Guilty of illegal lending

Ilaisaane Malupo, trading as Nane Easy Loan Finance Services NZ, has admitted providing loans illegally to members of the Tongan community in south Auckland.

Anne Callinan, deputy chair of the Commerce Commission, says work is now under way to try to contact affected borrowers who could be entitled to financial compensation.

“Malupo failed to keep accurate records and destroyed others, meaning we don’t have the details of all affected borrowers,” says Callinan.

“This is why the commission is taking the step of appealing to the public to get in contact with us if they, or someone they know, borrowed from her.

“While Malupo’s financial position is unclear, we do need to hear from affected borrowers as they could be eligible for financial compensation if there are funds available for this purpose.”

One of the charges was brought under the Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act (FSPA), which requires all consumer lenders must be registered to provide consumer credit. 

Malupo failed to obtain registration despite repeated prompts and guidance from the regulator and continued to lend knowingly in breach of the FSPA. In addition, her terms included interest rates of up to 15 per cent per week.

“This amount would double if borrowers failed to repay their loans within 28 days,” Callinan. “Late fees of up to $10 per day would also be charged.

“This put some borrowers, who were already struggling financially, in an even more difficult position. Some would sell sentimental possessions or miss rent payments to keep up with repayments.”

In some cases, Malupo threatened that borrowers who fell behind on repayments would be publicly exposed on Facebook or other Tongan media sites.

Affected borrowers can email contact@comcom.govt.nz with “Nane Loans borrower” in the subject line, or call 0800-943-600. People are asked to contact the commission before 5pm on April 3 to ensure they are included in the compensation if funds are available.