WELLINGTON: New Zealand Post has received an indicative offer from the New Zealand Super Fund and ACC to buy 45 percent of Kiwibank. New Zealand Post Group chairman Sir Michael Cullen made the announcement this morning. No deal has been finalised yet, with the offer “subject to a number of matters including due diligence”.
“[The offer] has been priced on a commercial basis, and reflects the Government’s absolute position that Kiwibank must remain in public ownership,” NZ Post said in a statement. The offer is based on the $1.1 billion value of NZ Post’s owner Kiwi Group Holdings, meaning NZ Post would receive $495 million.
“New Zealand Post approached the Government and pursued the initiative because it considers that NZ Super Fund and ACC are strong potential shareholders for Kiwibank as a Crown-owned bank,” says Sir Michael.
“The two investment funds hold assets of over $60 billion between them, while NZ Post continues to face headwinds in its core mail business.” Sir Michael says while the deal hasn’t been signed, sealed or delivered yet, the company wanted to be proactive in announcing it.
He believes the agreement would secure the long-term future of Kiwibank, and it is time to broaden the bank’s support within the wider public sector. Sir Michael wanted to make clear that the proposed sale “is not some move to partial privatisation”. He hopes it can be completed before the end of the current financial year. Though if it doesn’t go through, Sir Michael says it won’t leave Kiwibank in dire straits. “Kiwibank is not in distress at all; it will be much more constrained about its capacity to grow.”
