FMA still waiting for first robo applications

The Financial Markets Authority last week announced it was open to applications from providers who wanted to offer personalised financial advicer to consumers via rogbo platforms.

Liam Mason, its director of regulation, said: “The decision to allow providers to offer personalised digital advice gained wide support from the market during consultations last year, including from both small start-ups and large financial institutions.

“An FMA review of KiwiSaver sales in 2015 found only three in 1,000 KiwiSaver sales or transfers occurred with personalised advice. We believe the introduction of personalised digital advice has the potential to improve consumer access to financial advice, especially for those with smaller sums to invest and KiwiSaver members.”

Many of the product providers are working on their offerings and it was expected that there could be products in the market by March.

Providers are not able to offer personalised digital advice until they are named in the schedule to the exemption notice.