News

Kiwi start-up Money Sweetspot goes nationwide!

March 31, 2023
Money Sweetspot shirts in a pile; shirts read "Money Sweetspot: Out of debt. On with life."
Our fabulous t-shirts

We’re upsizing! Money Sweetspot is officially nationwide.

After many months of dreaming and planning and a soft launch that’s gone beyond our wildest dreams, Money Sweetspot is now open for business from one end of Aotearoa to the other.

Our launch last Friday in Kirikiriroa made it official and gave us the chance to mihi our many backers, our funder and of course our awesome kaimahi.

Since we quietly opened for business in December 2022, we’ve worked delivered more than $1.3 million in financial reset loans. We’ve also partnered with global financial wellbeing platform nudge, giving customers access to nudge’s financial education resources, free of charge. This benefits our customers as by engaging in the platform they earn Sweetspot points that can be redeemed as additional money off their loan, or money into their savings account for a rainy day. In addition, by committing to their financial reset and staying on track, our customers can earn rewards to spend through The Good Registry - gifting goodness with a donation to a charity of their choice.

As Sasha said on the day, it’s all about the team… so thank you again to our investors Christian Savings Limited, Anglican Care Waiapu and The Tindall Foundation, our funder BNZ, our charity partner The Good Registry - gifting goodness and financial education partner nudge-global. Together with our wider community based eco-system we’re doing debt consolidation different!

The need is real. Saying no is heartbreaking.

At Money Sweetspot’s national launch event in Kirikiriroa last week, co-founder Sasha Lockley said that high demand proves there’s a real need for the service:

 “We’re not talking people at the most disadvantaged end of society… the people we’ve worked with so far are almost all ordinary, hard-working Kiwi, many in pretty good jobs, who’ve just found that debts have gotten on top of them,” she explained.

"The people we’ve worked with so far are almost all ordinary, hard-working Kiwi, many in pretty good jobs, who’ve just found that debts have gotten on top of them."

She continues, “Whilst it’s been great to help those customers, for every $1 of loans provided, there were $2.20 of loans that we were unable to provide as not all applicants could meet the lending criteria. The pressure for whānau around the cost of living and sheer amount of debt that some Kiwi have has meant that we’ve only been able to approve 40% of the applications. This means that many Kiwi are stuck in higher cost debt struggling to find a way through.”

As we go nationwide, we're looking forward to being able to say "yes" even more. "Yes" to lower interest rates and more accepted applications, "Yes!" to more useful guides and debt management resources, and "YES!" to helping more Kiwis get out of debt - and on with life. There's heaps more that we want to do, but with the support of our awesome investors, partners and, most importantly, the Kiwis we're helping directly, the future is looking pretty sweet.

Related articles

Money Sweetspot 100th member of Financial Services Federation
Why joining FSF is good for Money Sweetspot and good for New Zealanders
September 29, 2024
Opinion: Why change isn't always a good thing
Government lending code changes come with risks, expert warns
July 31, 2024
The Tindall Foundation gives ethical lender $5m boost
Ethical debt consolidation lender Money Sweetspot has received a $5m debt facility from one of its own investors, The Tindall Foundation.
July 17, 2024

Join Our Tribe

Sign up for our newsletter to receive exclusive money tips, educational resources, and the latest updates on personal finance. Join our tribe today and take control of your financial future!

* indicates required
Money Sweetspot provides financial reset debt consolidation loans to help you take charge of your financial life, reduce debts and get on with living.

You are protected by responsible lending laws. Because of these protections, the recommendations given to you about our loan products are not regulated financial advice. This means that duties and requirements imposed on people who give financial advice do not apply to these recommendations. This includes a duty to comply with a code of conduct and a requirement to be licensed. Responsible lending criteria, rates, fees and contract terms apply. For more information visit useful information.

© 2024 Money Sweet Spot Limited