At the beginning of 2020, who could ever have imagined how different the year would turn out, compared with how it started? Recent years have proven one thing – being adaptable, flexible, responding quickly to change and being resilient are traits that we need if we are to survive, and thrive, in a world that’s constantly changing. Sithu Ngcobo, Business Development Manager at Glacier by Sanlam, stresses the importance of financial planning, and ongoing review of your retirem

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to have a devastating human impact. The latest headlines have been ever more shocking, and additional Western sanctions are already being unveiled. As investors, we continue to weigh up the global macroeconomic and market implications of sanctions. Russia has so far been able to avoid default on its external, foreign currency denominated, government debt, in spite of the swift imposition of broad sanctions by the US and its allies. Howev

Rising fuel prices, a recovering economy, and record-high levels of unemployment have all added undue stress on our ability to progress towards financial freedom. What does it mean to be financially free? It means paying off your debts, building a savings safety net, and ultimately, creating a passive income through smart investments choices – preferably before you retire. Martin Riekert - Executive Head of Retail Investments from Momentum Investments believes there is hope f

Last year, the South African debt capital market saw the listing of its first social and sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs). These follow the first green bond issued a few years prior, in a growing trend by businesses to align their financial and sustainability strategies. “While it is clear there are differing levels of sophistication across the market, South African investors are increasingly proactively engaging with companies on improving their sustainability profile,” sa

After having had a taste of remote working through the pandemic, employees are now yearning for even greater flexibility when it comes to their working hours. According to a report by Adobe, 51 percent of enterprise employees would like to have complete flexibility when it comes to their schedule, in contrast to only 16 percent of respondents who said their ideal work week would have no flexibility at all, but rather “start and end work according to a set work schedule.” The

The impact of the pandemic necessitated change in every industry. At the recent Sanlam Financial Confidence webinar, Sanlam experts and industry leaders shared their insights to help intermediaries innovate and adapt their businesses for long-term sustainability. In a post-pandemic world, ‘humanness’ matters and relationship-led advice is coming to the fore as risks accelerate and evolve. Now’s the time to have critical risk management conversations with clients. “At an indus

Late March saw leading African telecommunications network provider, MTN overtaking rival, M-Pesa to become the continent’s largest mobile payments provider. In addition, the MTN Group is in the process of spinning off its fintech division separately and will be looking to bring in strategic investors into the group fintech business to bolster its expansion in the fintech space. This strategic shift of focus is indicative of the Group’s broader objective to consolidate its bus

Allan Gray on Tuesday 26 April 2022 announced the appointment of Mahesh Cooper as chief operating officer. Cooper will officially join on 3 May, taking over from Rob Formby, who will step down following a handover period of at least three months. Formby will, over time, pursue other opportunities. Cooper is no stranger to Allan Gray, having previously been employed at the company between 2003 and 2017, serving as an executive director from 2006 to 2017 and heading up the Inst