PAYMENT OF DIVIDENDS.

Waikato Times, Volume 109, Issue 18257, 19 February 1931, Page 11

PAYMENT OF DIVIDENDS.

ACTION OF BANKS. DUNEDIN, Wednesday. At the morning ctall of tlie Dunedin Stock Exchange to-day it was reported that the directors of the Bank of New South Wales had. announced that the dividends would in future he paid J'n Australian currency.

The chairman of the exchange, Mr Harman Reeves, said this was a case of New Zealand shareholders being penalised because of the ruling conditions in Australia. While the Australian shareholders would receive their dividends free of exchange, the New Zealand shareholders would have to pay exorbitant rates of exchange on their dividend warrants. The case of New Zealand shareholders in the National Bank of Australasia was entirely different, said Mr Reeves. That bank had no branches in the Dominion, and did not carry on banking business here. The Bank of New South Wales, on the other hand, had branches all over the Dominion, and' no doubt made a considerable proportion of its profits in this country. The question ithen' arose whether the New Zealand shareholders were not entitled to ’the same net dividend as the-shareholders in Australia. This was a matter which should come before the Legislature of the country, which was remodelling the Compaines Act, Mr Reeves continued. It might be made a condition of any company or bank trading in the Dominion with a local register of shareholders that all dividends to shareholders be made payable free of exchange if they were made payable free of exchange at the oflice of the company.-. ..

'W Meetings of Protest. Meetings of shareholders in the Bank of. New South Wales are being called in‘the principal centres of New Zealand under 'the auspices of the Stock' Exchange to discuss the advisability of protesting to the directors of the bank against the decision of the board to deduct exchange, amounting to about is sd, from the quarterly dividend of 9s a share, ro be paid next week.