Interesting the name change from the old ING financial services company to OnePath Ltd has come under the radar of most: Australia & New Zealand Banking Group, the country's biggest lender, rose 0.2% to $30.55 after it said it was bringing the old ING New Zealand Ltd unit in-house a year after the Australian parent bank bought the remaining 51% of the trans-Tasman funds manager it didn't own. OnePath Ltd, the new name for the ING unit, has been rolled into the bank's ANZ Wealth group, centralising the lender's insurance, funds management, private banking and investment arms under one umbrella. As part of the deal, Helen Troup, who headed up the former ING units will leave the business after two years at the top. ANZ's John Body will take charge of the merged unit from next week. TVNZ, Nov 9 2010 The name change happened back in August and I was reminded of it again yesterday when I saw their glossy new TV ad. We must be reminded though that ING/ANZ investors were duped into buying into highly risky funds after being told by their teller at ANZ, their investment advisers or ING directly that they were getting low risk investments, and many investors in funds of the formerly named ING have lost millions as a result of that poor investment advice. Changing its name from ING to OnePath Ltd doesn't change anything material. The same people - bar a bit of surface shuffling of management - are still there and their financial services training, if they have had any at all, is still sadly wanting. By implication you will get the same sort of poor advice from OnePath that you have been getting from ING. All the glossy TV advertising and media PR will not hide the fact that 10s of millions of dollars of investor money has been lost and ANZ/ING/OnePath still refuse to admit fault and recompense customers for their incompetence. Restitution should be made before "moving on" by changing its name and hoping the public is going to forget the past. Unfortunately I think many will be sucked in, again. Let this be a reminder. ING/ANZ scam @ Share Investor ING/ANZ Deadline not necessarily the end ING & ANZ duped "investors" can take their own action Scam Watch: Helpful Investor Tools Discuss this Topic @ Share Investor Forum Related Links Citizens Advice Bureau Disputes Tribunal Fair Trading Act
In this series of posts I am going to be looking at stocks listed on the NZX in relation to their returns to shareholders over the life of their listing -what shareholders would now see in their back pockets if they had invested in the company IPO. The calculation of returns includes dividends and tax credits. ANZ Banking Group Ltd [ANZ.NZ] has been a stellar investment for shareholders since its September 1969 listing* on the ASX at AU $2 per share and 1988 listing on the NZX. With $19.66c in net dividends, (see NZX chart above and ASX chart here ) and numerous share splits, bonus issues and rights issues; 1:10 bonus issue 1984 ,1:10 bonus issue 1985, 1:5 bonus issue 1986, 1:2 bonus issue 1987, 2:11 rights issue in 2003 (see prospectus) a 2004 capital raising, a 2007 capital raising a convertible preference share issue in 2008 (see prospectus) a public and private capital raising in 2009, gives ANZ an 2100% return (see chart below for the share price percentage gain against the average of all NZX indexes - does not include dividends, tax credits and the share split in its calculation) and over the nearly 41 year listing of ANZ an annual net return of 51.21 %**!. This is the best return of any stock in the Long Term View series. * We will look at the full history for this Australian stock that listed in 1969 on the ASX and December 1988 for a New Zealand listing on the NZX. ** For holders of New Zealand listed shares the annual return has been just over 39 % since available data based on a 1996 share price of NZ$7.00. This is approx 400% better than the return from the average of all NZX indexes. ! This compares to a 51.21% return for WBC Bank over 40 years. Long Term View Series
Unfortunately this is about financial skulduggery again. This time regarding ING and ANZ fund's products that have been frozen had investors put in financial limbo until they can decide whether to accept ING's latest offer of 60 or 62 cents in the dollar and five years in an ANZ call account at 8.3% , take matters into their own hands and take legal action or continue to hold units in their respective funds. This is because it seems the Commerce Commission/Securities Commission doesn't have the balls/motivation to do anything about it in a sufficiently expedient manner. Depending on the level of duplicity or what most would consider fraud, that your advisor/ING or ANZ sold you these higher risk products in the first place, if any, will motivate you to take your own action. Most will probably opt to take the money and run but not me. If you have been falsely sold a product and you have documentation then you have a case, you don't have to wait for various lobby groups or any Commission to do anything on your behalf. Depending on your level of investment you can take a case to the disputes tribunal up to $7500 with scope to increase that figure if agreed upon between the two parties. It will cost you 50 bucks. A breech of the Fair Trading Act is where you should start but consult a lawyer and if you cant afford one go to your free community lawyer through the Citizens Advice Bureau If your investment is a large one you have a case against the defendant but it will cost you to go to court. If you got your advice from ANZ your beef is with them NOT ING and if it is an "independent" financial adviser, you go after them. Straight from ING, you go after those bastards. Too many of these pricks have got away with shoddy and corrupt financial practices in the past and it is time someone took a stand and made an example of these ***ts. Timetable for ING/ANZ investors * Investors have until Monday, July 13 to decide on ING's proposal. * Investors who went through the ANZ Bank have until July 31 to make a formal complaint. * Investors who accept the offer should gain access to their money by August 28. * Those who don't accept the offer will continue to own units in the funds. * Investigations by the Commerce Commission are ongoing but won't be completed by the decision deadline. * Complaints have also been made to the Securities Commission asking it to delay the offer until the Commerce Commission has ruled but the commission said yesterday it had no ability to stop the offer going ahead because the offer is not misleading or deceptive. Related Links Citizens Advice Bureau Disputes Tribunal Fair Trading Act Recent Share Investor Reading
It is that time of the year to pick stocks for 2009. In the face of a global recession, an uncertain economic future and dwindling values, even for good assets, it is going to be hard to pick winners. Please keep in mind dear readers that the picks are my own and they reflect my investment philosophy and not necessarily anyone else's. My picks are based on a long-term view, regardless of the current short to medium term market turmoil and economic uncertainty. Fisher & Paykel Healthcare [FPH:NZ] With that in mind I will kick off my picks with a company that I consider will be one of the big successes of the next 5-10 years, Fisher and Paykel Healthcare, the health care products provider. I had it as a pick for 2008 and it has been one of the better performers this year, even though it is still well off its highs share price wise. Company profit forecasts to March 31 2009 have been estimated at NZ$84 million and revenue is also set to grow as it has done for the past. Fisher profits are largely immune from the current market turmoil as buyers simply have to have the products that the health care company makes regardless of a global recession. This invincibility from outside economic influences makes the pick for my next stock a relative no-brainer.
Interesting the name change from the old ING financial services company to OnePath Ltd has come under the radar of most:
