
What a weekly workout can teach us about retirement
Exercising regularly is only the starting point for Discovery’s argument that everyday behaviours can have a lasting effect on earnings, debt, and retirement security.

Exercising regularly is only the starting point for Discovery’s argument that everyday behaviours can have a lasting effect on earnings, debt, and retirement security.

Better member data, stronger engagement, and AI-assisted tracing may improve future outcomes, but billions of rands in legacy retirement savings are likely to remain unclaimed.

As employers hand more responsibility for retirement and healthcare benefits to staff, the industry is rethinking how to balance freedom with better financial decisions.

Access to education and information has expanded, but the challenge is turning member engagement into better financial decisions and outcomes.

As members leave compulsory preserved savings behind when changing jobs, fragmentation across funds may make it harder to manage fees, investments, and progress towards retirement.

FNB’s survey shows more South Africans are preparing for retirement, while retirees’ experiences disclose the financial pressures that many did not anticipate.

Former FSCA Deputy Commissioner Astrid Ludin argues that the reform has become an unexpected indicator of South Africans’ vulnerability to financial shocks.

Sanlam’s latest Benchmark suggests economic shocks, disrupted careers, and health risks are reshaping how clients across age groups make financial decisions.

Two-pot withdrawals, carried-forward retirement contributions, and incomplete third-party data can affect the final tax position.

The latest Benchmark research argues that small, recurring gambling losses can compound over time just as powerfully as disciplined investing can build wealth.

While billions have been withdrawn through the two-pot system, Alexforbes says more members are remaining connected to retirement funds long after leaving their employers.

Despite a decline in headline earnings, Alexforbes delivered strong underlying growth, with record assets, rising retail inflows, and expanding umbrella fund assets.

Data from Alexforbes and Sanlam suggests more members are preserving retirement savings, though it is too soon to know whether the shift will last.

Old Mutual Corporate says the real COFI test is cultural: funds must start with the member outcome and build governance around it.

The deputy adjudicator finds the ‘freeze’ clause the fund relied on is tied to its DB rules and can’t be used to block a DC member’s savings withdrawal.

DebtBusters data shows repayments still swallow most take-home pay, with pressure shifting upwards to higher earners and credit thinning out for lower-income households.

The system appears to be changing member behaviour at exit from employment, even as most eligible members continue to make withdrawals.