by Paul McBeth
AMP Banking in New Zealand won't be following its Aussie namesake and trying to spark a mortgage price war, but you can still expect a range of new services early next year.
The Australian Financial Review reported this week that AMP Banking (Australia) had launched an aggressively priced mortgage product in its first attempt to spark a price war with major banks. The institution is now guaranteeing to undercut the average rate offered by the biggest lenders.
However, General Manager for AMP Banking's New Zealand branch, Robyn Clubb, says the bank's positioning is different in this country and it already has some of the lowest rates. AMP Banking here is a roll-together of Citibank's former retail arm and AMP's Ergo, which Clubb says had pitched itself in the top ranking of mortgage lenders (in terms of offering low rates).
The bank has only been properly amalgamated since October and Clubb (formerly head of Ergo) says it offers "a relatively straightforward range" of products, including the standard fixed and variable rate products along with a revolving credit facility. She says Internet and interactive voice response facilities along with transactional accounts should be available in February/March.
"What is different about us is that we are targetting the AMP customer base first and foremost (some 400,000 customers)."