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The FSCA received information from Fedgroup, a Financial Services Provider that is properly authorised by the FSCA with FSP number 665, that a certain Mr Zwelibanzi Sibiya (Sibiya) is claiming to be its employee and using its (Fedgroup) name to invite members of public via a WhatApp group, to join an investment scheme. Fedgroup has confirmed that it is not associated with Sibiya or his WhatApp group. Sibiya is not authorised in terms of any financial sector law to render any financial advice and intermediary services. Mr Sibiya was not available for comment.

Members of the public should always ensure that an entity or individual is suitably authorised by the FSCA to provide the specific financial product or service being offered. Check this before any purchase or investment is made, by one of the following:

1. Toll-free number: 0800 110 443
2. Online search for authorised financial institution by license category:
   https://www.fsca.co.za/Regulated%20Entities/Pages/List-Regulated-Entities-Persons.aspx
3. Online search for a financial institution that is an authorised FSP in terms of the FAIS Act:
   https://www.fsca.co.za/Fais/Search_FSP.htm

Enquiries:

“While many of us look forward to the day we are able to retire, retirement is not always as easy as we imagine it to be,” says Walter van der Merwe, CEO of Fedgroup Life. “When you retire, you often suffer a loss or reduction of income, but daily expenses remain and grow with yearly inflation and economic turmoil,” he explains.

Van der Merwe says it is never too early to start making provisions for retirement. “While this may not apply to a handful of business owners and entrepreneurs, the hard truth is that most people have to retire, whether they have a choice in the matter or not. Even if you still have a bond or car to pay off, and a family to support, once you hit the retirement age, most companies will send you packing.”

To maintain your standard of living, a proper retirement plan will help ensure sufficient income once permanent employment is no longer an option. Van der Merwe notes that the general rule is that you should consistently save between 15% and 20% of your monthly salary between the ages of 20 and 60, to retire comfortably. An increasing number of funds in South Africa offer their employees variable contribution rates, from 5% to 20% of their annual salary.

“A carefully considered retirement plan needs to take into account all your expenses – big and small, as well as planned and unplanned, to ensure that you put away sufficient savings every month,” says Van der Merwe.

The reality is that most people do not have much financial planning experience. It is a daunting concept and the convoluted pension schemes environment doesn’t help the consumer make an informed decision.

According to Van der Merwe, one of the most commonly asked retirement questions is, what is the difference between a pension fund, a provident fund and a retirement annuity fund? In the past, the differences between these three savings vehicles were substantial, but recent legislation have made them very similar.

A pension fund can only be joined through a company that employs you, and your money is managed by the trustees of the fund. Your contributions as well as your employer’s contributions, are tax deductible up to a point. Upon retirement, you can take up to a third of your savings in a cash lump sum, which is taxable. The rest must be used to purchase an income/annuity, which is also taxable.

If you leave the company before retirement, you can move your retirement savings out of the company fund, either to your new employer’s fund, a preservation fund or a retirement annuity fund, or take a cash payout which is taxed.

A provident fund is different to a pension fund in that you are able to withdraw the entire savings amount as a lump sum when you retire. Government is intending to align the benefits of provident funds to those of pension and retirement annuity funds. This means that provident funds will ultimately be essentially identical to pension funds. The result is that you will only be able to withdraw a third of your provident fund savings as a lump sum upon retirement, while the rest has to be invested in an income/annuity fund that pays you a monthly income. However, this legislation has not been applied and has been postponed until 1 March 2021.

A retirement annuity fund, to which you also make monthly contributions, is completely independent of your employer, allowing you to choose what funds you invest this money in (limited by retirement fund regulations).

Upon retirement, you are allowed to take a maximum of a third of your savings as a cash lump sum and the balance must be used to purchase an income/annuity. If you change jobs before retirement, this will not impact your retirement annuity, as you are not permitted to access any portion of these funds before retirement.

“Whichever option you choose is completely up to you, as long as you have all the right information and advice, which is available from a trusted financial advisor,” says van der Merwe. “Nobody can ignore the inevitability of retirement and it literally pays to not only start planning early but also doing it in a way that works for you,” concludes van der Merwe.

In two of the three sections, Group Pension and Provident Funds and Investment Products, Fedgroup walked away with Diamond Arrows, while securing a Gold Arrow in the Group Life/Risk Products section. Only three awards are up for grabs in each section, a Gold, Silver and Bronze Arrow. In exceptional circumstances, a Diamond Arrow can also be awarded if a first-placed finalist receives an outstanding score from industry experts.

This is the seventh year in a row that Fedgroup has claimed honours at the awards, proving that its commitment to putting people ahead of profits is woven into the fabric of the business.

PMR.africa awards are highly sought after in the industry because they cannot be entered into. They are based purely on the replies of industry experts to a set list of questions that cover all areas of operations, including settlement speed, communication, transparency, product innovation, administration and returns relative to benchmark.

Most complaints received by the Pension Funds Adjudicator involves Section 37C of the Pension Funds Act, which describes how death benefits should be distributed by the trustees of a pension fund when a member passes on. The complaints often revolve around perceived unfairness in distribution allocations or expectations not being met.

Section 37C of the Pension Funds Act places a clear and onerous duty on the board of trustees in terms of determining the fair and equitable distribution of death benefits of fund members.

Seeing the full picture before allocating funds

The Section 37C decision-making process is paper heavy and requires a lot of manual input from various parties. In addition, each case is truly unique, depending on the individual circumstances of the affected family. Trustees are expected to act in good faith, apply their minds to the problem and exercise discretion after taking account of all the known facts.

This onus not only requires that trustees consider the complex circumstances surrounding deceased members and their dependants, but also the various pieces of legislation that shape the retirement industry in South Africa.

These pieces of legislation include documents drawn up by the FSCA and outline principles of good governance and the guidelines set out by the Pension Funds Adjudicator. They are often used in isolation – to the detriment of the funds and their governing trustees. This is especially evident when it comes to making decisions regarding death benefit distributions in terms of Section 37C of the Pension Funds Act.

A duty to consider all – not just nominated – beneficiaries

In South Africa, the general rule of law dictates that each person has freedom of testation and can leave their estate to whomever they choose. However, this does not extend to the distribution of approved death benefits payable from a fund registered under the Pension Funds Act.

This means that if a member of a fund dies before they have left the fund, the benefits are not paid solely based on the member’s nomination form or Will. Trustees must determine how the death benefits should be allocated among the member’s beneficiaries, dependants and nominees, using the member’s nomination of beneficiary form and Will as a guideline or investigative tool.

Trustees need to determine the dependency of each beneficiary. This is easier if members review their information regularly.

There is no manual outlining what steps could be regarded as reasonable. That reasonability would depend on the unique circumstances of the member’s household at the time of the investigation.

Failing to conduct extensive investigation where required may, in some cases, be seen as a break of fiduciary duty and be deemed unreasonable, especially in cases where the rights of a minors have not been safeguarded.

The process of gathering this information plays a key role in reaching a decision quickly.

Arriving at such a decision requires a thorough deliberation process. Actual apportionment is based on how the trustees interpret the information.

It is therefore likely that different boards could arrive at divergent conclusions and make different allocations. The onus is on the trustees to act in good faith, think logically about the problem and exercise discretion after taking all known facts into consideration. Not doing so will mean trustees have failed their fiduciary duties.

Trying to keep track of outstanding death claims, while trying to resolve them as quickly as possible, becomes more challenging with a process that is not fully electronic. If it goes to the Pension Funds Adjudicator, and there is even the slightest inaccuracy, the administrator is held responsible.

With so many variables at play, trustees rely on past value judgements and industry best practices when making decisions.

Industry guidance for trustees

Trustees can use the guidelines put forth in the PF130 circular released by the FSCA, which provides guidance in the field of good governance with regards to trustees’ duties and responsibilities.

Trustees who are familiar with the code of conduct policy will be aware of their fiduciary duties and will understand what is expected of them. To ensure this, the FSCA has, in a recent circular, stipulated that all trustees should attain the qualification from the Trustee Toolkit website within six months of being appointed to the board. Boards are also expected to provide training from reputable providers, where needed. Furthermore, a declarations of interest policy would ensure that trustees do not promote allocations to specific beneficiaries based on vested interests.

The absence of absolute rules and guidelines creates doubt in the minds of the trustees as to whether they have complied with their fiduciary duty. Section 37C adds even more complexity, as trustees are expected to balance the intended outcomes of the law with the compassion required to address the best interests of unique family units.

Section 37C requires that trustees investigate the member’s beneficiaries, dependants and nominees and identify the best division of death benefit distributions, resulting in a subjective process and trustees who are constantly questioning whether they have applied their minds sufficiently.

Verifying beneficiaries and managing expectations

Another thing trustees must be mindful of, is the fact that potential beneficiaries who stand to access a substantial financial windfall might be dishonest on their documentation to ensure they receive the benefits. It has become necessary to have additional information to corroborate the supplied information.

Because a large portion of the South African population predominantly use cash transactions, obtaining the required documentation to prove dependency calls for creative measures at times. The result is that collection of relevant information is a potentially costly and drawn-out process, making it difficult to quickly replace the income of a primary breadwinner to support remaining dependants.

The process is further complicated by the fact that people who live in rural areas might not always have the means to obtain legal documentation.

Faced with these challenges, it is important that trustees manage the beneficiaries’ expectations, to help them understand that this process can take time, to ensure they understand how benefits are dispersed, and what their role is.

