NZ Finance Group shuts up shop

New Zealand Finance Group’s Australian parent has decided to close it down as part of the preparation for its public float planned for 12 to 15 month's time.

The New Zealand arm closes this week.

Joe Plaziuk, who headed the New Zealand operation, says the Australian Finance Group is writing in excess of A$1.1 billion in residential mortgages each month.

While the New Zealand operation was writing between $10 million and $20 million in mortgages each month, a respectable amount for this country, it was puny by comparison.

In preparing for the float, "they need to get rid of, for want of a better word, distractions," Plaziuk says.

From Western Australia, Plaziuk had previously worked for Australian Finance Group in Western Australia and, having moved to New Zealand with his Auckland-born wife, had persuaded the company to open here in November 1999 with the official launch coming in April 2000.

While the company had been financing loans itself using wholesaler AMS, most of its business has been in pure broking services. It had two full time staff and two partners.

Plaziuk says the Australian company offered him work in Australia but his family is well-settled in New Zealand now.

As recently as July, when Plaziuk attended a company conference in Nomea, the intention had been to expand the business by taking on two more staff he says. Ironically, July just happened to be the business’s most profitable month on record.

Nevertheless, the Australian company has been generous with redundancy and Plaziuk is planning a holiday before looking for his next job, he says.

New Zealand Finance (a different business) is still operating in New Zealand.