23 Jun 2010

ING investors may fight on

5:59 pm on 23 June 2010

Investors left out of pocket by two funds marketed by ING and ANZ National Bank may fight on, despite a record $45 million settlement and a legal waiver many signed.

The Commerce Commission found there was sufficient evidence that ANZ and ING may have misrepresented the risk in their marketing of the ING's diversified yield and regular income funds.

The funds collected about $700 million from 15,000 investors before being frozen in March 2008.

Last year, most investors accepted ANZ's $533 million buy-back offer and got 60 to 62 cents in the dollar, after signing away their right to legal action.

The investors' lobby group says the additional $45 million announced on Tuesday, spread over 15,000 investors, equates to another six cents in the dollar apiece.

Investment broker Paul Markham, who's been lobbying on behalf of investors, says they may still get their day in court, even if they signed the waiver.

He says a private member's bill that Labour MP Lianne Dalziel wants to introduce to Parliament would ban financial institutions from making people sign away their rights to benefit from a regulator taking action.

ANZ says the settlement of $45 million is in addition to about $500 million already made available - which means, it says, that most investors will get a "significant proportion" of their money back, and that some will get their full amount back.

The bank says investors in the funds have received back more than the amount settled with the Commerce Commission.