KEY POINTS:
Thousands of New Zealanders have invested in the financial product that Australia's Macquarie Bank yesterday warned had made losses in the United States.
Macquarie issued a warning that the value of its Fortress Notes had fallen by as much as 25 per cent because of a decline in value in the US senior corporate debt that Fortress invests in.
Peter Lucas, director of Macquarie Fortress Investments, said $30 million of Macquarie Fortress Notes were sold in New Zealand and listed on the stock exchange.
He said he did not know how many New Zealanders had invested in the notes but it was in the thousands. Fortress provided a value of the portfolio the notes were invested in monthly.
"The portfolio has seen its market values decline by 4c, and because of the leverage that 4c decline in the value of our loans you multiply by six times.
"So the theoretical net asset value of the fund has fallen by about 20 to 25 per cent, which is a very big fall."
He said this was not a realised loss. There had been no defaults in the portfolio and it had no exposure to the US sub-prime mortgage market.
- NZPA
