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I just got this from someone in Australia. What do you think?
Tempo
KIWI SHAME AT KAYE CONNECTION
The honest country shudders with repugnance.
There has always been something beautiful about New Zealand. And not just the country but the people. Their raw honesty, their friendliness and their inherent sense of decency is legendary. So too is their courage. Anyone who reads Les Carlyon’s book, Gallipoli, would weep at the bravery of those young Anzacs. Yes, courage and morality is the nature of the common Kiwi.
And despite the banter, Kiwis and Aussies have been friends for generations.
So it will surely be with a deep sense of shame that Kiwis will read how one of their largest companies is linked to the systematic fleecing of thousands of their mates across the Tasman.
The finance company that climbed into Henry Kaye’s sleazy corporate bed is owned by New Zealand’s Hanover Group. Millions of dollars were paid to Kaye’s now defunct company, the National Investment Institute (NII) by consumers who were duped into signing up for loans which came from Hanover’s finance company, Australian Finance Direct (AFD).
There were four stages to the scam.
First, Henry and his band of bandits (who called themselves “consultants”) lured consumers with a series of false claims the likes of which have rarely been seen in Australia.
Second, the NII consultants told the consumers, “The National Investment Institute will show you, through its courses, how to create enormous wealth in property. If you do not agree that the course can give you financial freedom, we insist on giving your money back. There is no risk to you.”
The Guarantee was one of the most powerful selling points.
Third, when consumers baulked at the $15,000 price for the course, they were told. “You will get that back in your first property deal. You can make $50,000 or $100,000 in six months. That makes the cost of the course cheap. It’s a bargain – pay $15,000 make $50,000 or more. Even millions.”
Again, the guarantee was the persuader. Thousands of consumers were told that the NII courses were “government approved”. Many were told that ASIC had given its approval. It was very persuasive. And it was all lies.
Fourth, when consumers said they did not have $15,000, the NII bandits said, “No problem, you can pay it off, just sign here.” With interest, the consumers now have a debt of more than $20,000 to the Hanover Group's finance company, AFD.
And that’s the scam in four simple but deceitful steps.
Many cheated consumers are now refusing to pay AFD.
However, a spokesperson for the Hanover Group, Klaus Sorensen, is saying, “People have an obligation to pay …. AFD shouldn’t be made to take responsibility for investment decisions made by borrowers.”
Investment decisions made by borrowers? Listen pal, in both our countries, we call that being ripped off – it’s a long way from your shallow corporate line of an “investment decision”.
AFD tossed its finance contracts to bandits who cheated consumers. And who was responsible for that decision? The Hanover Group from New Zealand.
Most borrowers thought NII and AFD were the same company. They never met AFD. The only person they spoke to was the NII consultant assuring them of a “100 per cent money back guarantee and that the courses were all government approved.”
There was no government approval, just as there was no guarantee.
Last night, the chief executive of the Hanover Group, Kerry Finnigan, was reported to be on his way from New Zealand to Australia. The purpose of the trip is to “sort out the mess”. Today, as Mr Finnigan is in Australia, New Zealanders will be reading about this scandal in their newspaper, The National Business Review. They are going to feel ashamed.
Consumer advocates, lawyers, journalists and regulators are looking closely at the link between AFD and NII. Victoria’s Department of Consumer Affairs has already launched action against AFD. The Hanover Group maintains it has “not broken any laws”. It must mean legal laws, because no decent Kiwi or Aussie would condone this immoral corporate collusion.
It’s not a myth to say that New Zealand is a nation of honest people. It’s a fact. In a recent corruption survey involving more than 200 countries, New Zealand was ranked number two for clean dealings.
This deal between a New Zealand owned finance company and an Australian owned seminar company is one of the dirtiest deals in trans Tasman history.
AFD says it “would have preferred not to have got involved” with Henry Kaye. Thousands of ripped off Aussies feel the same way.
Here’s a suggestion for you, Mr Finnigan. Forget the shallow corporate spin. Don’t use your lawyers to enforce breaches of moral laws. Instead, play it fair. Admit that you made, at best, a bad business decision by hopping into bed with Henry Kaye. Go after him, as you are now doing by placing caveats on his properties. But show compassion for the cheated consumers.
Most New Zealanders will shudder in shame when they learn what has happened to their Aussie mates in this most dirty and repugnant of corporate deals.
As author, Leon Cass, once wrote – “Repugnance may be the only voice left that speaks up to defend the central core of our humanity. Shallow are the souls that have forgotten how to shudder.”
