Financial Services Council chief executive Richard Kiplin was in Dunedin yesterday, hosting a mini-conference for members.
Each year, the council undertook research that looked at different areas of the financial sector, he said.
Last year, it looked at how New Zealanders thought and felt about money.
This year, the council wanted to expand on that.
During the Covid-19 lockdown last year, digital investment platforms making investing easy, such as Sharesies and InvestNow, had become popular with rookie investors.
The council would look at whether those platforms would sustainably change the landscape of investing, or if it was a case of "just a bunch of people locked down at home looking for something to do", Mr Kiplin said.
Secondly, alongside the climate change discussion, the council would look at how people invested with climate change in mind.
Finally, more broadly, it would look at how people felt about KiwiSaver and the size and scale of their contributions.
New Zealanders did not fully understand what to do with money, and the aim of the organisation was to help that, he said.
"Our data is pretty compelling ... it shows a significant amount of New Zealanders are three months or less away from real trouble financially.
"One of the roles for the sector and Government is to help people understand the language of money," Mr Kiplin said.
Learning about money should start at home with children and pocket money was a really good tool to help, he said.
The council aimed to release its research towards the end of May.