Trustees need to be reasonable, fair and equitable. Although trustees might not always please everyone, it’s about doing their job well and being able to, based on the information at hand, make a decision that is ethical and fair.

Another harsh reality of today’s economic climate is that many people may have to face retrenchment at some stage during their career. Therefore, changing jobs is to be expected in today’s environment. However, due consideration should be given to the financial implications of changing jobs and especially to the potential impact on your accumulated retirement savings, says Walter van der Merwe, CEO of Fedgroup Life.

“When leaving your current employment, the money that you or your company contributed to your pension fund becomes available to you. This means that you have the choice of what to do with this money,” he says.

Legislation, as it currently stands, allows you to make a withdrawal from a fund that you contribute to through your employer, such as a pension or provident fund, but not funds that you contribute to in your personal capacity, such as retirement annuities. However, government does not want citizens to withdraw all their retirement savings before they actually retire, and thus become dependant on social grants in their old age and become a burden on the state.

New legislation is therefore in the offing to prevent premature withdrawals. It is expected that this legislation will be announced during the March 2020 budget speech. Until this legislation comes into effect, the option will exist to withdraw funds, which means that individuals who retire or are retrenched have a decision to make with regards to reinvesting or paying out their savings.

Van der Merwe points out that if you are over the age of 55 and resign, or you are dismissed or retrenched, you may retire from the fund and start to earn a pension, or you could make a withdrawal from the fund. However, if you are under 55, you can only withdraw from your retirement fund. These proceeds are referred to as a withdrawal benefit.

There are a number of factors to consider in order to make the best informed decision regarding your future, and it is up to you whether you take the cash or transfer your savings to another fund.

Studies have shown that about two-thirds of South Africans who leave their jobs cash out their retirement savings, with many of them using this money to pay off short-term debt, for example. While this may offer short-term financial relief, the long-term impact of this can be devastating.

“While it is never recommended that you cash in your pension early, some people have no choice. Perhaps you need a chunk of cash to settle debt, or to use as capital to start a small business that will hopefully replace your lost income,” says Van der Merwe.

If withdrawal is the best course given the situation, depending on your particular retirement plan, Van der Merwe believes it is crucial to know what options are available and how best to maximise one’s investment.

“Withdrawing part of your retirement savings early means that you not only reduce the tax-free lump sum you will get when you do retire, but you also increase the rate at which your retirement savings will be taxed,” he explains.

However, there are other options, depending on whether one has invested in a pension fund, a provident fund, or a retirement annuity fund.

“In the event that you do lose your job before retirement age, it is recommended that you transfer the proceeds of your pension or provident fund to a preservation fund,” says Van der Merwe. “A preservation fund is essentially a tax-effective investment solution for individuals who wish to invest the proceeds of their company-sponsored retirement plan in a tax-efficient manner.”

According to van der Merwe, this preserves both your accumulated savings and the attached tax benefits. One can only transfer the proceeds from pension or provident funds to a preservation fund, but cannot contribute to it from any other sources.

“Thus, your retirement investment will only grow in line with its net investment return, with no monthly contributions required. This is ideal for people who have lost their income, or find themselves earning less and are therefore unable to afford monthly contributions,” says van der Merwe. The transfer is tax free, and you are allowed to withdraw money once before your retirement age from a preservation fund.

“I would caution against any premature withdrawals, unless you’re going to reinvest this money into a business venture that will generate income for you. The downside is that you would have to start your retirement savings from scratch and your time to retirement, during which you can make contributions, will be shorter,” says van der Merwe.

Those who have invested in a retirement annuity fund can only retire and start to earn a monthly income from the fund from the age of 55 onward. The exception is when you formally emigrate or are unable to continue working.

“Obviously life is unpredictable, but it is always a good idea to discuss your options with your financial adviser before making decisions that could have far-reaching consequences. In this day and age, it literally pays to be cautious,” van der Merwe concludes.

One of the most important business principles that one can apply to personal finance is to keep an eye on cash flow. The money leaving your accounts should never be more than the money coming in. One of the simplest definitions of wealth creation is to spend less than you earn and investing the difference. However, few individuals or families can tell you exactly how much they should spend in a month and therefore know how much they should be saving each month. This saving is the ‘profit’ of the family and is vitally important for future planning, whether you are looking at buying another property, going on holiday or paying for children’s education.

A personal financial assessment has a very simple purpose, to determine whether you are on the right path to achieve all your goals, or whether some changes are needed. In modern society, this is a very important question, as our conception of retirement and the amount you need to save towards it is constantly changing.

The retirement industry is just over a century old and when it was introduced, life expectancy was a lot lower, so people would only live a few years after finishing their formal careers, which meant that there usually was no danger of the money running out. Nowadays however, life expectancy is such that there is the real chance that you may live longer than your investments. Therefore, the new emerging view of retirement is you should be as close as possible to financial independence before you retire. Financial independence simply means that your investment income each month is more than you spend in that month, meaning that your money continues to grow, even after all your living expenses are deducted.

What these investments should be, is up to the individual, preferably backed up by good research or sound financial advice. For instance, you may decide that you want to own four paid-for properties by the time you retire, as this will provide enough rental income to support you for the remainder of your life. You now have a target to aim at, which allows you to assess your position once a year to determine whether you are still on track or whether some changes need to be made. Making lifestyle changes to meet your goals, or finding out that you are not on the right track financially is a daunting exercise for many, which is why so many of us make excuses not to do it.

However, there is no reason to get despondent. Most individuals’ earning potential increases over their working careers, so they are able to contribute increasing amounts to their financial plan as they progress. Financial planning therefore also includes thinking about your career path, as your salary will determine which goals you are able to achieve.

No assessment of your personal financial situation is complete without taking a look at unforeseen events. This includes fire, theft, retrenchment and serious illness. Fortunately, all of these events can be covered through insurance, but it is up to the individual to ensure that they are not over or underinsured. The insurance needs to be aligned with the rest of your goals, so that you are able to continue down the financial path that you have mapped out for yourself without too much deviation.

Insurance is a grudge purchase because you are often paying money that you will never see again, but the consequences of not being insured can be dire. Therefore, adequate insurance should be part of any financial plan, even if it means cutting down on some luxuries to make it fit.

As the definition of retirement changes, 70 is becoming the new 60 and many people are seeing the value of continuing to work instead of sitting at home, as the advances in medical science allow them to enjoy their later years in excellent health. If you have a sound financial plan to back you up, you can reach this age with the luxury of deciding whether you want to work, see the world or do a job that pays less, but fulfils your passion.

At the end of August President Cyril Ramaphosa told Japanese business delegates that he was going to create an “entrepreneurial state”. He was at the South Africa-Japan Business Forum in Yokohama, and he was attempting to lure much-needed investment into the country.

These are welcome comments because entrepreneurs are a national asset. They drive innovation and competition. Their businesses employ people. Their products and services contribute to alleviating some of the country’s most pressing problems.

In short, successful entrepreneurs grow the economy and create wealth. It is hardly a secret that South Africa needs both.

In Japan, the president said that the country would put in place a revitalised industrial policy. He added that the government would be making it a priority to ensure all support measures for business were in place.

“We recognise that these support measures are only meaningful if we create an environment for business to thrive. To that end, we have embarked on a number of initiatives aimed at creating what we call an entrepreneurial state,” Ramaphosa said.

However, while the intent is to be welcomed, little in the way of actual structural reforms that our economy so desperately needs have been forthcoming. This is reflected in both the weak rand and overall investor confidence, which has seen the country head into the longest business cycle downward phase since World War II. While these sentiments will also impact on property valuations, it does not mean that the sector is without its opportunities.

One such opportunity that is often overlooked is the premises where the business is located. Given the low growth in the property sector in recent years, few entrepreneurs think of property as a financial opportunity, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Let’s be clear. We are not talking about the listed property sector, where companies are at the mercy of shareholders who chase short-term profits at any cost. This approach is partly to blame for the poor performance of the sector in recent times.

We are speaking about property in the form of bricks and mortar. A stock can implode. A solid property, in a good area, that is well run and maintained and supports a going concern, will stand the test of time. Most businesses – whether in services, manufacturing or even the rental market – operate out of a property. Some business models are 100% reliant on the actual property.

So, in an environment where there are very attractive opportunities in a property buyers’ market, what is holding back businesspeople with solid track records and business nous? As many an entrepreneur will tell you, gaining access to commercial property finance can sometimes be a massively onerous and distracting exercise. Issues include red tape, burdensome conditions imposed by those with market dominance, and a shortage of liquidity because of the general state of the economy.

However, there are also innovative alternatives available that can have a massive impact on the prosperity of the business.

These include interest-only terms, where the property owner only services the interest portion of the loan and not the debt portion. This frees up a substantial cash amount every month that can be reinvested into the business. In addition, all the growth in the value of the property belongs to the entrepreneur when the building is finally sold.

Another consideration is the turnaround time to arrive at a finance decision. Many providers take months to provide loan applicants with a decision, but there are also those businesses who understand the entrepreneurial mindset and can provide a loan decision in principle within a few days.

It may appear nostalgic or idealistic, but sometimes an entrepreneurial mindset and business-friendly environment is one where the red tape is dumped, and deals in principle are done with eye contact, over a handshake and in a short turnaround time.

One must never confuse this old-school ethos with a lowering of standards. Sustainable business should always be built on the back of solid research, due diligence and an honest and accountable track record.