Honest Kiwis are shuddering today.
Tempo
KIWI SHAME AT KAYE CONNECTION
The honest country shudders with repugnance.
There has always been something beautiful about New Zealand. And not just the country but the people. Their raw honesty, their friendliness and their inherent sense of decency is legendary. So too is their courage. Anyone who reads Les Carlyon’s book, Gallipoli, would weep at the bravery of those young Anzacs. Yes, courage and morality is the nature of the common Kiwi.
And despite the banter, Kiwis and Aussies have been friends for generations.
So it will surely be with a deep sense of shame that Kiwis will read how one of their largest companies is linked to the systematic fleecing of thousands of their mates across the Tasman.
The finance company that climbed into Henry Kaye’s sleazy corporate bed is owned by New Zealand’s Hanover Group. Millions of dollars were paid to Kaye’s now defunct company, the National Investment Institute (NII) by consumers who were duped into signing up for loans which came from Hanover’s finance company, Australian Finance Direct (AFD).
There were four stages to the scam.
First, Henry and his band of bandits (who called themselves “consultants”) lured consumers with a series of false claims the likes of which have rarely been seen in Australia.
Second, the NII consultants told the consumers, “The National Investment Institute will show you, through its courses, how to create enormous wealth in property. If you do not agree that the course can give you financial freedom, we insist on giving your money back. There is no risk to you.”
The Guarantee was one of the most powerful selling points.
Third, when consumers baulked at the $15,000 price for the course, they were told. “You will get that back in your first property deal. You can make $50,000 or $100,000 in six months. That makes the cost of the course cheap. It’s a bargain – pay $15,000 make $50,000 or more. Even millions.”
Again, the guarantee was the persuader. Thousands of consumers were told that the NII courses were “government approved”. Many were told that ASIC had given its approval. It was very persuasive. And it was all lies.
Fourth, when consumers said they did not have $15,000, the NII bandits said, “No problem, you can pay it off, just sign here.” With interest, the consumers now have a debt of more than $20,000 to the Hanover Group's finance company, AFD.
And that’s the scam in four simple but deceitful steps.
Many cheated consumers are now refusing to pay AFD.
However, a spokesperson for the Hanover Group, Klaus Sorensen, is saying, “People have an obligation to pay …. AFD shouldn’t be made to take responsibility for investment decisions made by borrowers.”
Investment decisions made by borrowers? Listen pal, in both our countries, we call that being ripped off – it’s a long way from your shallow corporate line of an “investment decision”.
AFD tossed its finance contracts to bandits who cheated consumers. And who was responsible for that decision? The Hanover Group from New Zealand.
Most borrowers thought NII and AFD were the same company. They never met AFD. The only person they spoke to was the NII consultant assuring them of a “100 per cent money back guarantee and that the courses were all government approved.”
There was no government approval, just as there was no guarantee.
Last night, the chief executive of the Hanover Group, Kerry Finnigan, was reported to be on his way from New Zealand to Australia. The purpose of the trip is to “sort out the mess”. Today, as Mr Finnigan is in Australia, New Zealanders will be reading about this scandal in their newspaper, The National Business Review. They are going to feel ashamed.
Consumer advocates, lawyers, journalists and regulators are looking closely at the link between AFD and NII. Victoria’s Department of Consumer Affairs has already launched action against AFD. The Hanover Group maintains it has “not broken any laws”. It must mean legal laws, because no decent Kiwi or Aussie would condone this immoral corporate collusion.
It’s not a myth to say that New Zealand is a nation of honest people. It’s a fact. In a recent corruption survey involving more than 200 countries, New Zealand was ranked number two for clean dealings.
This deal between a New Zealand owned finance company and an Australian owned seminar company is one of the dirtiest deals in trans Tasman history.
AFD says it “would have preferred not to have got involved” with Henry Kaye. Thousands of ripped off Aussies feel the same way.
Here’s a suggestion for you, Mr Finnigan. Forget the shallow corporate spin. Don’t use your lawyers to enforce breaches of moral laws. Instead, play it fair. Admit that you made, at best, a bad business decision by hopping into bed with Henry Kaye. Go after him, as you are now doing by placing caveats on his properties. But show compassion for the cheated consumers.
Most New Zealanders will shudder in shame when they learn what has happened to their Aussie mates in this most dirty and repugnant of corporate deals.
As author, Leon Cass, once wrote – “Repugnance may be the only voice left that speaks up to defend the central core of our humanity. Shallow are the souls that have forgotten how to shudder.”
Honest Kiwis are shuddering today.
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