An Appreciation of Girol Karacaoglu

MEDIA RELEASE : New Zealand Cooperatives Association

26 January 2012

New Zealand Cooperatives Association Chairperson Blue Read Offers an Appreciation of Girol Karacaoglu

As he moves from being the Chief Executive of The Co•operative Bank to working at Treasury as Deputy Secretary – Macroeconomics and Research, the New Zealand Cooperatives Association offers an appreciation of Girol Karacaoglu’s contribution to cooperative business.

“We salute Girol’s contribution to cooperative and mutual enterprise over the past few years, especially as he has led the conversion of PSIS into The Co•operative Bank,” said Association Chairperson, Blue Read.

“Girol’s transition is Treasury’s gain, and his understanding of economics is undoubtedly going to be good for all New Zealanders” he said.

“We also recognise the changes at board level at The Co•operative Bank and thank retiring Chairman Sir David Gascoigne for his many years’ service to the members of the cooperative, and welcome the new team of new Chair Steven Fyfe and Deputy Paul Goulter.

“New Zealand cooperatives and their members look forward to the continuing success of the Co•operative Bank.”

Cooperatives in New Zealand ... and the world

* While there are just 200 member-owned businesses in New Zealand, they generate an aggregate revenue of more than $30bn

* Making up almost 10% of Management magazine’s Top 200, some of New Zealand's best known businesses are cooperatives and mutuals, including our single largest -- Fonterra Cooperative Group (www.management.co.nz/top200/)

* Other member-owned businesses include Foodstuffs (Pak'n'Save, New World, Four Square), Alliance Group, Silver Fern Farms, Mitre 10, Paper Plus, Ravensdown Fertiliser Cooperative, The Co-operative Bank, Southern Cross, the Automobile Association and Interflora (www.nz.coop/nzca-members)

* The world’s 300 largest cooperatives and mutuals, of which six are here in New Zealand, generated an aggregate revenue in 2008 of US$1.6 trillion (US$1,600 billion), which is comparable to the GDP of the world's 9th largest economy (www.global300.coop)

* According to the International Labour Organisation, cooperatives provide more than 100 million jobs, more than all the world's multinational corporations combined (www.ilo.org/coop)

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