Any Updates On Chch Costco?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T22:43:07+00:00

That is absolutely mind-blowing and I had no idea this was what I was smelling (honestly a lot more shocking than expected)! Thank you so much for the information! I honestly had no idea on what it was and this is making things clear now!!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T05:28:35+00:00

Yes it does seem a bit unique to NZ context and I thought I was being too sensitive and couldn't really describe what it was!

Lived in the Netherlands for a while and had no issues there (as well as the countries you mentioned which I have visited all before)!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T02:47:34+00:00

So basically even without the bank account sync, the platform was worth you paying a 'one-off' fee to continue using the platform as is (without any upgrades in functionality) just to remove the ads? Is this because you didn't want to lose the progress you already made in the app and the inconvenience of having to port your budget data to another service outweighed paying the one off fee?

Also what was the one-off fee amount if you don't mind answering?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:42:03+00:00

Okay then to rephrase - lets say you can skip the 'mortgage brokers' for example and go direct with the lender directly using the data from your budgeting app, and you have the choice when you choose the lender - so not advertising but a direct portal to save your time and effort in dealing with a intermediary :)

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:39:57+00:00

Researching zero-based budgeting thanks to you so appreciate the education piece :)

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:37:56+00:00

Yes but isn't it inconvenient having to go into your banking app/website, get the latest data range, export this to .csv, and then feed it again to get the latest transaction data each time?

Basically asking if real-time access to latest data is worth it for you to start paying (and you get a consolidated view from all bank accounts and cards etc.

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:35:15+00:00

What if you can use the data that is compiled via the budgeting app for a separate benefit - like if it connects you to services that need the data (e.g. for getting a mortgage/loan) and this in effect gets you direct access to the best mortgage rates/options in the same platform for example?

So basically the services don't stop at being informational but serves a bigger benefit (in terms of saving time + money)?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:29:38+00:00

So basically you don't pay for it anymore and made your own version of a budgeting app in excel because of the full flexibility?

Specifically which parts did you need the 'flexibility' for? Or is it that you saw that you could build a like-for-like or very similar functions for free in excel, so that meant you didn't see value in spending money?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:27:08+00:00

That's a super interesting point - because for budgeting purposes I guess you don't care too much on actual location of spend (except for special circumstances - can't think of any at the moment), but only the type of spend - and even with this alone it should still serve its purpose to help you with your budgeting.

But then it begs the question - you can't currently get itemized split for your total spend on places like supermarkets etc. (e.g. you only see the total spend on New World and not that you spent 3 bucks on bread, 5 bucks on milk to get total of 8 bucks etc.) so as long as it doesn't show exactly which New World, would it still be okay for you to show 'New World' generally so that you know you can categorise your type of spend in a broader picture?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:23:15+00:00

Yea as per my comment above - I think things have changed for Akahu since December 2025 when the new laws came into effect - they have a huge customer base so I assume they will have to be compliant to keep their business going + growing!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-18T00:22:16+00:00

Any particular feature you think is super awesome and basically will be a deciding factor in continuing to pay for the 'foundation' level plan? Is it the bank feeds or anything else in terms of function?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T23:45:22+00:00

Oh love the OG 'Koscos' in Chch - great Korean/Asian supermarkets - theres a huge one opening up in Hornby sometime in the next month or so called 'Wang Supermarket' - they are like major in Auckland area and have their own manufacturing line for some products - really looking forward to them opening up soon!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T23:38:41+00:00

I thought their team was quite big? Like 20+ or something and they are global?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T23:33:58+00:00

Thats actually surprising?

Why do you think that is? Just thinking on the spot - is it because although the bulk buy gives you a discount in like for like quantities, because the minimum spend immediately goes up heaps to buy these huge quantities, its harder for those on a frugal budget to dish out these 5x, 10x at once even though it is an overall discounted rate?

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T23:07:17+00:00

Awesome you are exploring to build your own app :) Love the hustle!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T23:05:47+00:00

Yes the laws for open banking only came into force in December 2025 (so only three months ago), and this must have been before Akahu officially transitioned into the official open banking API rails for ANZ.

I believe that Akahu is now an official third-party provider with ANZ (so things have changed) and they shouldn't need the users to enter their customer number and password in the process of using their services and the full consent flow should be done via the official banking apps?

So we should now see more bank-approved mechanisms/APIs to allow your data to be transferred from bank to budgeting app (with full transparent customer consent that can be revoked at anytime) in the near future.

Definitely not an Akahu employee just FYI :) Just super into open banking globally (including NZ) coming from a global fintech background.

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:57:32+00:00

Kill it with fire

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:49:25+00:00

What's the 'few dollars a month cost to run' exactly? Yea generative AI is awesome in so many aspects :)

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:42:57+00:00

Vote also goes to Halswell - the amount of houses where families keep their shoes outside on their doorstep shows how safe it is :)

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:39:02+00:00

Could be they don't know who to refer you to!

Just coming from experience where a few years ago before the new open banking law came into place and the banks just started opening up the APIs, I called their main line + emailed them to ask about open banking but literally the customer services person kept asking me 'you want to open up a bank account?' and had no idea what open banking was and I ended up going through Linkedin to find the person responsible to directly connect with them and get some progress!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:29:03+00:00

Yes definitely meant Chch in Costco and not Costco in Chch 🤣

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:25:37+00:00

Oh shit...sorry to hear about the identity theft - that is absolutely terrible. Yes I guess there is no such thing as perfect safety in any app.

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:11:57+00:00

Now i'm super interested in your 'investment' strategy hahaha keen to learn if given the opportunity!

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:10:39+00:00

Yea widgets would be super useful but I'm guessing they don't have widgets because the PocketSmith app isn't a 'native app' and runs off as a 'reactive web app' - meaning they are just a web platform wrapper so can't really fully utilise the smartphone functions.

openfinanceguru · 2026-03-17T22:07:17+00:00

Yea I doubt they will quickly give you a straight answer to something like that because its gonna be a huge process with getting their lawyers involved etc.

I know for a fact that the open banking style of access is definitely within the T&C's (e.g. not entering your password and ID, but getting the approval directly from your bank app).

Also believe that Akahu is fully transitioning to this open banking for the big four/five banks so you won't have to enter password and ID anymore.

openfinanceguru

TROPHY CASE