Commercial property finance is no different. However, agility and innovation in empowering entrepreneurs will certainly have a bigger impact on individual businesses and the economy than the current status quo.

By adopting an innovative approach to owning their own premises, entrepreneurs may unlock the value that makes the difference to help their businesses survive and thrive.

Getting a job is the first step towards financial freedom, but – as anyone who has ever received a salary will know – your cost-to-company salary and what gets paid into your account are two different figures.

There is a lot of information on your payslip, so it is important to understand what the various deductions on your payslip are.

Walter van der Merwe, CEO of Fedgroup Life , says that understanding your payslip is a very important step towards financial literacy, and ultimately financial freedom.

“The road to financial freedom requires hard work and discipline. It also requires being on top of all your money affairs. Understanding your payslip is the start of that journey. What do you earn, what is deducted, why is it deducted? Answer those questions and you are on your way to providing for yourself, your family and your requirements,” he says.

So, let’s look at what the most common items on your payslip mean.

Cost to company (CTC): This is the total amount of money your employer spends on you. This figure is the starting point before deductions. Let’s have a look at the most common, deductions if you are a full-time employee.

Pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) Tax: This is the tax amount that employers deduct from your income and pay monthly to the South African Revenue Service. This amount is calculated on a sliding scale that depends on how much you earn.

Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF): This fund gives short-term relief to workers if they become unemployed or are unable to work because of maternity/adoption leave, or illness. It also provides relief to the dependents of a deceased contributor. You and your employer each contribute towards UIF so that you can have access to the fund in case you become unemployed.

Retirement contribution: Most employers deduct an amount from your salary for retirement savings (pension or provident fund). Sometimes employees are given the opportunity to decide what percentage of their salary they want to contribute and other times the employer chooses a percentage. There is some flexibility, but you need to understand how that works, what the company has put in place for you and what your options are. Because retirement contributions are tax-deductible, it is one of the most effective ways to save. More importantly, you are paying this money towards a better future for yourself.

Click here for more information about retirement contributions.

The unfortunate reality is that very few people pay enough attention to what information is contained in their payslips and fewer still understand what every item means.

Once you understand everything, you should check your payslip carefully and make sure that it is accurate, as mistakes could turn out to be costly.

“If there’s anything on your payslip you don’t understand, talk to your manager or HR department. Don’t just leave it,” says van der Merwe.

With thousands of members to take care of and millions, if not billions of rands under management, considering the needs of individual dependants of deceased members becomes a near impossible task.

Though administration systems may generally do a solid job when it comes to seeing to the requirements of their members, they are not necessarily flexible enough when it comes to enabling a quick decision that will affect the life of a child.

“If a child needs funds to get into a new school, and the trustees only meet every quarter, what needs to happen for the child to get access to these funds?” asks Fedgroup CEO Grant Field.

This is where Fedgroup’s Beneficiary Care is able to assist pension funds. It’s specifically designed to cater for the needs of beneficiaries, as Fedgroup has created specialised processes and administrative structures that provide close to real-time information for decision makers. “We know exactly what’s happening in the fund at any time, as the system updates every 15 minutes.”

Through Fedgroup’s Beneficiary Care, a child would easily be able to access the funding needed to get into a new school halfway through a term, for example. Fedgroup can process requests of this nature quickly because, aside from its administrative systems, it has a team of experienced administrators who specialise in dealing with such contingencies. Administrators form personal relationships with beneficiaries that last for the rest of their school careers.

In addition to such ad-hoc payments, beneficiary funds are also expected to pay out a monthly sum to beneficiaries, which is critical to assist children who have no other way of sustaining themselves. Most pension funds are not optimally designed to make such payments, as these funds are geared towards pay out a single lump sum upon retirement.

Because of this, cash management becomes a challenge, with some funds holding as much as 50% of assets in cash to effect monthly payments. Because Fedgroup’s Beneficiary Care is set up with the express purpose of making monthly payments to beneficiaries, it holds only 2% of assets in cash, which means that a much larger portion of beneficaries’ funds are optimally invested.

Another challenge faced by traditional pension funds with regards to beneficiary funds is on the management side. Pension funds often manage investments based on the life-staging of clients and those that offer beneficiary funds often apply the same strategy. This is often inappropriate, as all beneficiaries are essentially at the same life stage and would benefit more from a preservation strategy.

In addition to these features, Fedgroup’s Beneficiary Care also benefits from the most cutting-edge IT and administration system in the country, which further increases efficiency and drives down costs. This was proven when one of the major banks in the country outsourced its beneficiary fund management to Fedgroup.

“Before they enlisted our services, their cost-to-income ratio was 90%,” says Field. “After they outsourced the administration to us, this ratio dropped to 40%, which includes our fees.

“Through these savings, more funds can go to the beneficiaries, improving the lives of some of the country’s most vulnerable youth.”

South Africans who wish to build an investment portfolio should get professional advice to ensure that they take advantage of all the available tax benefits and get a good return on their investment.

This is according to Fedgroup Chief Financial Officer Sheldon Friedericksen, who points out that the services of a financial advisor should be employed to help potential investors construct a strong portfolio that will yield maximum benefits and returns.

“Tax is a big consideration in an investment portfolio, along with various other factors. However, it’s also currently a no man’s land, littered with legacy tax exemption policies – which have not been adjusted for several years – that could prove tricky for investors to navigate,” he says.

Frederickson points out that investors could benefit from the interest exemption, which stipulates that interest from a South African source, earned by any person under 65 years of age, up to R23 800 per year, and persons 65 and older, up to R34 500 per year, is exempt from income tax.

Investors can also consider tax-free investments, capped at R33 000 per tax year, with a lifetime limit of R600 000. The returns or growth earned on these investments are completely tax free.

At the same time, tax benefits should not be the only consideration when structuring an investment portfolio and Fredrickson says investors should tread carefully when considering tax-structured products.

While many structured products provide capital protection and geared returns, these offerings come with their own features, often making it difficult to know whether a particular investment product is right for an investor's needs.

Another option, he says, is investing in an endowment fund or policy, where tax is paid by the financial services provider through which the investment is made, on behalf of the investor. The tax will be recovered from the investor’s portfolio, but these tax rates are lower than the top marginal rates for individuals.

“If you are a high-net-worth individual, who wishes to invest for five years or more, then an endowment is something you should consider,” says Frederickson.

However, he advises that the best way to structure a portfolio would be to take advantage of the current legislation and include a mix of tax-free products, tax-structured offerings and endowments.

Other investment vehicles that investors could consider include sustainable investing products and venture capital investments that offer accelerated tax deductions and minimise tax liability in the long run.

“The main thing is to know what you are investing in. Know the risks you are willing to take and what you are getting into. Also, know your financial adviser. Are they an independent adviser or do they represent a particular product? That could make all the difference,” Frederickson concludes.

A new generation of socially conscious investors, comprising predominantly millennials, is driving a prolific trend in global investing. They want their money to do good in the world, while still realising a fair return.

The trend, known as impact investing, has gained significant traction in first-world markets.

By investing in businesses that benefit society or the environment, be it through renewable energy, sustainable farming, infrastructure development or healthcare, impact investors aim to have a real-world impact. Their mantra is to create a positive future for more than just themselves.

Conventionally, impact investing means only purchasing shares in companies that do good, but South Africa's leading independent financial services provider, Fedgroup, believes that investing directly into sustainable ventures, instead of on a stock exchange, is a smarter alternative.

That's because investing in shares and funds can be unnecessarily complex, and hidden costs and fees eat into your returns. In addition, barriers to entry can be prohibitive.

Instead, Fedgroup has created a mobile app that allows impact investors to own farming assets through a quick, streamlined process.

Fedgroup's Impact Farming investment platform offers investors access to a growing network of local crowd-farming ventures that generate solid profits to deliver competitive returns. From as little as R300, investors can own assets from accredited farming partners, including blueberries, sustainable honey and urban solar farms.

Impact investors purchase the individual blueberry bushes, beehives and solar panels through the app. These assets, along with all the others purchased on the app, are installed on an approved site to form a venture network that is managed by farming experts, who take care of the rest.

Fedgroup has contracts in place with partners to ensure that all the honey, blueberries and energy generated by these assets are purchased as they are produced. The owners of the assets then earn a regular income from the sale of these products.

This money can then be enjoyed as passive income, or reinvested to benefit from compounded growth. Impact Farming assets also qualify for a tax benefit associated with renewable energy and sustainable farming.

Not only does this model significantly lower the barriers to entry inherent in traditional fund investing, but it also allows socially-conscious investors to make an impact with their money, regardless of the amount invested.

And there's also less risk compared to various traditional investments thanks to the innovative approach. Extensive due diligence is performed on every product line to ensure its viability before it is brought to market. The company then carefully vets and selects Impact Farming ventures for both the financial impact they have on investor wealth creation, and the positive impact they have on the world.

The assets are also insured, the cost of which is included in the purchase price. Therefore, if an investor's asset is ever destroyed in a natural disaster, Fedgroup replaces it.

Fedgroup's Impact Farming platform offers a unique wealth creation tool for a new breed of investor. To find out more, visit www.fedgroup.co.za/impactfarming.

This is according to Grant Field, Group Chief Executive Officer of Fedgroup, who points to a report on the landscape for impact investing in Southern Africa, conducted by the Global Impact Investing Network in 2016. “The international report found that impact investors globally have developed substantial and particular interest in sub-Saharan Africa, anchored by South Africa, where approximately US$15 billion of impact investment has occurred.”

