Kiwibank has come up with a great scheme to help its customers.
It is prepared to agree to charge interest on loans it makes on the basis you can set off credit balances in other bank accounts against the balance of the loan. You pay interest on the net balance.
Even better, the other bank accounts may include not only the person borrowing but also other eligible people. Inland Revenue has issued a ruling approving the arrangement.
The new product will be available to individuals and business customers, including companies and trusts.
For tax purposes, this is a much simpler scheme than revolving credit, where it is difficult to establish what interest might be deductible as opposed to what is private and non-deductible.