Kiwibank chief executive Sam Knowles has resigned from Kiwbank, after a ten-year tenure.No date has been set for his departure and Mr Knowles will stay at the New Zealand-owned bank he helped set up until a replacement is found.The announcement comes as K
Kiwibank chief executive Sam Knowles has resigned from Kiwbank, after a ten-year tenure.
No date has been set for his departure and Mr Knowles will stay at the New Zealand-owned bank he helped set up until a replacement is found.
The announcement comes as Kiwibank is in the spotlight as one of the prime state-owned enterprises the government could look to sell.
This was tipped when Finance Minister Bill English, at a post-budget function last week, said Kiwibank had reached a size where it needed either a government guarantee or "an awful lot of capital” and suggested there would be strong demand for shares in it.
Back in 2008 Mr English was covertly recorded saying that National will sell Kiwibank "eventually but not now."
Mr Knowles helped establish Kiwibank in 2002, operating through the network of its parent company New Zealand Post. Today, the bank has 700,000 customers.
Kiwibank chairman Jim Bolger said Mr Knowles had helped change the face of the country’s banking industry.
“Sam's resignation is a huge loss for Kiwibank, but he has set up a strong, robust company that will continue to go from strength to strength.
Mr Knowles said he has had a memorable tenure as chief executive but he would now like to take a break and consider what the future holds.
"I'm sad to leave, but excited about my own personal future and of course for the future of Kiwibank. I've been involved in the Kiwibank project for 10 years and believe that now is the right time to look for new challenges."
Mr Knowles is director or trustee of a number of organisations including Trust Power, Te Omanga Hospice and the St James Theatre Trust.
New Zealand Post chief executive Brian Roche said a search for Mr Knowles’ replacement would begin immediately from among candidates inside and outside the bank.
