CEO: Shareholders support move

THE shareholders of Kina Securities Ltd (KSL) overwhelmingly voted in favour of the acquisition of Westpac PNG and Westpac Fiji by Kina Bank at its extraordinary general meeting yesterday.
Chief executive Greg Pawson confirmed this saying it was a great show of confidence by the shareholders.
“We are very excited about this opportunity and creating a stronger and more effective banking competitor for Papua New Guinea and Fiji,” he said.
“The acquisition is perfectly aligned with our current strategy to be a dynamic and innovative full-service regional bank with a market leading digital platform. After the proposed acquisition, there will be a newly branded bank, independent and separate from the existing Kina Bank brand and it will compete directly with all commercial banks in Fiji and Papua New Guinea, including Kina Bank.
“It’s a really positive story and it will be a great outcome for customers from a service and product perspective.
“Creating a brand new bank means there will be more customer choice, more competition and more innovation.
“With the proposed acquisition we will be able to introduce fee free banking options; a new suite of world-class digital products and services; and we will be able to re-price business
lending, making it more cost effective for business customers to access funding.” This means there will be no lessening of competition and no prospect of a duopoly or market dominance.
The proposed acquisition will position and enable Kina Bank to take banking back to basics at an additional scale, with better customer service and a focus on lowering the cost of banking in both Papua New Guinea and Fiji.