Aussie payments innovator Zepto launches in New Zealand
Zepto, an account-to-account payments innovator, has today announced its official launch in New Zealand bringing API-led, cloud-native payment solutions to the local market.
The expansion into New Zealand represents a significant milestone in Zepto’s vision to be a better way to pay for businesses and consumers. The Byron Bay success story is reimagining the payments system via its cloud-native platform built for resiliency, industry-leading security, scalability, and a superior digital experience.
“This is a massive milestone,” said Zepto CEO, Chris Jewell (pictured). “It has been a huge collaboration and months of effort to deliver this superb outcome. It is significant, not just for us at Zepto, but for the market and our customers too. This is an important first step on our global expansion journey,” added Jewell.
Zepto Head of Product, Julia Bearzatto said that launching in New Zealand is an important strategic waypoint on Zepto’s business roadmap. “Expanding into our first international market is a significant milestone for our product team who have navigated the technical, operational, regulatory compliance and legal nuances of the local market to deliver the best product for our customers,” said Bearzatto.
“We look forward to helping Kiwi businesses enhance their payment experiences and enabling New Zealand market entries for some of our Australian customers,” Bearzatto added.
The launch comes at a time where the payments system in New Zealand is ripe for innovation. “We have big ambitions to foster innovation, competition, and economic efficiency through our presence and offering in the Kiwi market. It’s an exciting moment for us,” said Jewell.
Zepto is working with a major New Zealand bank and, given the company’s focus on account-to-account payments, has also recently joined ‘Payments NZ’, the governance organisation at the heart of New Zealand’s payments system as a registered API Provider Standards User.
The announcement is just the latest in a series of milestones Zepto has achieved in the last 12 months. In September 2021, Zepto became an Accredited Data Recipient under Australia’s Consumer Data Right, making it the first non-bank to achieve this accreditation. In October that same year, the company became the first non-bank FinTech approved to connect directly to the New Payments Platform as a ‘Connected Institution’ in Australia.
In March 2022, Zepto welcomed a successful Series A funding round of $25 million, led by AirTree Ventures and Decade Partners, in part to enable Zepto’s expansion into international markets. And in August this year, Zepto CEO Chris Jewell presented to the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Payments System Board, contributing to discussions around innovation, access issues and regulatory reform in the payments system.
“Ultimately, our focus and passion for New Zealand comes back to our vision to contribute to a world-class payment system where all Kiwi businesses and consumers can safely and securely pay anyone, anywhere, at any time while bypassing hidden fees and having access to immediate funds availability,” Jewell concluded.
