The Colonial Bank of Issue was a New Zealand state owned bank that operated between 1847 and 1856 in an early unsuccessful attempt to create a government-owned issuer of bank notes in New Zealand. The bank was created by an Ordinance of the

Governor of New Zealand A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

, Sir

George Grey Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Gov ...

. Its first manager was Charles Knight. Pressure from the newly formed Colonial Parliament, the Union Bank of Australasia, and the local commercial sector, along with views developed in the Colonial Office in the United Kingdom to allow experimentation on competition in the issue of banknotes, led to the bank being wound up by the New Zealand Colonial Bank of Issue Winding-Up Act 1856.

References

The legal history of money in New Zealand, Ken Matthews, Reserve Bank of New Zealand: Bulletin Vol. 66 No. 1
Defunct banks of New Zealand Government-owned companies of New Zealand 1847 establishments in New Zealand Banks established in 1847 1856 disestablishments in New Zealand Banks disestablished in 1856 {{bank-stub