · Customer Experience · Fraud · ESG · Audit · Legal
- Retail, commercial, and institutional banks
- General and life insurers, health insurers, brokers
- KiwiSaver providers, wealth and asset managers
- Payments specialists, fintechs, and credit providers
- Mutual lenders and building societies
- RBNZ, FMA, Commerce Commission, and industry bodies
Built around the sector's best voices
The FUTR NZ speaker faculty is drawn from the most senior leaders across banking, insurance, payments, wealth, and regulation in New Zealand. Every speaker is selected for the relevance of their remit and the quality of their contribution to the room.
The programme is updated continuously as speakers are confirmed. Visit the event page for the latest lineup.
View Speakers at thefutr.co
What is on the agenda
Preliminary programme, subject to refinement as speakers and sessions are confirmed. Partner keynote slots are highlighted.
Partner keynotes are scheduled between practitioner sessions. Your team speaks to an audience that is already engaged and primed for the conversation.
| Morning | Chairperson's Opening Remarks |
| Opening Keynote: The Economic Turning Point: Navigating Uncertainty and Opportunity in NZ's Financial Sector | |
| Partner | Partner Keynote: Modern Data Platforms for a Real-Time Financial Services Future |
| Panel: Past the Pilot: Making AI Count Across Financial Services | |
| Morning Tea and Networking | |
| Keynote: From the Boardroom to the Front Line: Building Resilience Across Financial Services | |
| Partner | Partner Keynote: Real-World AI and Automation for Enterprise Performance |
| Panel: Simpler, Faster, Better: Modernising Services, Journeys, and Operations | |
| Partner | Partner Keynote: Secure Payments, Digital Identity, and Fraud Prevention in 2026 |
| Midday | Networking Lunch |
| Afternoon | Keynote: Raising the Bar: FMA on Conduct, Fairness, and Expectations for 2026 |
| Partner | Partner Keynote: Designing Personalised, Connected, and Inclusive Digital Journeys |
| Panel: Trust Without Friction: Security, Protection, and Seamless Experience | |
| Keynote: Frictionless NZ: Open Banking, Real-Time Payments, and Seamless Digital Access | |
| Keynote: Beyond the Portal: Digital Advice, Wealth Innovation, and Financial Wellness | |
| Afternoon Tea and Networking | |
| Partner | Partner Keynote: Modernising Core Systems for Speed, Reliability, and Transformation |
| Keynote: From Green Intent to Real Impact: Leading New Zealand's Climate and Community Finance Future | |
| Keynote: What's Next: Emerging Opportunities and the Future of Financial Services in New Zealand | |
| Evening | Networking Drinks Reception |
Partnership opportunities
FUTR works with a focused group of partners whose solutions are directly relevant to the challenges on this agenda. Depending on the package, partners can present on stage, join a panel, host a roundtable, sponsor a networking moment, or simply be present on the exhibition floor. Pricing on request. Contact the team early - availability is limited.
| Inclusion | Diamond Lead | Diamond | Platinum | Gold | Silver | Expo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20-min Opening Keynote | ✓ | – | – | – | – | – |
| 20-min Keynote | – | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | – | – |
| Panel Inclusion | – | – | – | – | ✓ | – |
| Exhibition Space | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Delegate Wishlist | 50 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Staff Passes | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Full Delegate List | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
- Invitation-only dinner for summit speakers and senior leaders
- Sponsor formally opens the evening and welcomes guests
- Premium branding on menus, table signage, and guest communications
- The most direct relationship-building opportunity in the programme
- Host a bespoke roundtable at your chosen time with a topic you set
- Direct access to 10+ handpicked senior executives matched to your target accounts
- Full input into guest list, topic, and session focus
- All logistics managed: invitations, venue, catering, and content co-ordination
- Exclusive naming rights to the post-summit drinks reception
- Branding at the bar, throughout the networking space, and on event signage
- Opportunity to address the room at the close of the formal programme
- The highest-traffic networking moment of the day
- Branded coffee cart operating throughout morning tea and lunch
- Your branding on cups, signage, and the cart itself
- Natural conversation starter - delegates come to you
- High-visibility, high-footfall touchpoint across the day
- Your brand worn by every delegate throughout the entire event
- Maximum visibility across all sessions, networking, and the exhibition floor
- Simple, high-impact brand presence requiring no activation effort
We work with partners to build bespoke arrangements that fit your goals. If you have a specific activation, audience moment, or brand objective in mind, talk to the team and we will find a way to make it work.
Talk to the teamAll confirmed partners receive dedicated portal access for lead capture and qualification, team management, profile setup, and event logistics. Your team is set up and operational well before event day.
Why this room. Why now.
The room is full of CIOs, CDOs, CISOs, Heads of Digital, Risk, and Payments with real budget authority and active transformation mandates. Whether you are on stage, on a panel, or on the exhibition floor, you are in the room where the decisions are being made.
Partner sessions sit inside the programme as keynote or panel contributions. Your team presents to an audience that is already engaged and already thinking about the problems you solve. The room is listening because they chose to be there.
Open banking, AI at enterprise scale, CoFI compliance, core modernisation, fraud resilience, climate risk. These are not curated themes. They are the decisions your prospects are actively funding right now.
FUTR is led by a team with deep experience producing senior financial services events across New Zealand and Australia. The delegate relationships, programme credibility, and sector trust built over that time are the foundation this event is built on.
