Disclaimer. Please note that this article uses very broad generalisation of a painted scenario for the purpose of dramatic effect. Individuals are all different and different circumstances will be relevant to every individual fund, member or service provider....
Q2 2024

Enhancing retirement fund governance: The case for certified retirement fund trustees™
In previous articles, we explored strategies to safeguard retirement funds against failure, drawing insights from corporate failures and independent non-executive (NED) remuneration practices to identify transferrable learnings for retirement funds. In this...
What do members really want from an investment strategy, and what makes for a good strategy?
Many retirement funds, including commercial umbrella funds, maintain a life-cycle investment strategy. Trustees carefully consider the investment strategy, with input from experts in the field. These experts design sophisticated investment strategies, often...
Servicing clients 10 times faster with AI – how secure is it?
The world of retirement fund servicing is undergoing a significant transformation, thanks to the emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistants. Fund secretaries and employee benefits consultants to retirement funds can now leverage AI to streamline...
Beneficiary funds helping the elderly
A recent and interesting industry trend is that of death benefits being placed into beneficiary funds for elderly parents of deceased retirement fund members. This is notable because beneficiary funds have since their inception been primarily seen as a...
Two component checklist for retirement funds
With both the Pension Funds Amendment Bill and the Revenue Laws Amendment Bill having been passed by the National Treasury, the President must sign the bills into law. However, a few steps remain in finalising the implementation of the Two Component system,...
The two-pot system: Long term tax implications for members
Everybody loves tax – not! Unfortunately, in South Africa taxation is unavoidable and very high. It is also very complicated. The two-pot system has introduced a new way to tax our retirement funds. Any withdrawal from your savings pots will be based on...
The two-pot retirement system comes into effect on 1 September 2024 – so what now?
If your employees belong to a retirement fund, you can take some important steps right now to avoid dissatisfaction and a deluge of complaints. The National Treasury is anticipating a R5 billion revenue windfall from taxing two-pot withdrawals in the next...
Financial advisers face information gap as two-pot system nears
With the expected advent of the two-pot retirement system in September 2024, South Africa stands on the brink of a significant overhaul in retirement savings. Yet, a recent Old Mutual survey reveals a concerning trend: half of the independent financial...
Are SA’s pension funds secure enough for the two-pot pension system?
The implementation of the two-pot retirement system edges nearer as the NCOP passed the Pension Funds Amendment Bill on 25 April 2024, incorporating alterations that resolve certain inconsistencies and bringing it one step closer to fruition on September 1st...