Debt traps and doing business
Tourism may be the poster child of the Pacific’s post-COVID economic crisis, but it’s not the only sector that has suffered. A stark example of the challenges that border closures are causing came in reports from
Banking
“We have been lagging behind quite poorly”
In 2020 as shops and markets all over the world were forced to close due to the coronavirus, people shopped from home, with e-commerce seeing exponential growth in many markets. And the trend will continue. Online
Keeping the bank door open for Pacific peoples
Now is the time for New Zealand banks to act with courage to keep providing banking services, including money remittances, to the Pacific Islands open. The scale and complexity of the challenges facing Pacific Island
Delving into digital: Kina finds its sweet spot
Kina Bank is set to bring new digital products to Fiji when it acquires Westpac's Fiji
PNG’s largest bank to list on the Australian Stock Exchange
Shareholders have approved Papua New Guinea’s largest bank, Bank South Pacific, listing on the Australian Securities Exchange in a bid to access more capital and improve its presence in international capital markets,
ANZ extends fee waiver for money transfers to Pacific
ANZ will extend its fee waiver until September 2021 for online foreign currency payments made from Australia and New Zealand into 10 Pacific countries.* Latest figures show the value and volume of transfers made by ANZ
Kina’s Westpac offer: why a banking duopoly would be bad for PNG
The much-anticipated bid for Westpac Pacific (PNG and Fiji) operations by Kina Securities (the owner of Kina Bank) was finally confirmed last month. The offer did not come as a surprise as Westpac moved its Pacific
Westpac won’t speculate on Pacific sale
Westpac says it will not respond to speculation in Australian media this week that it is on the verge of selling its Pacific businesses. A Westpac Fiji spokesperson says the Bank “is currently undertaking strategic
Rein in public sector wage increases, bank urges Fiji
A major bank in the Pacific region has recommended that Fiji put the brakes on civil servants wage increases as a major step towards bringing the national budget back to balance in the medium to long term. In its
Bred Bank offers the European touch
Solomon Islands now boasts two branches SIX months after successfully expanding its business to Solomon Islands, the European bank-BRED Bank- will open a second branch in Honiara by the end of the year and a third
