Month: March 2020

From Thursday, banks will keep some branches open for limited hours one day a week for customers who could not use ATMs, phone or online banking, said New Zealand Bankers’ Association chief executive Roger Beaumont.

The Bankers’ Association urged customers to speak to banks early and said support options included reducing or suspending repayments of home loan debt and instead only repaying the interest on the loan.

Roger Beaumont, chief executive of the New Zealand Bankers’ Association, which speaks for member banks including ANZ, ASB, BNZ, Kiwibank, and Westpac, said: “The sooner you talk to your bank, the better placed they are to help you.”

“I think it was a really well considered and pragmatic decision by the Reserve Bank which will mean that banks have greater capacity to support their customers, who are financially impacted by Covid-19, and work through those issues.”

New Zealand Bankers’ Association chief executive Roger Beaumont said customers financially affected by a coronavirus, particularly small to medium-sized businesses, were encouraged to contact their bank.

Help could include providing access to short-term funding; reducing or suspending principal payments on loans and temporarily moving to interest-only repayments; help with restructuring business loans; and consolidating loans, the New Zealand Bankers’ Association said.

Bankers’ Association chief executive Roger Beaumont said customers financially affected by the virus, particularly small- to medium-sized businesses, should contact their bank.

“Each bank will have their own credit policies and approach to providing assistance. It’s important for affected customers to talk to their bank as soon as possible. That gives banks the best chance of offering assistance.” 

RBNZ and bank lobby group NZBA have issued a joint statement in response to mounting concerns about the health and economic impacts of the global coronavirus outbreak.