Briefs

Press, 1 June 1985, Page 22

Briefs

Term funds Equiticorp Holdings, Ltd, the investment and merchant banker, had arranged $6O million of two to five-year term funds from overseas. Mr Grant Adams, Equiticorp’s deputy chairman, said there were two main reasons for going overseas. The borrowing cost was substantially lower than the equivalent costs for term funds on the New Zealand money market. In addition, the exchange risk of borrowing was able to be hedged either against Equiticorp’s overseas assets or in the International Switch market. The funds would be used in banking and investment activities in New Zealand and Australia. Joint venture A $4O million joint venture project has been announced by General Properties Corporation, Ltd, and a Wellington-

based property developer, Mr Ron Evans. The project involves the newly-opened Forum Hotel in Wakefield Street, Wellington (to be known as West Plaza) and construction of a new hotel, the Plaza, also in Wakefield Street. The 50-50 venture is General Properties’ first major activity since the recent merger of Northgate Properties, Ltd, and General Properties Consolidated, Ltd. One of the major features of the 11-floor Plaza, which will have 210 rooms, will be a covered pedestrian overbridge linking it with the Michael Fowler Centre. Branch office A Wellington stockbroker, Renouf Partners, has received approval from the New Zealand Stock Exchange Association to open a branch in Auckland. This follows the change in the exchange’s rules, allowing stockbrokers to operate branch offices.