The NZ government now owns 100% of the bank's parent company
The New Zealand government has recently announced that, subject to regulatory approvals, it has acquired 100% of Kiwibank’s parent company Kiwi Group – news welcomed by Kiwibank.
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Kiwibank CEO Steve Jurkovich said remaining in public ownership would enable the biggest NZ-owned bank to continue to deliver on its growth ambitions and have even more impact for its people, customers, and Aotearoa.
“The key to having a positive long-term impact is remaining focused on being competitive and balancing performance and purpose,” Jurkovich said. “The refreshed arrangements will ensure a continuance of good governance and ownership stability. Our success in two short decades since we opened for business is remarkable. Over 1 million customers and 40,000 businesses have joined us because they want to bank with a New Zealand-owned bank where 100% of our profits stay right here in Aotearoa. But there’s a lot more we want to achieve.”
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Jurkovich acknowledged the support and investment of departing shareholders NZ Post (since the bank’s inception in 2002) and ACC and the NZ Super Fund (since 2016).
“Their contribution is a big part of our history, and they leave the bank in a strong position,” he said. “We look forward to working constructively with the government under our new ownership structure to deliver on our purpose: Kiwi making Kiwi better off.”
Kiwibank would continue to operate independently and at arm’s length from the government, with its own board, Jurkovich said.
“We remain focused on providing expertise around the products and services that make Kiwi better off,” he said. “We believe the stability and support offered by today’s announcement will strongly support our goal of being the first choice in banking for customers.”
