Financial markets were buoyed in 2021 by an easing of Covid-19-related restrictions, an ultra-accommodative monetary and fiscal policy stance and a rebounding jobs market, Momentum’s Herman van Papendorp, the head of investment research and asset allocation, and economist Sanisha Packirisamy, say in their review of developments in financial markets last year. Despite new Covid-19 variants […]
The total market capitalisation of the South African exchange traded product (ETP) industry grew to R136 billion at the end of last year, an increase of 22.5% on the R111bn at the end of 2020, according to statistics released by etfSA. The number of ETPs in issue grew from 137 at the end of 2020 […]
The country’s Master’s offices were only able to resume processing inheritances from 15 November last year, when a new finger-print verification server was restored, says Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola. He was responding to a question from Glynnis Breytenbach, the DA’s spokesperson for justice and constitutional development. Breytenbach asked the minister what steps […]
The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica) says it will investigate all members of the organisation mentioned in the Zondo Commission’s report into state capture. In a media statement on 5 January, Saica said it had initiated an investigation into Yakhe Kwinana, the former chairperson of SAA Technical (SAAT) and an ex-SAA board member, […]
Nedbank says it committed no wrong in relation to the interest rate swap transactions it concluded with Airports Company SA (Acsa) between 2009 and 2011. The bank was responding to Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo’s recommendation that the law enforcement agencies should investigate Nedbank and its employees for their alleged role in a “corrupt” contract […]
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has admitted that it dropped the ball in failing to identify corruption at SAA when it audited the company’s books between 2012 and 2016. In part 1 of his report on state capture, Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo said PwC and its joint-audit partner, Nkonki Inc, “failed dismally” to detect the rampant fraud […]
The response to climate change, inflation, post-pandemic growth and China’s market interventions are among investment managers’ top concerns this year, according to Sanlam Investments. Sanlam Investments’ portfolio managers believe active managers will focus on the following six themes as they position client portfolios for maximum returns: Theme 1: Post-pandemic growth “There is a growing body […]
Global management consultancy Bain & Company says it is “deeply sorry” for its role in the damage inflicted on the SA Revenue Service (Sars) during the tenure of Commissioner Tom Moyane. However, Bain said it did not accept that its representatives knowingly participated in an effort to damage Sars. It made “many mistakes” (see below) […]
The chief executive of 3Sixty Global Solutions Group, Khandani Msibi, has sharply criticised the FSCA and the Prudential Authority (PA) after 3Sixty Life was placed under provisional curatorship at the end of last year. The PA brought an ex parte application before the Gauteng High Court on 21 December, because the life insurer had not […]
Death claims for fully underwritten new-generation life insurance policies were nearly four times higher than the expected death rate during the peak of the third wave of Covid-19, according to the Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA). South Africa’s largest life insurers received 22 544 death claims against fully underwritten life policies in the 19 […]
