Govt investigating raising capital for Kiwibank, says Willis | 1News on TVNZ+ [Video]

The Government is looking at options for raising new capital for Kiwibank to allow it to exert “real competitive pressure” on the four big Australian-owned banks operating in New Zealand.

It follows the release of a report by the Commerce Commission today, which found there was little competition in New Zealand’s banking sector. The report found that the four big Australian-owned banks made high profits, while the Reserve Bank’s rules made it hard for smaller banks to challenge.

In a statement this morning, the Government said it would be acting on all 14 recommendations made by the Commerce Commission.

“Today’s report calls-out the market behaviour of New Zealand’s big four banks: they are highly profitable compared with international peers, they lack innovation and do not aggressively compete for customers,” finance minister Nicola Willis said.

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