Demonstrating that financial and social return are not mutually exclusive, Field says that there is a growing body of evidence that supports the correlation between sustainable impactful investment and superior long-term returns. “However, because these investments often translate into some type of sustainability/impact fund, they often come with a hefty minimum capital requirement or an array of high fees that ultimately extract investment value.

“Furthermore, the increasing ‘financialisation’ of impact investments through these funds has, over time, distanced them from their original core purpose – to have a real-world impact in solving the sustainability challenge.”

Acknowledging these high barriers to entry for individual investors, Field says that Fedgroup is taking responsible investment to the next level by making it accessible to the masses via a mobile app that focusses directly on the products or services that are making an impact. “We have launched a classic peer-to-peer type model, which allows individuals to invest directly into sustainable ventures, instead of on a stock exchange.”

Through the Impact Farming app, Field says that investors can actually own a physical asset from accredited farming partners. These include blueberry bushes, sustainable beehives and urban solar farms – all available on the app.

“In the case of the solar panels, at the end of the 20-year period, they could take physical ownership of the panel, should they not wish to take advantage of our buy-back offer. With our beehives, they own the hive and the bees. This completely closes the perceived separation between the ‘investment’ and the ‘impact’ being made.”

By significantly lowering not only the perceived barriers to entry for impact investing, but also the more practical financial barriers, Field explains that individual socially-conscious investors will now be able to make an impact with their money, regardless of their financial standing. “Investors can start up their own impact investment portfolio from as little as R300.”

“And with projected returns of between 10% and 16%, Fedgroup’s Impact Farming app offers regular investors the opportunity to reap the financial benefit available from impact farming as well,” he adds.

Field concludes that it is through this unusual combination of people-centric, yet technologically-driven solutions, that Fedgroup is able to make typically institutional-grade investments available to individual investors. “By driving impact investing at a grassroots level, our aim is to open up access to a growing network of local crowd-farming ventures that generate solid profits to deliver competitive returns.”

Independent industry awards signal shift in status quo

Sticking with the big incumbents can seem like an obvious, rational and safe choice. Size, after all, has become a proxy for competence and value. “Thankfully, though, more industry experts are questioning this convention. They're asking if there isn't, perhaps, a better alternative, because they clearly understand that bigger isn't always better,” states Grant Field, CEO at leading independent financial services provider, Fedgroup.

“Big brings complexity. Big is inefficient. It creates inertia and reduces agility. Big increases costs, opacity, complacency, and apathy. Big isn't better. Better is better. But how do you define better? Well, impartial and independent recognition is a solid place to start,” suggests Field.

For five consecutive years, Fedgroup has emerged from the PMR.africa Awards as a stand-out performer. However, 2018 proved to be a particularly momentous year as Fedgroup was named the best provider in the country, in both the Group/Life Risk Products and in the Group Pension and Provident Fund subcategories.

Normally a Gold Arrow award is bestowed on winners. However, in exceptional circumstances, a Diamond Arrow can be awarded if a category winner receives an outstanding score from industry experts. It's a rare feat, but one that Fedgroup achieved this year – not once, but twice. In the remaining Employee Benefits subcategory – Investment Products – Fedgroup took home a gold award, again beating out much larger competitors.

It's a telling endorsement of Fedgroup's unique and innovative approach, because winners are awarded based on nominations and votes from intermediaries, brokers and financial advisors – providers cannot enter, motivate for or nominate themselves, they must be selected.

“These are the people working in the field, at the industry coalface, where products and services are measured against their ability to address real-world needs and meet customer expectations,” explains Field. “These industry experts also deal across providers and are therefore perfectly positioned to make informed comparisons.”

For Fedgroup to be voted number one in the country ahead of the big incumbents therefore speaks volumes. “Our awards prove that our independently-minded approach, which puts people ahead of obscene profits, results in excellence.”

Moreover, Fedgroup combines these traditional values with cutting-edge technology to contain costs and improve efficiencies, and offers transparent fees. “Placing the needs of policyholders above those of shareholders in this way delivers better, more responsive and personalised service, which has a beneficial influence on the lives of our clients,” adds Field.

It's abundantly clear then why South Africa's industry juggernauts are no longer the experts’ first choice when it comes to delivering exceptional employee benefits. “Our most recent PMR.africa awards affirm that our unique approach works and that it's resonating with industry professionals. Ultimately, we hope this industry recognition prompts greater introspection within the market and brings into question whether the traditional profit-driven and sometimes arrogant approach of big business is still relevant in today's customer-centric market,” concludes Field.

A parent's greatest wish is that their family, especially their children, are secure financially in the event of their untimely death. Life assurance is bought based on this promise. If you are the breadwinner in the family, have you carefully considered how your death benefits will be allocated to family members and dependants should you pass away?

Allocating death benefits according to your wishes begins with drawing up a valid will, in addition to the completion of all beneficiary nomination forms.

However, most people are unaware that the allocation of death benefits from group life policies, and those from retirement and provident funds are governed by different sets of laws, which can influence the intended outcomes.

Out of your hands

For example, if you contribute to a retirement fund through your employer, in the event of your death appointed trustees decide how death benefits should be fairly allocated among all those who are dependent on you. This could include nominated beneficiaries and any other dependants, irrespective of whether you have identified them on the nomination form or not.

This means that dependants may not receive payouts in the manner you intended, particularly when nominating minor children as beneficiaries. In these instances, insurers or trustees may make payouts intended for children, to their surviving parent.

Another common pitfall occurs when policyholders choose to allocate retirement death benefits to a spouse and provident fund benefits to a child, believing this will divide all benefits equally among the two. However, despite best intentions, a lack of understanding regarding the legislated differences in how these death benefits are allocated could mean the intended outcome may never be realised.

What is critical to realise, is that in neither of these scenarios is the protection and preservation of these funds guaranteed, despite the intention: that these lump-sum payouts secure your child's future prosperity. That's why, when minor children are the intended recipients of the benefits, one of the most financially savvy decisions is to clearly request that their portion of the money is allocated to a vehicle that will protect the minor child's financial future, and benefit them in the long run.

Your child’s best interests

One of the most effective ways to achieve this is to nominate a beneficiary fund that will manage the money until your children reach the age of 18. Ring-fencing a particular sum in this manner protects it from a spouse, guardian or relatives, while also potentially earmarking it for a specific purpose, such as education. By taking this approach, you can be certain that your child will receive the intended benefits.

Advice and care

That's why end of life planning with a certified financial planner to determine all potential outcomes is vital for every parent, regardless of the size of the death benefits. If, as an employee, your retirement fund is offered through your employer, it is likely that it was facilitated via intermediaries who manage the administration. Remember, that these intermediaries are also there to provide guidance and advice to all fund members. It's essential that you sit with these financial planners to understand beneficiary nomination forms and the implications of your nominations, particularly to identify the funds where you have full discretion in how death benefits are allocated and those where you don't.

It's also beneficial to view any personally held policies with those provided by your employer, to gain a holistic understanding of how death benefits would be split across all life policies and funds to achieve the desired outcome for your family.

This holistic approach should work through practical scenarios with the financial advisor or planner to determine exactly how much each dependant will receive from each of your different vehicles.

Get specific

It is at this point that you will also be in a position to allocate funds for different purposes, such as education, living expenses, and investments. During this process, you must clearly state what you would like to achieve, as ambiguity leaves the final decision open to interpretation by the trustee or employer.

For this reason, make your wishes known to your employer, who can then work with trustees to guide their decisions when allocating death benefits from retirement funds. This will ensure you have greater control over the welfare of your children in the event of your untimely death, instead of leaving these important decisions to someone else.

Without considering all these aspects during your estate planning, the outcome you envisaged for your family may not be realised, despite your best intentions.

Ultimately, no one ever knows exactly when that fateful day will occur, but if you prepare adequately you can be almost certain that your family will benefit in the manner you intended.

Having recently gone through a brand redesign, and having prepared extensively for the process, we’ve learnt a few good lessons. Here’s the process we followed to create a new identity that we believe truly reflects our values:

1. Define your company strategy Your new identity has to be based on where you are going, so you and your designer or agency need to have clarity on this. You need to look not only at your business strategy, but also at what your competitors are doing in the market. Be as forward thinking as you can be, because every company is evolving, so there’s no point in creating an identity that’s only perfectly relevant to where you are right now.

2. Evaluate your existing distinctive brand assets Brand assets are not only your logos, your font or your existing colour palette, but extend into multiple elements that make you recognisable, even the themes that you use in your advertising or office spaces. For example, remember the Savanna cider TV campaign that employed brand assets that went beyond the logo of the tree in the veld? Savanna was so tightly associated with the dimly-lit pub scene, the dry humour, and even Barry Hilton, that these assets became intrinsically associated with the brand – especially the dry humour. You could have all those elements together without using the Savanna logo, and the public would still know what was being advertised. So, when you are doing your corporate identity audit, don’t stop at the classic visual elements, but expand into all the brand assets that are associated with your business.

3. Carry out market and competitor research You do not operate in a vacuum, so you need to understand more than your brand’s values and identity. You also need to understand competitors’. Look at what everyone else is doing so that you can identify what is uniquely yours. This is true from both a business and from a corporate identity perspective.

