India-New Zealand Conclude Financial Services Annex Under FTA, Going Beyond WTO Commitments

On December 22, 2025, India and New Zealand finished their discussion on the Financial Services Annexe of the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA), contributing to a major turning point in the reinforcement of bilateral economic and strategic cooperation.

India and New Zealand have both strongly confirmed that they will contribute to reinforcing cooperation in the financial services sector. Both countries have worked together to develop a forward-looking, balanced, and mutually beneficial agreement that will help in the development of new and improved opportunities for their respective financial services sectors.

This FTA will create clear rules and systems to boost cooperation between the two countries, make it easier to enter each other’s markets, and help their financial systems work more closely together.

The India-New Zealand Financial Services Annexe is a major improvement over the normal commitments under the WTO’s GATS framework. It now has 18 articles, showing deeper cooperation between the two countries. The main achievements of the Financial Services Annexe of the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) are as follows:

1. Digital Payments and Real-Time Transactions

• India and New Zealand have both agreed to collaborate on their domestic payment systems, ensuring real-time cross-border remittances and merchant payments through integrated Fast Payment Systems (FPS).

2. Fintech and Regulatory Innovation

• India and New Zealand have both agreed to put equal efforts into reinforcing financial services innovation. Both have committed to cooperating closely in financial technology and innovation. They will learn from each other’s Regulatory Sandbox and Digital Sandbox systems.

3. Protection and Transfer of Financial Data

• India and New Zealand both committed to each country keeping its own laws on data transfer, storage, and processing. This will ensure full control over data sovereignty, robust consumer privacy protection, and safe and regulated cross-border digital operations. At the same time, the agreement supports cross-border digital financial services.

4. Fair Credit Ratings and Non-Discrimination

• Indian financial institutions in New Zealand will be ensured to be protected from arbitrary or unfair credit assessment practices in the country. Meaning, Indian banks and insurers will be equally treated, no unfair rules against the Indian financial service providers will be issued, and easier market access will be ensured in New Zealand.

Overall, the FTA will act as a key driver for expanding India’s financial services footprint in New Zealand and for welcoming New Zealand financial institutions into India’s large and growing financial services market.