August 2019

19Aug

South Africa should look to pensions instead of an IMF bailout: ANC

The ANC is looking at the possibility of using private and public pension funds to rescue the country’s struggling state-owned enterprises. In an interview with the Sunday Times Enoch Godongwana, head of the party’s economic transformation subcommittee, said that the asset management industry currently has R6 trillion under management which should be borrowed by government. Godongwana said using this approach to gather funds is better than going the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout. “Why would you go...

August 19, 2019
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05Aug

How South Africans can check where their retirement savings are actually going

Most South Africans would not knowingly support activities that might harm the environment, endanger the health of others or violate the rights of workers. Still, unless you know where your money is going, how can you be sure that it is being spent or invested responsibly? That is a question which the Financial Services Conduct Authority may help retirement fund members answer, says Deirdre Phillips, a partner at law firm Bowmans. By encouraging funds to make their investment policy...

August 5, 2019
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July 2019

31Jul

The Crisis at South Africa’s $150 Billion State-Owned Fund Manager

Africa’s largest fund manager used to be a success story. Owned by the South African state, the Public Investment Corp. runs money for public institutions including the government-worker pension fund covering more than 1 million people. It increased its assets under management sixfold in 15 years, to about $150 billion. It's a major player in the Johannesburg stock market, and has wielded its power to curb executive pay at companies, make or break takeovers, and drive the government agenda...

July 31, 2019
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26Jul

Former banker appointed head of South Africa’s scandal-hit state pension fund

Former Nedbank chairman Reuel Khoza has been appointed to head South Africa’s 2 trillion rand ($141 billion) Public Investment Corporation (PIC) in an effort to restore the scandal-plagued pension fund’s reputation. Khoza replaces South Africa’s former Deputy Finance Minister Mondli Gungubele as chairman of the PIC board, marking the first time the head of the fund responsible for billions of rand in government employee pensions has been chosen from outside the ranks of the ruling African National Congress (ANC). The role...

July 26, 2019
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18Jul

South Africa. Threat to SA’s R4 trillion retirement savings pot highlighted

The Institute of Race Relations (IRR) says in a statement it will be delivering a memorandum to the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA) in Rosebank. The memorandum will highlight the “real threat to South Africa’s R4 trillion retirement savings pot”. “The governing African National Congress (ANC) has for some time discussed the possibility that the savings of ordinary South Africans could be prescribed – invested in areas or sectors ‘prescribed’ by the government. As recently as last month, minister...

July 18, 2019
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16Jul

South African State Pension Fund to Invest More Offshore

South Africa’s Government Employees Pension Fund is planning to invest more of its 2 trillion rand ($144 billion) under management outside the country and in unlisted assets to reduce risk of overexposure to locally traded companies. The strategy was outlined by GEPF Principal Executive Officer Abel Sithole to a commission of inquiry into allegations of wrongdoing and poor governance at the Public Investment Corp., the fund’s biggest manager. The GEPF has more than 93% of its assets invested in...

July 16, 2019
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05Jul

The Ultimate Guide to Retirement in South Africa

By Bruce Cameron, Wouter Fourie Most people are rich for a single day in their lives: the day they retire and receive their retirement savings. This moment is more critical than many people realise – it marks the change from saving for retirement to drawing an income from savings that will ideally sustain them until they die. All too often, pensioners end up struggling financially because they make the wrong decisions after they retire. It is crucial for...

July 5, 2019
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June 2019

26Jun

S. African Pensions Seen at Risk If State Forces Investments

A plan mooted by South Africa’s ruling African National Congress to force retirement funds into investing in specific state-owned companies or government projects could leave pensioners poorer. The ANC in its election manifesto earlier this year said it would investigate using prescribed assets to help foster inclusive economic growth, fund social improvements and diversify the finance industry. A lack of detail as to how this could materialize since it was accepted at the party’s policy conference in 2017 has...

June 26, 2019
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25Jun

Retirement Funding in South Africa 2019

The South African retirement funding sector, with assets in excess of R4.26-trillion, has the fifth highest assets-to-gross domestic product ratio in the world. However, less than 10% of retirement fund members are able to maintain their standard of living when they stop working and 41% of economically active South Africans have not made any provision for their retirement. Total membership of retirement funds rose from 16.6 million to 16.9 million in 2017, while total retirement fund contributions increased by...

June 25, 2019
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25Jun

South Africa’s Market for Retirement Funding, 2019: Covering Comprehensive Profiles of 27 Public & Private Companies

This report is on retirement funding and provides information of size and state of retirement funding in South Africa, on the continent and internationally as well as the factors influencing the sector. There are comprehensive profiles of 27 public and private companies in the sector. These include the Public Investment Corporation, which manages the Government Employees Pension Fund, with 1.27 million members and assets under management totalling around R1.8-trillion. There are profiles of notable private sector players such as...

June 25, 2019
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