A GREAT COMPANY.

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 37, 12 February 1920, Page 4

A GREAT COMPANY.

This year's balance sheet of the New Zealand Insurance Company produces the familiar impression of a groat company ably managed and doing business all over the world. It is a striking tribute to tfie enterprise and financial] capacity c-f Auckland 'business men that in a city the size of a suburb of London so large and widespread a financial institution should have been built up in so short a time. It has a net revenue from its ordinary business of over a million, a surplus on the year's underwriting of £11*20,000, a net income from investments of more than £80,000, and reserves amounting to £760,000, besides having been able recently to add £150,000 to its gaid-up capital out of reserve. The growth in the company's business is shown by the increase in the total of net premiums from £740,000 in 1915 to £ 1,09(1,000 in 1919. Last year's figures! show a decrease of £123,000, but under the abnormal circumstances that need not disturb shareholders. A feature of. the accounts is the rapid growth in the besiness of the trustee branch, which had in hand truste to the amount of £6*4,000, an increase of aver 50 per cent, on the previous year. This shows that although there are so many private firms prepared to do this kind of work,| and there ie the Public Trust Office, with its many years of success, and all the guarantee of the State behind it, there is room for insurance companies in this field. This branch of the com- , pany's operations, as well as its in- j surance business, shows that private enterprise can compete successfully! against the State. The amount of; business going to this one out of so many trust offices is also an indication, of the great prosperity of the community.