KlickEx

KlickEx is a New Zealand financial-technology company focused on low-value electronic foreign-exchange transactions and payment settlement involving Pacific Island economies. Its system was designed to address a structural problem in Pacific remittances: conventional international-transfer networks can impose fixed fees, wide foreign-exchange spreads, and long processing times that make small payments uneconomic for migrant workers and families sending money to or from the islands. KlickEx’s model matches payment and foreign-exchange demand between individuals and institutions, while also supporting settlement through banks and central-bank-linked mechanisms. The company operates as both a technology provider and a supervised payment-system business. Its infrastructure is intended to connect central banks, commercial banks, non-bank financial institutions, mobile-network operators, and other non-financial participants to regional and international clearing arrangements. Payments can be delivered into bank accounts or mobile wallets, enabling mobile-money services to participate in established financial channels rather than operating as isolated systems. The stated geographic focus has included New Zealand, Australia, Tonga, Samoa, other Pacific Island countries, and payment corridors involving Europe. KlickEx’s technology traces back to trading systems that had been operating since 2002. The company was founded by Robert Bell and was associated with Auckland’s ICEhouse innovation incubator. Its name is derived from “The Klick Exchange Trading Company.” During the early 2010s, the business developed partnerships connected with the United Nations Development Programme and the governments of Australia and New Zealand. These efforts emphasized financial inclusion, especially the extension of formal financial services to rural communities and women in developing economies. The company has described its activities through three broad divisions. Its retail operation provides payment services for consumers in the South Pacific. Its institutional operation connects smaller banks with regional and global clearing networks. Its NGO and development operation supplies statistical, compliance, and related solutions for regulators, governments, and development organizations. Across these areas, the platform has supported multi-currency settlement, payment verification, order forwarding, cash-flow tracking, and wealth-management or consumer-security functions. A central feature of the KlickEx model is an open-access electronic market for multi-currency settlement. The system is designed to handle both very small and larger foreign-exchange transactions, including standing orders with values as low as NZ$1 according to the referenced description. Straight-through processing allows cleared funds to move between accounts across currencies without relying solely on traditional correspondent-transfer processes. The company has also described rapid settlement, bank-to-bank exchange rates, and reduced overhead as principal benefits. KlickEx received recognition in New Zealand and international financial-technology circles during the early 2010s. It was a finalist in several categories of the 2012 New Zealand Hi-Tech Awards and was named a top start-up at SWIFT Innotribe in 2013. The available reference material does not establish the company’s present ownership, operating status, financial performance, or current executive team. Accordingly, its current corporate position remains unconfirmed.

KlickEx emerged in New Zealand as a financial-technology venture aimed at improving electronic foreign-exchange and payment flows involving Pacific Island economies. The company’s name derives from “The Klick Exchange Trading Company,” and its development was associated with the ICEhouse innovation incubator in Auckland. Robert Bell is identified as its founder. The company’s underlying trading technology had reportedly been operating since 2002, although the available reference does not provide a separately verified incorporation year. The business was developed around the economics of Pacific remittances. Many payments sent by migrant workers and relatives are small, but conventional international-transfer systems often apply fixed charges and foreign-exchange margins that consume a substantial share of the amount transferred. Processing can also be slow because payments may pass through multiple intermediaries. KlickEx sought to reduce these frictions by matching payment demand, supporting electronic foreign-exchange clearing, and providing settlement routes between participating financial institutions. Its platform was described as serving several types of participants. Consumers could use retail payment services to send money across Pacific corridors, while banks and other institutions could use the system to access regional and international clearing networks. The company also worked with mobile-network operators so that mobile-wallet transactions could be connected to existing banking infrastructure. This model was intended to expand formal financial access in areas where bank branches and conventional payment services were limited. During 2011, KlickEx continued developing its regional role through a partnership involving the United Nations Development Programme and the Australian and New Zealand governments. The partnership context linked the company’s infrastructure to broader financial-inclusion objectives, including service expansion for rural communities and women in developing economies. The platform’s use by mobile carriers was presented as a way to accelerate the spread of financial services beyond established bank customers. KlickEx organized its activities into retail, institutional, and NGO or development functions. The retail division addressed payment services in South Pacific markets. The institutional division connected smaller banks with wider clearing systems. The NGO and development function supported regulators and government agencies with statistical, compliance, and related information systems. This structure reflected an attempt to combine a consumer remittance product with infrastructure and public-interest functions. The system’s technical and commercial features included an electronic market for multi-currency settlement, clearing and verification, electronic order forwarding, cash-flow tracking, and security-related financial-management tools. KlickEx described its settlement process as straight-through processing, allowing individuals and partner banks to obtain access to cross-border foreign-currency clearing and move cleared funds between accounts. The system was also designed to handle very small transactions and standing foreign-exchange orders, with the referenced material citing amounts as low as NZ$1. The company gained visibility through awards and industry events. In 2011, it shared the University of Auckland Business School Entrepreneurs’ Challenge. In 2012, it was a finalist in multiple New Zealand Hi-Tech Awards categories, including the Ministry of Science and Innovation Start-up of the Year, Best New Software, and Best New Service. In 2013, it received top start-up recognition from SWIFT Innotribe. The reference material also records recognition connected with KlickEx staff and Robert Bell in New Zealand technology and banking-industry programs during 2012–2014. KlickEx was described as both a systems provider and a licensed, prudentially supervised payment-system operator. Its reported corridors included the Pacific Islands, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, with delivery to either bank accounts or mobile wallets. The available material does not establish the company’s current ownership, financial condition, active markets, present management, or whether the service remains operational. Those aspects therefore require further verification.

