Parliament Report Confirms Our Mission Since Day Dot

A landmark parliamentary inquiry into banking competition has validated the path we've been on since day one – New Zealand's banking sector needs genuine competition to deliver better outcomes for Kiwis.

The Finance and Expenditure Committee's lengthy 80-page report reveals that the Big Four Australian-owned banks control almost 90% of the market while earning "excessive profits" compared to international peers. More importantly, it confirms that current capital requirements have created barriers that prevent new entrants from scaling effectively.

"We've been making these points for some time, so it's heartening to see Parliament engaging with them," says our Co-Founder Jamie Jermain. "The goal is simple: keep the system safe while calibrating the rules so new and smaller players can compete on merit. That's how customers win."

The inquiry recognizes that regulatory burden often "disproportionately affects smaller players," funnelling investment into compliance rather than customer experience. It also emphasizes the importance of fair access in payments infrastructure to support fintech innovation – exactly the forward-thinking approach our sector needs.

This is what Emerge was built for. While traditional banks focus on shareholder returns, we're focused on transparent pricing, smart spending tools, and fast human support designed to remove daily financial friction for our customers.

"We're not here to be just another bank. We're here to be what banking should have been all along," adds Jermain. "This report shows a clear path forward – now we're optimistic the government will act on these recommendations."

The report shouts out that fintechs "are likely to provide the biggest competitive opportunities in banking services" – validating what we've been building toward all along.

"Kiwis deserve financial systems built for them, not just shareholders," says Emerge Co-Founder Jovan Pavlicevic. "This report gives the government a clear roadmap, and we're already implementing the solutions it envisions."

With the Reserve Bank set to review capital requirements following this inquiry, we're prepared to scale our impact once these barriers are addressed. We're already serving businesses with smart accounts and spend controls, families through SquareOne, and preparing to launch our personal banking app.

"This inquiry represents a turning point for New Zealand banking. We're excited to be part of the solution."