By Gareth Vaughan
Although Kiwibank has retained its lead in retail bank customer satisfaction, BNZ has made major strides into second place and the under-threat National Bank brand has dropped to fourth, Roy Morgan Research says.
Roy Morgan Research's Customer Satisfaction - Consumer Banking in New Zealand monthly report from May, shows Kiwibank with the highest level of customer satisfaction at 84%. The major banks are defined as sister banks ANZ and National, ASB, BNZ, Kiwibank and Westpac.
"In spite of Kiwibank being the newest entrant to the major bank category, its customer satisfaction has consistently out-performed all other major banks," says Pip Elliott, the general manager for Roy Morgan Research in New Zealand. “Launched in 2002, Kiwibank is the only bank in the top six that is 100% New Zealand owned and operated."
Meanwhile, BNZ has climbed six percentage points over two years to reach 82% and second place, up from fourth equal. Over the same period National Bank has dropped three percentage points to 78% and to fourth from second equal.
ANZ New Zealand, owner of both the ANZ and National banks, has been reviewing its ongoing use of the National Bank brand. The group is currently shifting staff from the two banks onto a single IT platform with this project due to be completed by year's end. In 2010 ANZ renewed its rights to use the Lloyds black horse on a green and white background as the National Bank logo until the end of 2014. Any further renewal on use of the logo would be subject to negotiation with Lloyds.
In the first six months of the year ANZ NZ spent NZ$15.4 million advertising ANZ, more than four times as much as it spent advertising the National Bank.
ASB came in third at 80%, down one percentage point over two years and down one place, and ANZ and Westpac came in last equal at 76%. ANZ is, however, up four percentage points in two years with Westpac unchanged.
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