Weekly briefs

NEW Mortgage news page, Southern Cross comes up tops, Cigna goes online, NZRPT meetings, Another manager goes, the latest on Tower's FAI bid and its new logod

Sunday, April 11th 1999, 12:00AM

Contestants in the National Bank Investment Race can now submit their decision forms electronically through Good Returns.
All the details of the race, including an online decision form, can be found at by clicking here, or on the National Bank logo on the home page.
Decision form 2 needs to be submitted by Wednesday April 14.

Everything you ever wanted to know about mortgages - HERE
Good Returns is adding a new news page dedicated to mortgages. The page will initially provide all the latest news from the mortgage sector. Over time it will develop to have a comprehensive table of rates and a glossary of common mortgage terms.

Southern Cross comes up tops
Southern Cross has come out tops in a survey of health insurance conducted by Consumer.
The mutual, which has 65 per cent of the market, scored above average for service, its handling of claims and overall customer satisfaction.
While its scored well in these areas its policies weren't the cheapest for the cover they provide.
Consumers rated second-largest health insurer, Aetna, significantly below average.

NZRPT meetings
The New Zealand Rural Property Trust has started on a round of unitholder meetings to discuss its plans to close the fund for five years.
Following the meetings the manager will prepare formal documentation for a notice of meeting. That will be circulated to unitholders along with two independent reports on the proposals.
Dates of the meetings are in the diary section. More details on the proposal, including a proposed capital repayment and fee structure, will be available later today (Monday).

Cigna gets online
Advisers using Cigna insurance contracts can cut down on the paperwork and now do all their proposals electronically and online.
Cigna has launched a new point of sales underwriting software package which allows and advisers to complete proposals online and email them through to the company for processing.
This initiative increases turnaround time and reduces the possibility of transcribing errors sneaking into proposals.
Cigna is the first life company in New Zealand to launch a software package which allows advisers to submit proposals electronically.

Another manager goes
Citibank Global Asset Management (CGAM) is closing its office in New Zealand and shifting across the Tasman to Australia.
The company has run a wholesale funds management business in New Zealand since 1989 and has about $400 million under management.
The shift is a result of the Citicorp and Travelers Group merger, which includes the amalgamation of Citibank and Salomon Smith Barney Asset Management activities.

Tower ups FAI bid
Tower Corporation has extended its takeover bid for FAI Life by a week, to May 5, promising to lift it to A$1.55 a share if it gets 90 per cent control.
Tower has received a fillip for its bid with the confirmation that HIH Insurance, FAI Life's major shareholder with a 46 per cent stake, and Tyndall Australia, which has a 6.1 per cent interest, both said they would accept Tower's latest offer in the absence of a higher bid.
Also the FAI Life board, including chairman Malcolm Irving and managing director Robert Swill have recommended shareholders accept the revised offer.
If the bid is successful the two companies will be merged to give Tower total assets under management in Australia of A$6 billion.

Tower lights a new image

Tower Financial Services Group is consolidating under a single brand image in the lead up to demutualisation and listing on the Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges. This is part of a broader integration of the Tower Group Companies in areas such as branding, technology and product development.
The change is particularly relevant to businesses in the group which currently do not carry the Tower name, including National Insurance, National Insurance Life & Health and Trustee Executors, all based in New Zealand, and Austrust based in Australia.
These businesses have, since April 1, started to operate under the names Tower Insurance, Tower Health and Tower Trust.
A new logo, which retains – albeit in a more contemporary styling - the lighthouse image which has been synonymous with Tower for more than 100 years, forms the centrepiece of the branding initiative.

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