The Government has underwritten Kiwibank's growth plans by providing its parent NZ Post with a backup funding facility it can draw on in emergencies.

New Zealand Post Group will be returning less money than forecast to government coffers this year.

NZ Post chairman Jim Bolger has suggested reducing mail deliveries to every second day and ending Saturday deliveries to save money.

Kiwibank chief executive Sam Knowles says privatisation talk is not why he's leaving the bank after ten years.

Dame Jenny Shipley and Joan Withers are two notable names among the list of new SOE board appointments.