• 2013

  SWIFT Innotribe top start-up recognition

  [1]KlickExen.wikipedia.org

  KlickEx was recognized as a top start-up through SWIFT Innotribe.

• 2012

  New Zealand Hi-Tech Awards finalist

  [1]KlickExen.wikipedia.org

  The company became a finalist in several New Zealand Hi-Tech Awards categories, including start-up, software, and service awards.

• 2011

  University of Auckland Entrepreneurs’ Challenge recognition

  [1]KlickExen.wikipedia.org

  KlickEx shared the University of Auckland Business School Entrepreneurs’ Challenge with three other companies.

• 2011

  Regional development partnership

  [1]KlickExen.wikipedia.org

  KlickEx continued building its payment and mobile-wallet services in a partnership context involving the United Nations Development Programme and the Australian and New Zealand governments.

• 2002

  Underlying trading technology becomes operational

  [1]KlickExen.wikipedia.org

  The technology underlying the KlickEx system was described as having been in operation from 2002.

KlickEx positions itself as a regional payment and foreign-exchange infrastructure provider designed for low-value, high-friction remittances in Pacific markets. Its differentiation is based on lower-cost electronic settlement, connections between banks and mobile-money systems, rapid cross-border processing, and support for financial inclusion in underserved and rural communities.

• Remittance and consumer payments

  Retail payment service

  KlickEx’s retail operation provides electronic payment and foreign-exchange services for consumers sending money across Pacific corridors. The service is designed for low-value transactions that may be poorly served by conventional remittance providers because fixed fees and exchange-rate margins can be disproportionate. Referenced markets include New Zealand, Australia, Tonga, and Samoa, with funds deliverable to bank accounts or mobile wallets after customer approval and anti-money-laundering procedures.

• Foreign-exchange infrastructure

  Multi-currency settlement market

  The platform includes an electronic market for multi-currency settlement intended to support both very small and larger foreign-exchange transactions. It matches or forwards payment and settlement instructions and is designed to reduce reliance on conventional foreign-exchange margins. The system was described as supporting standing orders with values as low as NZ$1, although the available source does not provide current product terms.

• Banking and payment infrastructure

  Institutional clearing platform

  KlickEx’s institutional operation connects smaller banks and other participants with regional and global clearing networks. Functions include payment verification, multi-regional clearing, electronic order forwarding, and settlement between accounts. The stated objective is to provide access to cleared cross-border funds at bank-to-bank exchange rates while reducing delays and operational overhead.

• Mobile payments

  Mobile-wallet connectivity

  KlickEx provides infrastructure intended to connect mobile-network operators and mobile-wallet services with established banking systems. This allows cross-border payments to be delivered directly into mobile wallets as well as conventional bank accounts, supporting access in rural and underbanked communities. The model was developed in connection with wider financial-inclusion initiatives in Pacific markets.

• Financial information and regulatory technology

  Cash-flow and compliance systems

  The company also describes cash-flow tracking, wealth-management, statistical, and compliance capabilities. These tools are intended to improve transparency, consumer security, and oversight across a multi-currency payment environment. The NGO and development operation was directed toward regulators, government agencies, and development organizations, rather than only retail customers.

1. 1KlickExen.wikipedia.org