Labour vows to make it easier for new players to take on big banks

The Labour Party is promising, if elected, to make it easier for new competitors to take on the country’s big banks, which currently hold around 85-90% of registered bank assets. 

The big banks the party is referring to are the New Zealand subsidiaries of ANZ, ASB, BNZ and Westpac. 

“This election is about the cost of living. Almost every Kiwi relies on a bank to get paid, pay the bills, buy a home or grow a business,” Labour leader Chris Hipkins said. 

“Four big banks dominate our banking sector. When there isn’t enough competition, customers have less choice and banks have less reason to offer them a better deal.” 

Hipkins said Labour would “break down the barriers” to competition. 

“When banks compete harder, Kiwis get more choice and more power to shop around for a better deal.” 

The party’s policy package included introducing a new e-money licence for businesses offering services like digital wallets and payments, and making sure smaller providers can access essential banking and payments infrastructure on fair terms. 

Labour would require a secure, 24-hour, seven-day-a-week real-time payments system by 2030. 

It has also promised to establish a clearer pathway for innovative financial providers to grow into genuine banking competitors – and to make government-verified identity easier to use across banks and fintechs, reducing the hassle of signing up or switching. 

Labour’s commerce and consumer affairs spokeswoman Arena Williams said the big four banks hold around 85-90% of registered bank assets, which for many New Zealanders meant “too few real choices about who they bank with and what services they use”. 

“Technology has changed what’s possible. You shouldn’t have to rely on one of the big banks for every financial service you use, and new providers with a better offer should have a fair chance to win your business.”