BankWest Raises The Bar With Kid's Saver

•  BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver* offers a 10% p.a. bonus  for children under 15
•  Encourages good savings behaviour through a regular contribution of between $25 and a maximum of $250 per month and  no withdrawals
  
•  Kids can save up to $3000 (plus interest) over 12 months before their savings 'sweep' into their standard Children's
•  Savings Account (currently paying up to 4.5% p.a.)
  
•  No account keeping fees to help kids save more 
  
•  BankWest continues to drive competition across its suite of products
  
•  Supported by the global strength of parent company HBOS plc

HBOS Australia, through its retail bank BankWest, has announced the arrival of a better deal for Australian children with the launch of the BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver*, Australia's leading savings account for children.

The BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver attracts a high monthly bonus interest rate of 10 per cent for children under the age of 15 years.  The market-leading bonus interest rate is paid when a deposit of between $25 and $250 a month is made with no withdrawals. 

The BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver has no account keeping fees, allowing young Australians to save more money, more quickly.

BankWest's Retail Division Chief Executive Chris Whitehead said the launch of the Kids' Bonus Saver showed BankWest was committed to providing customers a better deal across all banking products.

"It is our intention to provide that competition and grow our business by giving Australians better banking alternatives. 

"We have consistently held the view there is room for more competition within the Australian banking and finance industry," Mr Whitehead said.   "BankWest already leads the market in online savings products, with the BankWest TeleNet Saver* offering an introductory rate of 6.4% p.a. for new TeleNet customers for savings. The Kids' Bonus Saver now raises the bar further in the highly competitive deposits market."

The Kids' Bonus Saver is designed to encourage children to save regularly by rewarding them when they make regular deposits. If no withdrawals are made in any given month and a minimum deposit of $25 to a maximum of $250 is made in the same month, the child receives the 10% p.a. bonus interest. Failure to do so results in a default rate of 0.01%p.a. Each year, on the 12 month anniversary of the account opening, the child's savings 'sweep' into a standard Children's savings account which pays up to 4.5% p.a and kids can once again start saving money in the Kids' Bonus Saver.

BankWest Head of Deposits Paul Vivian said the BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver would give young Australians a chance to develop good savings habits, encouraged by a high rate of return on their savings.

"It also provides parents with a real incentive to put money away for their children's future," he said.  "It's about time children's savings accounts were reinvigorated and we are proud to be leading the charge once again."

The launch of the BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver is fully endorsed by the global strength of HBOS plc, which is one of Europe's biggest banks and significantly bigger than any of Australia's major banks, with a strong track record of delivering service and value.

The new BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver will be available through BankWest branches, over the phone (13 17 20) or at bankwest.com.au, from 19 June 2006.


How the BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver compares to other children's products: 

*Rate includes bonus interest

Source: www.infochoice.com.au 6 June 2006

Notes to Editor:
*The product disclosure statement for these products should be read by customers prior to opening an account. The Product Disclosure statements are available from the website bankwest.com.au.

About BankWest's Kids' Bonus Saver:
o The BankWest Kids' Bonus Saver is a simple high interest savings account that parents/guardians can open for children under the age of 15 years.  Each child may only have one Kids' Bonus Saver Account.
o To receive the [10%] bonus interest rate, the child must also have a BankWest Children's Savings account. 
o Monthly deposits of between $25 and $250 are required along with no account withdrawals during the same month. 
o On the anniversary of the account opening, savings and interest from the Kids' Bonus Saver account is swept into the Children's Savings Account and the annual savings process starts again.
o For more information about opening an account, customers can visit a BankWest branch, phone 13 17 20 or visit bankwest.com.au
o Rates are subject to change.

About TeleNet Saver
· TeleNet Saver has an introductory variable rate of 6.4%p.a. for new customers for the first 12 months; following this introductory period the interest rate reverts to 5.75% p.a. Rates are subject to change.
· Interest is paid monthly.
· There is no minimum opening deposit, and there is a maximum investment limit of $1 million.
· A regular savings plan can be set up on the account.

About BankWest
BankWest is a full service bank which originated in Western Australia in 1895 and services more than 660,000 customers. Nationally, BankWest promotes a range of products using cost-effective direct and third party distribution channels, including 24-hour telephone and internet services and mortgage brokers.
In WA, BankWest is a market leader with about one quarter of all bank advances and deposits and an extensive network of branches. BankWest is a wholly owned subsidiary of HBOS plc, which is one of the world's largest financial services groups, with assets of about AUD$800 billion (£380 billion). Standard & Poors short-term credit rating for BankWest is "A-1" and "A+" for the long term, providing customers with investment grade security.

Sally-Ann Parker, +61 (2) 8299 8453
Bridget Tombleson, +61 (8) 9449 6768
Natalie Causley, +61 (2) 8299 8261