4. Determine what to keep and what to let go of Once you know what is distinctly yours and what differentiates you, think about what you should keep and what you are willing to (or want to) let go. For instance, a brand asset that you like, but that is actually similar to that of a number of your competitors may not be worth hanging on to. Or something that has worked for you in the past, but is now associated with something your business is moving away from should also go. But if you have a colour that people identify you with, or a beloved aspect of your logo, then try to find a way of carrying that forward. Remember that you not only want to be recognised for what you do, but also for being unique in your category, so make your selections with that in mind.

5. Partner with a good agency with trusted talent Use a professional agency or individual to help you develop your brand identity. While you may know your brand like the back of your hand, an experienced professional will know how to translate your brand values into something simple, visual and current. They will also know how to best support you through the process of articulating your requirements so that the ultimate end-product is a representative expression of these.

6. Accept that it’s a process Don’t be alarmed if the first iteration of the process is nothing like what you had in mind and doesn’t feel right to you. It takes time and reworking to get your identity to where it should be. Don’t be shackled by outdated thinking; listen to what your agency has to say, but remember that you are the brand custodian and in the end, the identity has to fit the brand. But trust that the process will get you there.

7. It doesn’t stop at the logo Brand identity is about so much more than just a logo. Think carefully about the colours you use, the fonts, the spacing, iconography, how you treat imagery, and the many additional brand assets you might end up using. With so many platforms on which you display your identity, one image is not going to fit all, so expand your corporate identity to incorporate multiple elements. And, brands hoping for longevity must engage with a digital-first approach. Design for digital and dynamic environments, then build out into the static environment.

8. Design for 2030 Don’t perfect your brand identity for everything that your business is TODAY. Rather, try to project into the future – what are you becoming? And design to support that. Banks are moving online, taxis might become driverless, restaurants are becoming virtual – so things like tellers, drivers or tables that may have been at the very core of those businesses’ brand identities could soon be completely irrelevant. So, try to be a futurist and develop a brand identity for what your business will look like in 2030.

Fedgroup’s brand refresh

These are the ideas that underpinned our brand refresh. Fedgroup is South Africa’s leading independent financial services group, and we felt that the time was ripe for us to refresh our previous identity. We also aimed to get better differentiation for our company in its category. And, we wanted to signal a change to our customers – letting them know that our focus on innovation is carrying us forward into a new era. As a company that has built its reputation in the business-to-business world, our expansion into the consumer and individual space needed to be communicated. Our old identity was conservative – “financial services blue” with a serif font – which was perfect for what the industry expected of us 10 years ago, but wasn’t right for today, and certainly wasn’t right for 2030. As we are coming off a base of lower awareness than some of our bigger competitors, we could afford to make more radical changes to our identity without this being an issue in the market. We had the opportunity to take existing customers on the journey with us, while attracting new customers with a more relevant and progressive brand expression. We worked with agency CLVR FX, a smaller agile agency with big branding agency experience, but none of the big brand bombast. Together, we reconsidered the colour of our logo, tweaking the “financial services blue” to a shade that complements our newly introduced accent colour – a shocking pink (which we’re calling “Fedpink”), and a grey. It was about find the balance between tradition and modernity, showing stability along with a less conventional, ‘challenger brand’ persona. The logo of the brand was then reimagined into the two lines, which are the negative spaces between two Fs from our previous logo, back to back. While there is a throwback to our older logo, we don't believe it’s necessary for the viewer to interpret this, or even care. Rather, they will see the clean, modern lines and associate that with our brand. It’s almost unexpectedly simple. Then we introduced a visual language based on a combination of a square, semicircle, and circle representing tradition, versatility and reinvention. Together, these shapes are combined into a unique design as an additional distinctive brand asset. This allows for further impact and differentiation in our visual communication elements beyond the logo, be it in brochures, advertising, website or office spaces. This dynamic use – interpretation rather than regulation – was critical in our brand evolution. These shapes and our logo’s lines can easily be used in different ways in any material on any medium. They can become windows, backgrounds, occupy negative space or highlight an otherwise generic image. To distil it down to three things, we wanted the new identity to have impact, have differentiation, and offer us ease of application across multiple channels. And, in addition to a new icon and typeface, we realised the importance of introducing a third brand asset in the form of a visual language – a tool that would extend our reach and agility. We believe that our new identity is all these things, and feedback from our audience has borne this out.

The pitfalls of telling millennials that bitcoin isn’t a retirement strategy

As if financial advisors didn’t have a hard enough time already trying to encourage millennials to embrace traditional retirement planning, along comes cryptocurrencies to entice an entire generation away from mainstream finance. A recent survey by US venture capital firm, Blockchain Capital, found that 30% of millennials aged 18 to 34 would prefer $1 000 worth of Bitcoin than the same amount in stocks or bonds. Millennials are also twice as likely as the general population to have owned bitcoin, while 16% say they plan on buying cryptocurrency within the next five years. While this data pertains to the US market, it is still a useful bellwether for the millennial attitude towards money.

Dangers of crypto

As a financial planner your instinct might be to warn millennials of the dangers of cryptocurrency but that might not be the best strategy. Before you can start arguing about the merits of unit trusts over cryptocurrencies you first have to convince millennials about the relevance of speaking to a financial planner. To achieve that you not only have to be adept at engaging them over the various social media platforms they tend to frequent, you also have to get to grips with cryptocurrency nomenclature and its underlying blockchain technology. Adopting a combative, anti-crypto stance is probably not going to win you many millennial friends, or clients. After all, bitcoin’s critics include the likes of Bill Gates, who has called it “one of the crazier, speculative things” he’s seen. JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon labelled it a fraud. Billionaire investor Warren Buffet famously called Bitcoin “rat poison” only to see veteran financial broadcaster Max Keiser, a much-loved figure among crypto aficionados, respond by saying: “He’s right! And guess what, Warren is the rat!” Merits of traditional strategies.

The point is that none of the anti-crypto criticism has diminished interest in digital money. As a financial planner, you’re probably far better off trying to make millennials see the merits of traditional retirement strategies than attacking cryptos. A good start might be to try and get millennials to understand their motivation for buying cryptocurrencies. If their motivation for doing so is not based on the very real benefits of blockchain technology – which ranges from immediate transaction settlement to preventing currency counterfeiting – then it stands to reason that it is speculative in nature. While there’s nothing wrong with that per se, it should never form the basis for a retirement strategy.

Digital gold

Another argument in favour of crypto is that it’s an alternative store of value, a form of digital gold. However, the comparison to gold is misleading in many ways. While gold does have the characteristics of a currency and is a traditional safeguard against inflation, it also has intrinsic value thanks to its many practical uses, which extend far beyond jewellery. Its unique, non-corrosive properties and high conductivity mean it can be found in almost every electronic device. It is also used in the aerospace, dental and medical fields. While blockchain technology might be able to make similar claims the same can’t necessarily be said for cryptocurrencies. Then there’s the age-old mantra of diversification of assets, which still holds true no matter what demographic cohort or generation one belongs to. Putting everything you have into a single asset class, whether its equity futures or cryptocurrencies, simply makes no logical sense. So, by all means, let your millennial clients speculate on crypto but try and get them see the merits of traditional retirement strategies. Ignoring traditional products like unit trusts means they’d be forfeiting the opportunity to invest in an array of assets like equities, bonds and derivatives. Considering how much millennials hate FOMO, that should be enough to get them thinking.

In the conventional context, alternative funds include non-traditional assets and collective investment schemes held by institutional investors. The long list of examples includes private or unlisted equity and hedge funds, managed futures, real estate and infrastructure investments, and derivatives contracts The complicated structures and high minimum investment thresholds of these investment options generally make them inaccessible to the average investor.

However, the definition of what constitutes an alternative investment has expanded.

More than just financial returns

The term now encompasses a mix of traditional and alternative assets that aim to deliver more than just a financial return to investors. This emerging form of socially responsible investing (SRI) incorporates the principles of the three pillars of the triple bottom line. These target investments that generate measurable social and/or environmental benefits and drive economic sustainability, while still delivering fair financial returns to investors and adhering to good corporate governance principles.

Examples of SRI include investments by fund managers into smart farming and sustainable agriculture, renewable energy and infrastructure development.

Socially focused

Increasingly, alternative investment funds are also helping to uplift every sphere of society by building schools, medical facilities and low-cost housing in previously underserved markets. In addition to these social and environmental benefits, these investments also contribute to regional and national economic growth and create more jobs.

Fund managers with AUM worth billions are also structuring portfolios or launching indices that target socially responsible investments. Motif Investing, for example, supports female empowerment through its custom No Glass Ceiling portfolio that offers investors access to shares in female-led businesses.

A new generation of socially conscious investors, comprised predominantly by the millennial cohort, is driving this trend, as they seek to impact society positively through their investments, while still realising a return.

Following the trend?

The rising popularity of this investment approach is most evident in the developed markets of Europe and the US, where over 20% of assets under management are currently allocated to alternative investment funds. By comparison, South Africa lags significantly, with an estimated 1% to 2% of AUM invested in alternative investments. We expect this ratio to increase in line with global trends as more local options come online and investors look to diversify their portfolios. This enables them to get a fair, often comparable return to traditional funds while also contributing towards a cause they believe in.

However, when selecting where to invest, investors and intermediaries must analyse alternative investments differently to traditional options. They need to understand the market they're investing in and the inherent risks associated with the broader industry in which the alternative fund operates. These factors differ to those that affect traditional investments such as money market accounts or index funds, as examples.

