An Auckland-founded fintech company, based at Auckland Council's GridAKL innovation hub, is helping businesses move money faster, reduce payment costs and keep more value in New Zealand.
Qippay, an open banking payments company headquartered at the Wynyard Quarter start-up hub, has spent the past year building a new way for businesses to accept payments by connecting directly to New Zealand's banking infrastructure.
The startup is already making waves across a range of industries, with customers including Webjet, NBS National Bank of Samoa and Tonga Development Bank. It has also raised $5 million in funding as it expands its services in New Zealand and looks towards Australia.
In recent weeks an Australia-based private equity company invested $5 million capital into Qippay, helping drive its expansion.
A champion of Auckland startups, Mayor Wayne Brown says Qippay's success highlights the role innovation plays in building a resilient, productive economy.
"Hubs like GridAKL are incubators that turn ideas into real businesses. Ash saw a gap in the market, took a leap, and ran with it. That no-fear attitude is everywhere in our city. Going through the 100 Days of Startup, one thing is clear: Auckland is full of creators and risk-takers," Mayor Brown says.
FinTech sector
Wayne Deas.
Founded by Ashley Lake-Johns and Wayne Deas, Qippay is tackling a longstanding challenge for businesses and consumers: the delays, costs and complexity often associated with traditional payment methods and direct debit systems.
Using open banking technology, Qippay allows customers to pay businesses directly from their bank accounts through a secure, seamless process. Payments can be confirmed faster, reducing the lengthy processing times and administrative burden that businesses often face.
Qippay is accredited under the Customer and Product Data Act 2025 for both payment and data services and has bilateral API agreements with ANZ, ASB, BNZ, Westpac and Kiwibank.
Ashley Lake Johns.
But for co-founder and chief executive Ashley Lake-Johns, the company’s vision extends well beyond payments.
"Open banking gives New Zealand an opportunity to rethink financial services from the ground up. We can create experiences that are faster, more secure and more affordable while ensuring more of the value generated in New Zealand stays here," says Lake-Johns.
Financial inclusion
Qippay believes a greater share of the value currently flowing offshore through payment fees can remain in New Zealand through locally developed financial infrastructure.
That ambition is also closely linked to financial inclusion. Qippay sees open banking as a catalyst for giving more New Zealanders and businesses access to services that may previously have been difficult to obtain. By allowing customers to securely consent to sharing financial data, onboarding processes can become simpler and faster while helping organisations better serve their customers.
Accelerating growth
The company joined GridAKL in 2025 and credits the innovation hub with helping accelerate its growth. Being part of the GridAKL community helped connect the Qippay team with founders, mentors, industry experts and investors. It helped open doors and build relationships that have supported the company's rapid development.
“GridAKL is a really important initiative for New Zealand. You see this in countries that have done innovation well - they set up incubators and places to work, and new businesses get access to networks and talent they might not otherwise get,” says Ashley Lake-Johns.
Auckland Council Head of Economic Development Pam Ford adds that GridAKL exists to help innovative Auckland businesses, like Qippay, connect with the expertise, ideas and opportunities they need to grow.
Pamela Ford.
"Qippay is a great example of a locally founded company developing solutions with global potential. Their success demonstrates how Auckland's innovation ecosystem is supporting ambitious businesses to scale, create high-value jobs and contribute to a stronger economy," she says.
The company has built strong foundations for future growth, identifying a range of uses for its technology, including white-label financial services and plug-and-play financial infrastructure that other businesses can build on.
Future applications could support services ranging from loyalty programmes and digital wallets to new data-enabled financial products.
About GridAKL
Run by Auckland Council’s Economic Development Office, GridAKL is located in the John Lysaght building at the Wynyard Quarter.
It is a place to spark ideas and provide opportunities for Auckland’s startup founders, with shared workspaces, regular industry events, workshops and programmes, including visibility to wider networks and visiting international delegations.
GridAKL helps connect startup founders with investors. Since it opened in 2015, GridAKL has fostered innovation and economic growth, contributing $424 million annually to Auckland’s GDP.
Auckland Startup Week
Qippay will be exhibiting at the Challengers’ Expo, during this year’s Auckland Startup Week, which runs 12 to 16 October at GridAKL. For more information and to see the 2026 programme, visit aucklandstartupweek.com.