Commercial Merchant bank opens

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33001, 22 August 1972, Page 22

Commercial Merchant bank opens

nfeu> Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 21. First New Zealand International, Ltd, a new merchant bank with capital of Sim has begun operations from its premises in Auckland and Wellington.

The formation of the bank was announced in April. Mr J. F. Earnshaw has been elected chairman. He is the general manager of the Bank of New Zealand. Participants in the bank are: Bank of New Zealand (40 per cent), the New Zealand Insurance Co, Ltd (20 per cent), Development Finance Corporation, Ltd, Sydney (25 per cent), Morgan Grenfell and Company, Ltd, London, and Morgan Guaranty Trust Company, New York (both through subsidiaries) and S. G. Warburg and Company, Ltd, London (each 5 per cent). The bank has acquired a majority interest in Delfin Discount Company (NZ) Ltd, an official short term money market dealer. The company will offer corporate financial and capital provision services, which will include acting as adviser on the terms and tactics of mergers and take-overs, underwriting facilities and management of equity portfolios. Through subsidiaries, it will manage two established unit trusts and an unofficial money market and commercial bill company. The board comprises: Mr B. H. Smith, deputy general manager of the Bank of New

Zealand; Mr D. N. Chalmers, assistant general manager of New Zealand Insurance; Sir John Marks, and Mr R. H. W. Marshal], chairman and executive director respectively of Development Finance Corporation; and Mr S. McSharry, representative in Australia of Morgan Guaranty Trust.

Mr J. H. E. Barraclough, who has been seconded from Development Finance Corporation will act as chief executive to co-ordinate the establishment of First New Zealand International, pending the appointment of a New Zealander as chief executive. Brit. Tobacco The British Tobacco Company (Australia), Ltd, has received acceptances for more than 65 per cent of the shares in Refresh Holdings, Ltd, Queensland bottlers of Coca-Cola, for which it made a take-over offer on July 10. The offer is either four ordinary shares of 100 c each in British Tobacco and 1190 c in cash for each 10 ordinary shares of 50c each in Refresh, or 250 c in cash for each share in Refresh. British Tobacco has extended the final acceptance date to September 15.