Be guided by responsible investing

Investors must also consider the fund's ethos and the values-based approach that guides their investment strategies. In this regard, it is also worth investing in alternative funds that ascribe to the Code for Responsible Investing in South Africa (CRISA). This global code of investor conduct has been adapted for South Africa and gives guidance on how institutional investors should analyse investment opportunities and governs how investment decisions are made in accordance with sound governance principles. This ensures that asset managers look after investors' money and fulfil their mandate without taking unnecessary risks.

A final consideration is the fund's investment horizon. Infrastructure projects, for example, can take years to complete before earning investors a return. By understanding these risk factors, an investor can then decide what is a fair return and how much value they ascribe to benefit a cause they believe in.

The trend, known as impact investing, has gained significant traction in first-world markets.

By investing in businesses that benefit society or the environment, be it through renewable energy, sustainable farming, infrastructure development or healthcare, impact investors aim to have a real-world impact. Their mantra is to create a positive future for more than just themselves.

While conventional impact investments construct portfolios that offer access to shares in companies that do good, South Africa's leading independent financial services provider, Fedgroup believes that investing directly in ventures is a smarter alternative.

That's because investing in shares and funds can be unnecessarily complex and often diminishes returns through hidden costs. In addition, barriers to entry can be prohibitive. Fedgroup has therefore leveraged the ubiquitous nature of mobile to deliver a fast, lucrative way for investors to directly own assets in farming ventures.

Fedgroup's Impact Farming investment platform offers investors access to a growing network of local crowd-farming ventures that generate solid profits to deliver competitive returns. From as little as R300, investors can own assets across six accredited farming partners, including blueberry, sustainable honey, and urban solar farms.

Once purchased via the app or online, Fedgroup installs the assets on one of its approved sites, along with those of other Impact Farmers, to form a venture network that is managed by farming experts, who take care of the rest.

Investors get paid in regular cycles for the yields their assets produce once they're are harvested and sold to Fedgroup's contracted customers. This money can then be enjoyed as passive income, or reinvested to benefit from compounded growth. Impact Farming assets also qualify for a tax benefit associated with renewable energy and sustainable farming.

Not only does this model significantly lower the barriers to entry inherent in traditional fund investing, but it also allows socially-conscious investors to make a big impact with their money, regardless of the amount invested.

And there's also less risk compared to various traditional investments thanks to the innovative approach. Extensive due diligence is performed on every product line to ensure its viability before it is brought to market. The company then carefully vets and selects Impact Farming ventures for both the financial impact they have on investor wealth creation, and the positive impact they have on the world.

Fedgroup also built market-tested financial models that were deliberately designed to be conservative when forecasting returns. However, as investor assets are pooled, so too are the yields, which mitigates the risk of individual assets underperforming. And with service level agreements in place with all providers, Fedgroup ensures that assets continue to perform in line with projections, unlike the unpredictable nature of company shares.

The assets are also insured, the cost of which is included in the purchase price. Therefore, if an investor's asset is ever destroyed in a natural disaster, Fedgroup replaces it. This asset class also runs counter to market cycles and therefore offers diversification that is virtually unmatched.

Fedgroup's Impact Farming platform offers a unique wealth creation tool for a new breed of investor. To find out more, visit www.fedgroup.co.za/impactfarming.

“What makes these wins so significant for us is that there is no way to motivate for or nominate ourselves. The outcome of the survey is purely based on feedback from the industry – from interactions with brokers, intermediaries and financial advisors. These industry experts deal across providers and are therefore perfectly positioned to compare like with like. For Fedgroup to be voted number one in the country ahead of all the big incumbents therefore speaks volumes,” says Grant Field, CEO of Fedgroup.

Only three awards are up for grabs in each PMR.africa subcategory, a Gold, Silver and Bronze arrow, for first, second and third place respectively. In exceptional circumstances, a Diamond Arrow can also be awarded if a first-placed finalist receives an outstanding score from industry experts. Fedgroup achieved this rare honour in both the Group/Life Risk Products and in the Group Pension and Provident Fund subcategories. In the remaining Employee Benefits subcategory, Investment Products, Fedgroup took home a Golden Arrow.

Fedgroup is the country’s leading independent financial services group. Field says that since inception 28 years ago, the goal has been “to combine traditional values with cutting-edge technology, putting people ahead of obscene profits.”

“As an independent provider, Fedgroup has the flexibility to improve year on year, based on the praise and criticisms of our customer base,” says Field. “We believe that best practice in our industry should be defined by the beneficial influence we can have on our clients’ lives. And these awards affirm for us that we’re getting that right.”

In an industry that is dominated by a mere handful of bloated providers, one can be forgiven for believing that there is a lack of choice. Field, however, believes that it is the mid-sized companies that are best positioned to make the greatest impact.

“Our high growth in recent years bears testament that the tide is turning against the profit-centric and sometimes arrogant approach of big business. Clients like to be treated as people first, and we believe that’s where independently-run organisations like our own can make a difference.”

Specifically, Fedgroup has in place an innovative management model that encourages improvements to service levels, and sophisticated technology supporting its staff.

“We support our staff – our people – with a management approach that encourages innovation, initiative and, naturally, great service. This approach, we believe, attracts staff that think the same way we do – and it is because of them that we are in a position to achieve these awards,” says Field.

This is essential at a time when clients are expecting increased levels of personalisation and responsiveness from their service providers, thanks to advances in technology, data analysis and social media. Consumers expect to be heard when they are unfairly treated – and are increasingly intolerant of organisational inefficiency.

Because Fedgroup has invested heavily in tech solutions, its workforce will never shirk the ethic of personal responsibility and efficacy, even as the company continues on its high-growth path. “We will never pursue profits at the expense of people because we don’t have to pay ever-increasing dividends to shareholders,” says Field. “Rather, we can reinvest in the business, hire the right people and work towards long-term relationships with clients, and a sustainable organisation. We are confident that our performance in the PMR.africa Awards will continue to bear this out in the years to come.”

Yet, one of the downsides of Reg-28 is that South Africans tend to regard their portfolios as sufficiently diversified by adhering to the legislated asset class caps (75% equities; 25% property; 30% offshore; 10% Africa ex-SA). Often investors don’t consider diversifying within these broader asset classes, particularly in fixed-interest securities. For example, an individual nearing retirement wanting to place a significant portion of their savings in a low-risk, income generating portfolio would likely look no further than an income fund or fixed deposit money market account. A five-year, fixed deposit money market investment at one of SA’s major banks would pay interest of between 7.75% and 8.75% per month for someone 55 years and older, depending on the principle amount invested. An enhanced income fund, typically comprising 75% stable income bearing assets like cash and bonds and around 25% “growth” assets like preference shares, listed property or international assets, would likely pay a premium to cash deposit rates of just over 1%.

While there’s nothing wrong with either of these options for someone looking for stable, predictable returns, it is possible to diversify further within the fixed interest paying space to achieve the widest possible balance between risk and returns within a particular asset class. Participation bonds for instance, provide stable, fixed rate returns that are also backed by the underlying asset class of commercial property. While income funds have exposure to listed property as well as preference shares or corporate bonds, they are exposed to the balance sheets of the listed entities underpinning these securities. Participation bonds on the other hand earn their income from mortgage payments of the underlying commercial properties, which are underpinned by the market value of these bricks and mortar assets. In addition, they are legislated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and Collective Investment Schemes Act, which stipulate that the ratio of loan to property value can never exceed 75% (i.e. the combined value of mortgages on the underlying properties can never exceed 75% of the combined property values). This provides an inherent 25% buffer to any investor worried about a worst-case scenario in which property values might sink below their loan value.

Historic returns on participation bonds have averaged roughly three percentage points above the prevailing consumer price index (CPI), making them ideal for people nearing retirement.

So why haven’t South Africans been more receptive to alternative investments? This is at least partially explained by the inherent conservative nature of South African investors and, by extension, money managers. Despite the fact that Reg-28 upped its allocation to alternative assets to 15% in 2011, from 1.5% previously, local money managers still allocate less than 2% of assets under management to alternative assets, compared to 29% in the US and 24% in Europe. Additionally, South Africa’s equity market has been the best performer worldwide in the 117-year period beginning 1900, delivering an average annual return of inflation plus 7.2%. What’s more, that performance is in dollar terms! With equities performing so well there just hasn’t been a reason to look at alternative asset classes.

Yet, with equity markets across the world hovering near all-time highs we’re heading into unchartered waters with many predicting a prolonged period of more moderate performance, or even a sustained bear market. This is where alternative, income-yielding assets could come into their own. Thanks to technology, the world of alternative investments is taking a truly innovative and diversified turn. Investors are starting to investigate options as varied as farming and solar energy, all delivering attractive returns.

If there is one key message it is this: don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you are sufficiently diversified merely by adhering to the stipulated asset class caps. There is a lot of scope for further diversification within asset classes and by ignoring this you may be forfeiting exposure to some unique asset classes that pay solid returns with very low risk.

New market entrants on the one hand, and traditional providers on the other, can both reap the benefits of building a new tech platform to drive down costs, although their challenges differ substantially.

For new entrants, cost is the main barrier. Not only are these platforms extremely costly, but once the platform is created, there is the need for substantial marketing to drive new clients to the platform. Once the clients start to come, the platform is cheap to scale, which then justifies the initial expenditure.

For traditional businesses, the challenge is not so much the affordability of investing in a new platform, but migrating existing business to the platform, as this means getting rid of the legacy business model. Legacy inefficiencies are already priced into the product and may prove hard to get rid of.

