The New Zealand Financial Markets Authority has launched a review of access to financial advice in New Zealand, focusing on where consumers go for advice and the challenges and opportunities affecting availability under the financial advice regime introduced in 2021. The review will build on the FMA’s monitoring of the regime and its view that advice quality and accessibility are complementary but can involve trade-offs. Findings are intended to inform the FMA’s regulatory focus on whether the regime is fulfilling its purpose, with potential follow-up including new guidance, changes to monitoring priorities, recommendations to address gaps or potential improvements, and initiatives to improve consumer awareness. The FMA plans to publish relevant insights and engage with the market on its findings, and to consider next steps where it identifies issues that are having undesirable impacts on access to financial advice.