Canterbury Savings Bank’s Good Year

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32306, 26 May 1970, Page 12

Canterbury Savings Bank’s Good Year

Depositors’ funds in the Canterbury Savings Bank rose by almost $6 million in the last financial year. This was the second highest growth among trustee savings banks; only Auckland did better. The Canterbury bank is now the second largest trustee savings bank in the country, with depositors’ funds of $41,632,000.

The bank’s eighth annual report, presented yesterday, shows that profit climbed from $133,568 before tax to s2lB,oB3—after tax $107,276. Interest to depositors rose to $1,271,927, and the number of accounts rose by 22,208 to 132,825. Investments on mortgages climbed to $10,807,375, with mortgage advances for the year $3,420,890, and repayments $1,339,340. As at March 31, last, the bank’s investments in 34 local authority loans were distributed as follows: Canterbury province, $1,673,052; Marlborough, $179,329, and Nelson, $224,289. Investments in Government stock increased by $3,080,000 to $25,932,000/ The bank this year will give away $14,000 in grants to deserving causes, compared with $12,000 last year. Last year the bank assisted 248 organisations. Auckland Savings Bank, opened in 1847, has total depositors’ funds of more than $192 million; then comes the Canterbury bank, with Otago and Southland next with deposits of more than $35 million each. The deputy-president of the Canterbury Savings Bank trus-

tees (Mr H. P. Smith) in his annual report said that for the first time the profit of the bank, after tax, had exceeded $lOO,OOO, and that represented an increase of 71.8 per cent over the profit of the previous year. Mr Smith pointed out there were signs that the buoyancy in the New Zealand economy was bringing over-confidence in some measure and that it was important that increased savings, and therefore reduced spendings, were recognised more by all sections of the community as a curb to inflation. He said that on earlier occasions representatives of the'

bank, and the Associated Trustees Savings Banks, had urged the Government to lift some of the onerous conditions under which they operated. He said it was difficult to forecast the prospects for the 'coming year, but if. present trends continued it would be a much greater problem to maintain the same high level of growth the bank had maintained in the last few years. “Nevertheless, the good name which the bank has already established in the community in ' less than eight years is certain to ensure that we obtain at least our share of the savings in an expanding economy,” Mr Smith said.