However, once these initial growing pains are addressed, the scalability of the platform and its ability to drive down costs substantially present a compelling value proposition for both new entrants and traditional businesses. These cost savings can then be passed on to consumers, increasing competitiveness.

This ability to be competitive will only become more important in the coming years. Not only will traditional and start-up financial services providers be in competition with each other, but they will also face competition from other platform-based online businesses such as Facebook and Google. As these services become increasingly monetised, they will expand their offering to encroach on financial services’ turf. Hence, the need for a competitive advantage becomes obvious.

Another tech area where financial businesses can establish a competitive advantage is through artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled robo-advisors or chatbots. These technologies have the potential to bring industry engagement into a scalable model, in contrast to the lack of scalability of face-to-face interactions.

This does not necessarily mean that platforms reduce costs by cutting out intermediaries. Unless the entire process is automated from end to end, certain administrative requirements must still be fulfilled by a human resource, be they on the side of the provider or the intermediary.

Because face-to-face interactions cannot be scaled, intermediaries also need to consider how they are going to compete against the inevitable rise of tech solutions. They may wish to devote their time to selling group products or advising high-net-worth individuals, for instance.

However, technology can create efficiencies in manual administrative processes, which benefits both the intermediary and the provider. A feature-rich administration system that strips out complexity and simplifies onerous processes such as compliance and data collection is one such example. This can translate into better customer service, fund performance and, potentially, lower fees due to reductions in administration costs.

The application of technologies such as big data, analytics and AI in risk management and underwriting is yet another way in which digital innovation can lower rates. With the ability to process vast amounts of data and more accurately rate risk, these technologies can deliver significant savings on premiums.

In the face of these developments, the question often arises which business category will be most successful in future: new entrants, traditional businesses or platform-based businesses. I believe this is the wrong question, as there are going to be winners and losers in each category. It is not a particular category that is going to be successful, but those who are the most successful at driving down costs. The rest won’t survive.

With the boom in cryptocurrency values, investors are clamouring to make returns like those experienced by early adopters. As an example, Ethereum ballooned by 5 000% at one point this year.

However, cryptocurrency investing can be confusing, and most people don't understand the underlying mechanism of cryptocurrency. As Buffett wisdom imparts: "If you don't understand a business, don't buy it."

For starters, the term 'cryptocurrency' is misleading, as it's not a single currency. There are currently over 900 digital currencies available, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, and 'altcoins' such as Litecoin, Peercoin, Primecoin, Dash, Monero, Ripple and Quark.

Additionally, there is still not universal acceptance on whether cryptocurrency should be classified as a ‘currency' or an ‘asset', particularly from a regulatory standpoint. Further, while technically a transaction medium, the issue is further complicated by the underlying blockchain – again, a misunderstood technology on which cryptocurrency is built. And, the nature of blockchain continues to evolve.

Furthermore, the blockchain is inherently slow, making it a less-than-ideal platform for large volumes of immediate transactions – a fundamental attribute of currency. While the introduction of cryptocurrency bank transfers and credit cards offer a workaround, limitations still exist. As such, cryptocurrencies function more as transaction enablers than a currency or medium of exchange. And, the innate complexity of cryptocurrency is compounded by the introduction of "tokens". Tokens are a mechanism used predominantly as a fundraising method through initial coin offerings (ICOs), blockchain start-ups or projects distribute these units of cryptocurrencies to fund expansion or development.

Putting aside the classification semantics and complexity, investors are trading cryptocurrencies on a growing number of dedicated exchanges such as Kraken, GDAX and Gemini, as they would conventional currencies.

Currency trading is inherently volatile due to the influence of external factors (politics, government policy, inflation, and the balance of global trade, to name a few). Such factors make investing highly speculative, and cryptocurrencies are no different – exemplified by the large fluctuations in values over recent months.

This volatility has largely been driven by the artificial demand created when investors piled into cryptocurrencies, creating the potential for a 'bubble'. But, if investors are willing to speculate, they can make returns.

However, part of that speculation should be an analysis of the challenge to scarcity – initially a huge benefit to the model. Because cryptocurrencies have a finite number, there is a corresponding limitation to supply. This effect was similar to the value that conventional currencies held when linked to the gold standard. However, once abolished, central banks printed more money, which devalued currencies and drove up inflation.

Now, with so many cryptocurrencies on offer, this scarcity has been eroded, which will drive devaluations.

Another concern pertains to growing calls from governments around the world to regulate cryptocurrencies. Initially, the removal of government and regulatory interference in the currency was touted as a major benefit. However, amid mounting global concern, there has been increasing interest from regulators. While a primary driver is the attempt to curb the use of cryptocurrency in elicit acts and money laundering, there is clearly a push to bring them into formal taxation frameworks.

The consequence is some degree of uncertainty, particularly as the potential exists for cryptocurrency trading to be declared illegal in certain countries.

That's not to say cryptocurrencies cannot serve a purpose in the financial services sector. For instance, the blockchain offers the ability to transact in a transparent, non-reversible manner, and cryptocurrencies utilise this underlying tech to store value. This makes applications like transparent legal document processing, exchanges, or its use as a ledger, all valid options. Certain cryptocurrencies are also well-suited to applications such as ensuring privacy in smart contracting and payment scaling.

The industry has not yet settled on where cryptocurrencies fit in. Until there is wider market acceptance and use, real-world applications will remain limited, resulting in muted adoption. This may change as the millennial and digital natives of Generation Z become more financially active. For the immediate and mid-term, however, the chance remains low that a cryptocurrency will dethrone sovereign currencies or replace the dollar as the standardised global currency.

Should this point be reached, cryptocurrencies may face other challenges. For instance, if a digital currency becomes the global currency of choice, a case of 'too big to fail' may develop. The consequence of hacking then becomes extremely serious. While security is improving, there also exists a risk that the development of quantum computing could break the blockchain and lead to a global collapse.

Accordingly, the future of cryptocurrencies would most likely be one where it is kept outside of government hands, and offer a valid hedge against risk. It does require greater stability and refinement, and the entire ecosystem must be simplified if it is to become a pervasive transaction medium.

Currently, most people do not understand how it all works, particularly as the focus remains on the technology. Unless this changes, cryptocurrencies will fail to meet basic human needs. The underlying technology will need to work in the background without the need for a fundamental understanding to use it.

From an institutional investor perspective, it is too early to include cryptocurrencies as a dominant asset class in a portfolio. That is because the fundamental elements necessary for value investing, such as the ability to conduct due diligence on listed companies before investing in equities, are lacking.

Until that point is reached, sound investing principles that pertain to volatile asset classes should prevail, namely: never invest more than you can afford to lose.

Financial services provider Fedgroup today announced its acquisition of a controlling stake in Emergent Energy, the largest provider of installed solar photovoltaic (PV) commercial projects in South Africa.

The strategic acquisition aims to vertically integrate Fedgroup's pioneering Direct Ownership investment platform into the solar energy generation sector, to rapidly scale the project and meet growing demand. It also gives Fedgroup the ability to leverage the economies of scale this footprint creates to drive down the cost of solar on a scale that has never been achieved before in South Africa.

In November 2016, Fedgroup launched the first iteration of the Direct Ownership fintech platform as a new way for local investors to generate wealth through the burgeoning sharing economy. "Our vision was to disrupt the traditional investment paradigm by offering the public access to a broader range of income-generating assets," explains Grant Field, CEO at Fedgroup.

Interest in the Direct Ownership model has outstripped predictions, which has justified Fedgroup's move from partnering with Emergent Energy to acquiring the company. "We looked to the market to expand rapidly and capitalise on the opportunities we've identified. As a pioneer in its sector, Emergent Energy's expertise and experience in rooftop solar systems made it the ideal choice," says Field.

Solar panels through Fedgroup's Direct Ownership model have to date earned investors a nominal rate of return of 9%, with the financial projections expected to deliver a nominal rate of return of 11% and an effective rate of return of 15%. As a result, since launching less than a year ago, Fedgroup has gone live with five commercial solar farms, four of which have already sold out.

"There is no doubt that green energy is in demand. The opportunity to save the environment and contribute to a greener, more sustainable future, while enjoying robust returns, is resonating with local investors," continues Field.

Fedgroup's investment in Emergent Energy aims to take advantage of this value proposition and meet increasing investor demand for the offering. "Our stake in the company will enable us to scale the platform by leveraging Emergent Energy's existing base of over 65 commercial and industrial solar installations," he adds.

Emergent Energy also boasts the technical and practical experience needed to make solar PV a high yield, low-risk, and reliable investment due to its safe and fully predictable outputs.

Emergent Energy boasts a significant project pipeline, which will offer Fedgroup numerous opportunities to grow its Direct Ownership platform. "The combined value of the installed base and project pipeline exceeds R1 billion, which is significant for the future of renewable energy in South Africa," he adds.

Through Fedgroup's investment and the additional source of funding provided through Direct Ownership, Emergent Energy aims to increase its share of the private sector renewable energy market from 2% to 10%.

Fedgroup manages every aspect of the process: Investors purchase solar panels via Fedgroup's online Direct Ownership platform. Once 70% of all panels in a project are sold, installation begins. Fedgroup then manages, maintains and insures the solar farm on behalf of investors. The panels generate electricity, delivering electricity savings for the landlord, who in turn pays a rental fee for the use of the panels.

