FARROWS BANK FAILURE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17661, 23 December 1920, Page 7

FARROWS BANK FAILURE.

A DIRECTOR CHARGED. ALLEGED FALSE BALANCE-SHEET. A. and X Z LONDON, Dec. 21. The r-itv editor of the Times confirms the statement that the failure of Farrow's Rank was not due to financial stringency, and is quite unimportant from a banking point of view. The liabilities are' £4,500.000, and the estimated deficiency £1.500,000. The failure is authoritatively slated to be an isolated affair, and the general banking position ia thoroughly Die Daily Express declares that it I cannot be too strongly emphasised that I the position of all lending banks is thor- j oujrhly satisfactory. The Daily News says the chief suf- i fere.rs are the humblest o"f the " new , poor " There were many pitiful scenes among the crowd of depositors gathered in the vicinity of the head office. j Thomas Farrow, the chairman and : managing director, is ill and the police j are guarding him at his residence at j Hasting?. A director, named Crotch, and I the accountant. Hart, were arrestee- yes- | terday and charged at the Mansion House ! with circulating a false balance-sheet, and conspiring with Farrow to induce per- i sons to advance moneys. i Counsel for the public prosecutor said I that the bank was hopelessly insolvent, j end there had been a heavv annual loss i in trading" in the last nine years amount- : ing in the aggregate to upwards of I £1,000,000. yet the accounts were manipu- j lated to show a heavy profit. The failure ' was due to unsound methods of finance and reckless trading, which must ' have resulted badly at any period and in any conditions. The men were remanded for three ! weeks, and were bailed. Crotch in j £40,000 and Hart in £20,000. |