MiBank gets Esiloan portfolio

KINA Bank’s Esiloan portfolio will be transferred to the Nationwide Microbank Ltd (MiBank) next month to assist it in expanding its financial inclusion programme, an official says.
MiBank chief executive officer Tony Westaway said the Esiloan portfolio was aligned to MiBank’s brand, and the transfer was based on a mutual referral agreement they had with Kina Bank where customers were referred to each other depending on their needs.
Westaway said on June 25, Kina Bank confirmed with the Australian and PNG Stock Exchanges that their Esiloan portfolio would be transferred to MiBank.
He added that Kina Bank had a 15 per cent stake in MiBank, as part of a group strategy to increase financial inclusion.
The transfer, therefore, supported this strategic partnership.
“The transfer is part of the mutual referral agreement we have with Kina Bank where we refer customers to each other depending on their needs,” he said.
“It means that customers are always partnered with the most suitable financial institution and will have access to the best products and services for them. It’s also part of a suite of initiatives we’re working on with Kina Bank to make banking easier and more accessible.
“This includes the installation of the latest state-of-the-art Eftpos devices in MiBank branches.”
Westaway said acquiring Esiloan would be a transformative acquisition of a successful brand and business model.
Kina Securities managing director and chief executive Greg Pawson, said: “Through the transfer of the Esiloan portfolio to MiBank, we’re able to direct our focus on our core target markets of retail, SME and commercial customers, in line with our ANZ PNG acquisition.
“We will also be able to play an active and constructive role in strengthening the PNG financial services sector by supporting MiBank complete this transformative acquisition.”