Fees are one of those things that we, as South Africans, hate to talk about. Have you ever noticed that whenever a service provider is pitching for business, the slide about fees ends up being the very last slide? It also gets the least time and the least...
Time in the market and investment growth do most of the heavy lifting required to secure a comfortable retirement. However, the level of contributions made throughout a member’s working life is equally important for achieving the desired retirement outcomes....
For years, the debate around cryptocurrency has largely focused on innovation, decentralisation, financial inclusion and freedom from traditional banking systems. Supporters argue that blockchain technology represents the future of finance and that...
We picture a data breach as something cinematic. A hooded figure, green code scrolling down a black screen, a genius somewhere overseas cracking our firewall at three in the morning. It makes for good television. It also, quietly, lets us off the hook,...
For much of the past few decades, the retirement debate has been framed as a choice between two broad models: Defined benefit (DB) funds offered members greater certainty and pooled many retirement risks but placed considerable financial risk on the...
For more than two decades, South Africa’s retirement industry has been trying to solve the same problem: too few people retire with enough savings to maintain their standard of living. Despite countless interventions, stronger governance, improved product...
Investors spend hours analysing a fund’s track record yet rarely ask who’s holding their investment or under what licence. Take three people who put money into the same equity strategy, run by the same manager. One through a unit trust, one through an...
In a complex investment landscape, retirement fund stakeholders face a difficult balancing act. Members want strong long-term returns, protection from market uncertainty, transparent governance and cost efficiency. Regulators expect prudent oversight....
A retirement fund can appoint the right managers, make the right asset allocation decisions and generate strong investment returns. But if those decisions are implemented late, processed incorrectly or supported by fragmented systems, members may never...
For many years, investment platforms were seen primarily as administration vehicles. A place where trades were processed, reports were produced and portfolios were administered. Those responsibilities remain important, but the role of an institutional...