New Zealand has a small, bank-dominated financial system in which the largest banks are subsidiaries of Australian groups. Prudential regulation sits with the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ), conduct regulation with the Financial Markets Authority (FMA), and most financial service providers must be on the public Financial Service Providers Register (FSPR). In 2026 it became one of the few Asia-Pacific jurisdictions to legislate a licensing regime for online casinos.
Risk flagStandard
FATFNot listed
EU AML high-risk listNot listed
EU tax listNot listed
Licence regimes6
CurrencyNZD
S&P ratingAA+
Next election7 November 2026
Not on the FATF grey or black lists after the June 2026 plenary, not on the EU high-risk third country list (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 as amended, latest by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/46), and not on Annex I of the EU tax list updated 17 February 2026. Checked 7 October 2026.
Government and politics
Government
Parliamentary constitutional monarchy
Monarch (represented by Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro since 2021-10, term extended to 31 March 2027)
King Charles III · since September 2022
Prime Minister
Christopher Luxon (National Party)
Governing parties
National Party, ACT New Zealand, New Zealand First
Last election
General election, 14 October 2023
Next election
General election, 7 November 2026. Date announced by Prime Minister Luxon on 21 January 2026
Legislature
House of Representatives (unicameral; normally 120 seats, 123 in the current term due to overhang), elected by mixed-member proportional representation
Legal system
English common law, with special legislation and land courts for Maori
Economy and finance
Population
5.3m (2025)
GDP
USD 258.8bn (2025)
GDP per person
USD 48,621 (2025)
Currency
New Zealand dollar (NZD), floating
Central bank
Reserve Bank of New Zealand
Credit rating
S&P AA+ (stable) · Moody's Aaa (negative) · Fitch AA+ (negative) (as of April 2026)
A high-income, trade-dependent economy built on dairy, meat, forestry and tourism, with a banking sector dominated by subsidiaries of the big four Australian banks.
Bank
Registered bank (moving to licensed deposit taker)
Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) · websitebanks, Insurance
Financial Markets Authority (FMA) · websiteInvestment firms, FX brokers, Payment service providers, Virtual asset service providers (VASPs)
Companies Office (Financial Service Providers Register) (FSPR) · websitePayment service providers, E-money institutions, Virtual asset service providers (VASPs), Investment firms
Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) · websiteOnline gaming, Payment service providers, Virtual asset service providers (VASPs)
Several official sites (RBNZ, FMA, NZ Legislation, AML/CFT portal) refused automated access on 2026-10-07, so bank minimum capital, Deposit Takers Act commencement dates, FMA licence financial conditions and FMA fees could not be verified and are left null; the RBNZ and FMA source links are the official landing pages. There is no dedicated e-money or payment institution licence: non-bank payment providers register on the FSPR and are AML/CFT reporting entities. Online casino gambling: the number of licences, licence term, fees and the date licensed operators can go live were not confirmed from an official page we could read.
General information
About New Zealand
Natural Earth boundaries. Map is indicative.
Status
Sovereign state
Capital
Wellington
Largest city
Auckland
Area
268,838 km²
Official languages
English, Maori, New Zealand Sign Language
Time zone
UTC+12:00 (UTC+13:00 in summer)
Main exports
milk and dairy products
wood
beef
butter
sheep and goat meat
tourism
Main export partners
China
United States
Australia
Japan
South Korea
Sources for the country information(8)
Country information checked 9 October 2026. Licensing data updated 7 October 2026. Information only, not legal advice; requirements change. Regulatory notice.
