Combined Building Society to join scheme

Participation in the Crown's extended retail deposit guarantee scheme has been approved for Combined Building Society, successor to the Crown-guaranteed obligations of Canterbury Building Society, Southern Cross Building Society and Marac Finance.

The Canterbury and Southern Cross building societies, and Marac, the financial services subsidiary of Pyne Gould Corp, are in the midst of a proposed merger, with the businesses to be operated primarily through Combined Building Society.

The ultimate intention of the merger parties is for Combined Building Society to become a registered bank, for which it will have to meet Reserve Bank registration requirements. The extended scheme runs until the end of this year.

- NZPA