State intervenes as savings companies fail

Ironically, the recent requirement of half yearly auditing for companies is not new. It was compulsory until 10 years ago when a law change inadvertently abolished it

New Zealand’s finance companies are in crisis with four going into receivership in the last two weeks, raising the total to eight in the past 16 months. Investors face combined losses of up to NZ$1.1bn (£350mn) although the latest to stop trading is hopeful secured deposits will be repaid in full. The government recently bowed to pressure from the industry to intervene and it has granted the Securities Commission greater powers to supervise and act when finance companies start getting into difficulty.