Receivers appointed to Mascot Finance

MEDIA RELEASE

2 March 2009

Perpetual Trust appoints Receivers to Mascot Finance Limited

Perpetual Trust Limited, trustee for the secured debenture stock and deposits issued by Mascot Finance Limited (“the Company”), has appointed Deloitte partners, Brett Chambers and Paul Munro as Receivers of the Company.

The appointment follows discussions between Perpetual Trust and Directors of Mascot Finance Limited. In continually reviewing impairments in the loan book the Board has concluded that a major loan is now unlikely to be recovered in full. A write down of that loan would result in a breach of the Company’s trust deed. The Trustee and the Board of Directors of the Company concluded receivership was the best option to protect all investors and to ensure all investors are treated fairly.

Mascot Finance has 2,558 debenture holders with $70 million invested.

The Receivers advise that with effect from today the repayment of all deposits have been frozen. The requirement of borrowers to continue to meet their instalment and repayment obligations remains.

The Receivers and the Trustee will be working closely with Mascot management and staff to ensure that, in these difficult times, the best outcome is achieved for all interested parties. The Receivers will prepare and send debenture holders a report on their initial findings as soon as possible.

All eligible investors in Mascot Finance are covered by the government’s deposit guarantee scheme. More information on claiming under the guarantee can be obtained from the Treasury website (www.treasury.govt.nz).

A dedicated page on the Mascot website is set up at www.mascot.co.nz and this will be updated as information comes to hand. In addition, a dedicated phone line 0800 MASCOT (0800 627 268) is available for any investor or creditors who have an enquiry relating to Mascot Finance Limited. As there is likely to be a high number of calls to the contact number above, interested parties may prefer to submit their enquiry via email to enquiry@mascot.co.nz

ENDS

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