The Bank Of New Zealand (BNZ) Is One Of The Big Four Banks In New Zealand. It Has Been In Operation Since October 1861 And Has Been Owned By The National Australia Bank (NAB) Since 1992, Retaining Local Governance Rights From The New Zealand Board Of Directors. The Bank Operates A Variety Of Financial Services Covering Retail, Commercial And Institutional Banking.
The Bank Of New Zealand In Australia (BNZA) Is A Former Entity That Is Now Owned By NAB.
History
The Original Logo Of The Bank Of New Zealand Was Used For 147 Years Until 1 October 2008
The Bank Of New Zealand Was A Company Incorporated Under The Banking Of New Zealand Act 1861, Which Created The Company And Authorised It To Issue Banknotes. The Bank Of New Zealand Opened Its First Branch In Auckland In October 1861, Followed Shortly Thereafter By The Opening Of Its First Branch In Dunedin In December 1861.
Branches Were Opened In Wellington, Christchurch And London In 1862. The Bank Acquired A New Zealand Government Bank Account From Union Bank Of Australia And Became An Agent For Raising Debt For The Government In The UK. In The 1860s And 1870s, The Capital Was Brought Into New Zealand By The Government And Others. There Were Plenty Of Jobs, Development Was Rapid, And Very Good Prospects Brought Property Prices To High Values.
In The 1880s, Prices Of Major Products Were Very Low, Rabbit Plague Reduced Wool Production, And The Government Cut Public Works Spending By 75%. The Land Depreciated To Half Of Its Original Value And Could Not Be Realized. Many Operators And Merchants Were Ruined, And The Working Class Could Not Buy Goods Or Pay Their Debts. There Was No Dairy Or Frozen Meat Industry. Investors Withdrew Their Capital. Frozen Meat Out Of The 1880s, With Reference To Canterbury Lamb And Dairy Products, Followed By, See Anchor Butter. In June 1894, The BNZ Was Saved By Legislation. In 895, BNZ Took Over The Crisis-ridden Colonial Bank Of New Zealand.
20th Century Timeline
- 1940: An Interest-free Loan Of £1 Million As A War Contribution To The Government. By 1945, There Were 74 Women In The Company, Growing To More Than 700.
- 1943: The Mobile Branch Opened In A Caravan Of American Servicemen, Introducing Night Banks In Auckland And Wellington.
- 1944: The Personal Loans Department Was Established. The Government Announced Its Intention To Nationalize The Bank.
- 1945: The Nash Government Introduced The Bank Of New Zealand Act. Once Passed, The Government Paid £7,933,000 In Cash, Transferable Shares And Tax-free Shares To The Bank's 8,500 Shareholders. The Average Holding Was 495 Shares.
- 1966: The First Computer Was Purchased With An IBM 360/30 With 16k Of Memory; Databank Systems Ltd Was Established At The National Bank Of New Zealand In 1967; Three Other Trade Banks Joined In 1968.
- 1978: The Visa Debit Card Was Introduced.
- 1980: The Visa Credit Card Was Introduced.
- 1984: The BNZ Centre Was Built On Willis Street, Wellington.
- 1985: Eftpos Are Introduced Through Petrol Stations In A Pilot Scheme.
- 1987: The Bank Is Listed On The Stock Market With A 15% Share Issue.
- 1989: The Government Reduces Its Share From The Sale Of 34% To 51%; 30% Of This Is Sold To Capital Markets Ltd And The Rest Is Sold To The Public
- 1990: The Government Is Bailed Out From $380 Million To Avoid Collapse. Borg Was Told On The Sunday After The 1990 Election That The Bank Had Until Friday To File A Report And If It Was Not Supported By Then It Would Collapse (because Of The Australian Loan). It Holds 40% Of New Zealand's Commercial Paper. So If It Failed, Half Of All Companies In New Zealand Would Fail.
