CONVERSION LOAN

Hokitika Guardian, 10 March 1933, Page 2

CONVERSION LOAN

GREAT TASK FOR THE TREASURY VOLUME STEADILY INCREASING. The holders of bonds and stock in

Government loans in New Zealand to whom appeals to convert are now being made, are' scattered far and wide. It has been a great task, on the part of tlio Treasury and Post Office staffs, to reach them all in quick time, with prospectuses and application forms for transferring to the new issue. No less than 340,000 letters addressed to householders have been sent out, and before they could be despatched the forms had to be printed. The Government Printer and his men had a hectic rush, pud the rush did not cease with the printing. Post Office delivery waggons were standing in the yard and into these were loaded the filled envelopes in bundles, to he distributed through all the mails. AVhile the flow of returning application form, duly filled in and signed, docs not vet equal the torrent of paper which rushed out last week-end, the volume is steadily increasing. It comes from Post Offices, Treasury Offices, banks and stockbrokers’ offices, and the banks and stockbrokers are doing tlijs. work for their clients and others free 0 f charge in a patriotic effort to ensure New Zealand’s good name and honour iii the eyes of the world.

Since there are only 80,000 holders of bonds and stock in the Governmentloans, this) barge number of* (letters seems extravagant but of the 80,000, only 40,000 holders have their names and addresses registered at the Treasury, these being the holders of inscribed stock. «J\ T rt record is kept of the bearer bonds. The whole operation of converting £115,000,000 worth of Government loans to an issue with a flat rate of 4 per cent, colossal as it is, may seem but a mechanical, process of finance. Yet there is romance in this a-s in ('very human effort. People of all classes hold the bonds, the matter is cl.'scussed r.nd discussed again by thouands of interested families who aro glad t 0 convert and so help New Zealand. In times of stress' and trouble the national spirit and thought are uppermost. These are the factors which make the huge task possible and send the stream of letters back to the Treasury, where men work night and day to keep things in due order. New Zealand’s conversion scheme is just as big, in proportion to population, as those of Great Britain ©nd Australia, which were so enthusiastically taken i;p. New Zealand is enthusiastic too. Speaking of thrt British scheme, a loading London paper said, “The conversion scheme will go down as one of the most courageous strokes of finance. The first result in England has been a sudden jump upwards in all sorts of securities, a movement that is a sure indication that the business community approves of he proposal. Industry, indeed, will benefit all round. When the conversion scheme is out of the way it will be possible* to float debenture issues on a 4 per cent basis, instead of the 5, 6 and 7 per cent, that many firms have had to pay since the war.” The result of all this financial, official and postal activity will be work for the workless. Money will 1 turn from the gilt-edged Government bonds, now that the interest is lower, into channels where greater profits can be earned. Everywhere there are businesses and enterprises waiting for money to finance them. This has been proved in other lands. New Zealand has as much vision as the people of these countries, and as much patriotism. The response to the country’s appeal to convert is just as spontaneous as in other places.-