BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

Opunake Times, 3 July 1894, Page 2

BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

Great astonishment was felt when news was received that a grave financial crisis was fc the eve of happening in New Zealand At the time of writing there are no particulars to hand of the causes.' Which led up to the critical state affairs which must have existed tjh Friday evening to cause the Government to take such action as reprised in another part of this issue. Vyk e can be no doubt in the mind that any mishap to such an insktution as the Bank of New Zealand, Jrdund up as it is in the commercial ana monetary interests of the colony, would be a huge disaster, and would be more or less felt by every one with a stake in the country. The Government, however, were equal to the occasion, and have passed a Bill guaranteeing two millions on behalf of the bank. With such a guarantee there will be no difficulty in floating the shares, and when the capital is raised, one million is to be at the disposal of the bank and the remainder to be invested by the Government. The Government are to have control of the management, special auditors to be appointed, and the head office is to be removed from Auckland to Wellington. It will therefore virtually become the Stale Bank. We consider the Government were justified in undertaking such a responsibility, firstly, because we feel confident that they will never be called on to redeem their guarantee either wholly or in part, and secondly, because such an institution, though nominally the property of, and carried on for the benefit of certain shareholders, is, nevertheless, owing to the demands of commerce, essentially a requisite of the people. That it should therefore be on a basis which would remove it beyond the shadow of suspicion follows as a natural consequence. There are several Australian banks doing business in New Zealand, but they have their head quarters in the other colonies, and it is only natural to expect that in any ■widespread financial depression that their resources would be first devoted to the assistance of their nearest of kin. In such a case they would be a source of extreme weakness to this colony instead of any assistance. With the Bank of New Zealand the case is different. The major portion of their business is done in New Zealand, and consequently at such a time its resources would be available for tiding over such a crisis. The Bank of New Zealand will now bear the same relation to this colony that the Bank of England does to the Mother Country, and colonists will look upon it as their national institution. It will be a relief to depositors also to know that they have an institution under Government control in which they may invest their savings without any fear of finding, when least expected closed doors, as was the case with so many banks a couple of years ago in the sister colonies. Considering the immense interests which the. public hold ife all similar financial concerns we do not think the day is far distant when the people, through their representatives in Parliament, will insist on closer Government supervision being exercised over the management of all institutions which assume the trusteeship of the people’s wealth.