- The Bank Of New Zealand Logo Used Between 2008 And 2010
- 1992: National Australia Bank (NAB) Acquired BNZ, Which Became A Subsidiary Of Bank Of Australia, But Retained Local Governance Rights From The New Zealand Board Of Directors.
- 1992: The First Call Centre Opened In Auckland.
- 1998: Headquarters Moved To Auckland.
- 1999: BNZ Launched Online Banking.
- 1999: BNZ Private Banking Network Launched.
At Some Point, The Business Entity Known As The Bank Of Australia New Zealand (BNZA) Was Absorbed By The NAB.
21st Century
In 2000, There Were 192 Branches And 5,562 Employees.
On October 1, 2008, The Bank Changed Its Name To "BNZ" And Changed Its Logo And Colors.
As Of 2013, The Bank Employed Over 5,000 Employees In New Zealand.
In 2020, Due To The Economic Impact Of The COVID-19 Pandemic In New Zealand, BNZ Announced The Closure Of 38 Branches Over The Next Seven Months.
As Of June 2022, BNZ Is The Second Largest Bank In New Zealand With A Market Share Of 19.1%.
Core Business Functions
Retail Banking
For Retail Customers, Bank Of New Zealand Offers A Range Of Products And Services, Including Savings And Investments, Home Loans, Credit Cards, Personal Loans, Insurance, And International And Immigration Banking. Customers Can Bank Using Phone Banking, Online Banking, Or In Person At One Of The 180 Branches Across New Zealand.
Commercial
Bank Of New Zealand's Commercial Banking Business Has Become Known As BNZ Partners, Offering A Full Range Of Banking Services To Small, Medium And Large Businesses.
Services Include Transactional Bank Accounts, Investments, Loans And Finance, Bank Cards And Payments, Insurance, And International Banking Services For Businesses Dealing With Import/export And Foreign Exchange Transactions.
The Commercial Banking Division Of The Bank Of New Zealand Provides Bank Employees With Expertise In Various Industry Areas, Including Agribusiness, Medical, Professional, Real Estate, Non-profit, Concessions.
Institutional
The Institutional Banking Division Of The Bank Of New Zealand Provides Wholesale Banking Services For Large Corporations, Financial Institution Groups, And Government Entities. These Industries Cover A Wide Range And Include Primary Industry; Manufacturing And Retail; Energy; Utilities; Telecommunications And Infrastructure; Property-side Government; Health; And Education. In December 2010, BNZ Was Appointed Lead Arranger For The Newly Formed Auckland City Council 600 Million Australian Dollar Syndicated Loan. In June 2010, BNZ Was Awarded The Contract To Provide Full Transaction Services And Over The Counter Services To Auckland City Council.
Operations
The Main Management And Administrative Functions Of Bank Of New Zealand Are Located In Wellington And Auckland. The Bank Operates A National Network Of 180 Retail Stores And Business Centres (branded As Partner Centres).
Sustainability
Bank Of New Zealand Became The First Bank In New Zealand To Achieve Carbon Neutrality. In September 2010, Following A Three-year Initiative, The Achievement Announced That The Scheme Aimed To Reduce Emissions By Improving Energy And Vehicle Efficiency, Encouraging Staff To Change Their Work And Family Behaviour, And Offsetting Unavoidable Emissions By Purchasing High-quality Carbon Credits. The Most Obvious Aspect Of The Scheme Was To House The Majority Of The Company's Management And Administrative Staff Through The Construction Of Three Brand New Energy-efficient Buildings. Two Of These Are Located In The Auckland CBD, One In Quay Park And The Other At 80 Queen Street. The Third Is The Harbor Quay Complex On Wellington's Waterfront, Built In 2009 And Demolished In 2019 After Damage In The 2016 Kaikoura Earthquake. The Deloitte Centre At 80 Queen Street Was Tagged The'greenest Building In The Country 'as It Became The First Building In New Zealand To Win Three Five Green Star Awards. The BNZ Quay Park Building Was Nominated For The BeST Office And Workplace Environmental Design Awards In 2008
