Guardian Trust $42m sale goes through

Guardian Trust House. Photo / Supplied

Australia's The Trust Company Ltd has completed its $42 million acquisition of The New Zealand Guardian Trust Co from Brisbane-based life insurer, Suncorp-Metway, after receiving approval from the Overseas Investment Office.

The Trust Co chief executive John Atkin said the acquisition represented a significant milestone for the company.

"The expanded footprint and cross-jurisdictional expertise provided from the Guardian Trust acquisition strengthens our service offering to all our clients, particularly international banks, fund managers and property groups," he said in a statement.

Suncorp booked a A$40 million ($53.4 million) loss on the sale.

Guardian Trust came under fire from investors for the suspension and wind-down of its mortgage fund.

The company suspended withdrawals from its $249 million mortgage fund in July 2008 amid a run on mortgage funds in the wake of the global financial crisis. Last year investors voted to wind the fund down. Guardian Trust was also the trustee for troubled Hanover Finance, which froze $554 million owed to 16,500 investors in 2008.

Hanover went on to sell its assets to Allied Farmers.

The Trust Co said the acquisition will increase its funds under supervision from A$118 billion to A$163 billion.

Guardian Trust, which employs about 200 staff in 14 locations throughout New Zealand, has assets under administration worth about $6.5 billion (A$4.8 billion).