There's an old joke about bankers...

Kiwibank's new chief executive Paul Brock wants to see the banking industry emulate its telecommunications counterpart and introduce bank account number portability.

Only seven companies - including the three "Heartland Bank" merger partners - have signed up for the Crown's extended retail deposit guarantee scheme.

The New Zealand dollar is nearing 75 US cents after share markets around the world rallied overnight.

The version of the free market we had wasn't really free or perfect.

One of NZ's biggest banks is encouraging Kiwis to turn their small change into big bucks via a new savings programme that rounds up spending on eftpos and visa debit transactions.

The New Zealand dollar fell from a 10-month high as a pick-up in American housing data polished the appeal of the beaten-down greenback.

The country may have to suffer the indignity, like Greece, of asking for a bailout to keep it afloat.

Are you swelling with national pride? New Zealand has once more been granted Aaa status by international credit-ratings agency Moody's.

Should savers expect to live off their incomes?

Mergers and acquisitions dominated activity on Wall St, with almost US$10 billion of deals announced as the S & P 500 Index held near a four-month high.