By converting unused rooftop space into an income-generating asset without a capital outlay, property owners enjoy additional benefits by way of a passive income from unused real-estate. The platform is also unique in that it has created a new funding model for private sector renewable energy projects in South Africa. In the past, providers needed to either raise funding to buy panels outright, or secure financing. However, by leveraging the Direct Ownership platform, they gain access to an additional capital market.

The reason why it takes so long for new technology to filter through to consumer level is affordability. While early adopters are willing to pay the premium attached to owning the latest technology, as is evident by the number of Teslas on the road with their auto-pilot mode in the United States at present, it will still be years before true driverless, automated transport becomes pervasive, particularly in emerging economies like South Africa.

In addition to the issue of cost, other factors such as government regulation and legislation can also hamstring the roll-out and adoption of something as complex as facilitating a driverless environment.

Gradual progression

Regardless, there can be no doubting the fact that driverless transport will become reality. While this may seem like a massive step change in the way we commute, the truth is that, like most significant advancements, it has been a gradual and progressive road to this point. For instance, the first car to offer guided cruise control emerged some 25 years ago, but that was the first step towards the driverless vehicle.

Next came park distance control, radar following, and lane assist. Driverless cars now simply bring all these technologies together. In addition, the technology that enables us to not own a car and hail a ride on demand also exists. These elements will eventually come together to deliver the massive step change that is true driverless transport – no humans behind the steering wheel – but it certainly won't happen overnight.

Insurance consequences

Ubiquitous driverless transport should result in a reduction in both short-term insurance claims and accident-related life insurance claims as most accidents happen due to driver error. If fewer people own vehicles due to the ability to simply hail a driverless car to transport them, there would also be a reduction in premium business on the short-term side.

There will also be a huge amount of data made available to insurers from the telematics in these vehicles, which could be used to better rate risk. It's hard to predict exactly how this will specifically play out, but it should mirror the impact that GPS vehicle tracking technology had on the short-term insurance market when it first became available.

One aspect of driverless transport that will prove to be the biggest challenge facing insurers is that of determining fault. When a driverless car does crash, who will be liable? Will it be the designer of driverless technology, the vehicle manufacturer, the owner, or the person in the car? Unintended consequences

The other aspect to consider in the context of insurance is the changing types of threats that would face operators. While the risk of unintended accidents will decrease, the risk of hacking and the potential for intentional crashes will replace it.

Fedgroup

Established in 1990, Fedgroup has grown into South Africa's leading independent financial services group.

Its independence has allowed it to develop its own point of view on the business of insurance and investment. It puts people before profit. It believes in old-fashioned ideas like honesty, integrity and dignity. And it places a lot of value in its dedicated and committed staff.

There'll certainly be inherent risks to our 'connected' future, with greater opportunities for hackers to use these numerous 'entry' points to disrupt networks, or to sniff out information from our digital footprint to commit fraud or theft.

However, our growing digital footprints also offer numerous opportunities, particularly in the world of insurance, as they help to predict behaviour and are rich sources of information to help rate risk. Unobtrusive, in-depth market research

With the opportunity to track every aspect of life, from daily food intake, sleep patterns and activity levels, to the routes travelled most, average distances travelled per month, average speed, where petrol tanks are filled most often and which card is preferred when paying, data analysts have at their fingertips an opportunity for unobtrusive in-depth market research. While this needs to be solicited on the part of the data provider (and technology user), the application of big data and advanced analytics tools has the power to revolutionise both short- and long-term insurance, with further applications in financial planning.

In this regard, by using data and analytics, financial services will be able to better individualise investments, establish financial plans and offer insurance against hard data and facts, rather than the biased, incorrect or, often, patently false self-reported information supplied by clients.

Human bias

This is because human bias and expression, often doesn't correlate to actual behaviour. However, with the assistance of hard data from telematics or the use of smart devices to gather information, these biases can be reduced or eliminated and there'll be less chance to hide specific facts. This not only helps advisors to better understand their clients and select the best products for them, but more accurate data and insights can also assist in improving underwriting to secure the best possible premium. These processes may also reduce the potential for material non-disclosure, which could affect a claim, for example.

Furthermore, with the continued collection of data, which establishes trends and patterns, there may be opportunities to regularly improve premiums through continuous underwriting based on monitored behaviour. This could lead to new products such as dynamic life insurance, which scales in accordance with real-time changes to a client's risk profile. While this has been possible in the past, it was prohibitive due to the administrative requirements. However, IOT and its integration with other systems has the power to change that.

There's no emotion with technology

The truth is, technology is much better at performing certain tasks, especially where emotions can influence decisions. However, an element of interpersonal engagement will, for the foreseeable future, still be required in the sector. It will therefore be advisors who best understand these new technologies, embrace the way they're changing the industry, and accordingly adapt their business model, who will survive and thrive in the information age.

Fedgroup

Established in 1990, Fedgroup has grown into South Africa's leading independent financial services group.

Its independence has allowed it to develop its own point of view on the business of insurance and investment. It puts people before profit. It believes in old-fashioned ideas like honesty, integrity and dignity. And it places a lot of value in its dedicated and committed staff.

While a one-size-fits-all solution that considers all people as the same and offers no differentiation is definitely not a suitable offering to companies of any size, an appropriately structured solution that offers the right combination of medical benefits, retirement savings with group life, critical illness and/or disability insurance, along with the right combination of options to offer a degree of appropriate choice, is better.

Employer's discretion

It falls to employers to determine the appropriate mix of products in the basket of employee benefits, which align with the specific needs of each company, the industry in which it operates and the characteristics of the workforce. There are, of course, central themes that apply to all people, such as the need to save towards retirement, for instance.

The question of appropriateness should therefore centre on cost – determining how everyone can maximise their retirement savings, no matter how much, and get appropriate life insurance cover through a product that charges the lowest possible fees. This is what ultimately delivers long-term value by ensuring more of what is paid to product providers gets invested, and to further benefit from the power of compound interest and deliver the appropriate long-term return, and provide adequate insurance cover.

In this context, product flexibility and options such as member choice add layers of complexity, which increased administration, fee and other related costs and therefore erodes long-term value. As such, individualisation is not always the answer, especially for big groups that are price sensitive, such as companies composed primarily of low to mid income earners.

True, meaningful benefits

To deliver true, meaningful benefits, many providers have worked hard to create employee benefit schemes that yield long-term value. However, when providers offer members too much choice and flexibility, customers tend to make poor choices because people tend to think and act according to short-term views and sentiments and their investments and decisions around money-related matters are all too often influenced by emotion. This is why member choice is a poor option in the context of long-term savings and employee benefits.

To combat perceptions that individualisation and attributes such as member choice are indicative of premium offerings or key differentiators, which is just a hollow marketing ploy, providers in the employee benefits industry should aim to communicate better with their customers, with particular focus on upfront education to teach them what group products are and what they can offer if used correctly. Employers should insist that providers engage with staff in a language that they understand, with open, proactive channels of communication to ensure that a constant flow of information is provided to help make customers more aware of the ways in which their choices and decisions impact their financial futures.

The Institute of Retirement Funds Africa (IRFA) will this year host a series of workshops presented by Fedgroup that aim to assist in navigating the veritable minefield that is fair, equitable death benefit distribution.

The workshops will address the many pertinent concerns and challenges faced by the industry, while also working towards industry consensus for a uniform approach to the complexities of the process. "As Section 37C of the Pension Funds Act provides that death benefits do not form part of the deceased's estate, when a member of a pension fund dies before retirement age, the board has a fiduciary, legal and professional duty to determine how the death benefit of the fund member is distributed among all beneficiaries and dependants, whether listed in the nominees form or not," explains Jeanetta Hendricks, business development manager at Fedgroup. This could include any person who was factually or legally dependant on the fund member, which could therefore include spouses, children, parents, and/or any other legal or financial dependants.

According to Hendricks, this makes ensuring that all dependants receive a fair and equitable distribution of the death benefit a highly subjective process that can become an ethical minefield when trying to meet the expectations of nominated beneficiaries, while also satisfying the duties required of trustees.

"Factors that can potentially confound the process include South Africa's unique family dynamics and societal practices, such as fragmented familial structures, child-headed households, and the absence of formal marriage structures, or even legal unions as there are six recognised forms in South Africa," she adds. Other considerations include factual dependants such as same-sex partners, step children, foster children, or common law spouses.

Adding further complexity to the process is determining the level of support required by each dependant, which could include a deceased's spouse, children or even parents, and the difficulty of ensuring that all possible beneficiaries have been located, which should be concluded within 12 months of the fund member's death.

"The Act fails to offer regulated guidelines or directives on how to determine who qualifies as dependants and how trustees should apportion the benefit when making a determination, and there are no express instructions, procedures or formulae to outline what steps could be regarded as reasonable," elaborates Hendricks. Furthermore, many within the industry only read the Act in silos, and rely mainly on industry best practices and value judgements to make these determinations. Accordingly, the workshops aim to highlight all relevant legislation and legal frameworks – both within the retirement industry and other ancillary legislation – that can be used to make informed decisions. This includes the Financial Services Board's PF 130 circular, as well as case law precedents and ancillary legislation, such as the Children's Act, Divorce Act, and Maintenance Act when making determinations on minor children, or the Civil Union Act and Recognition of Customary Marriages Act to determine spousal or partner apportionment, which can help support the process and ultimate decision.

"There are no clear guidelines on which pieces of legislation should be applied in cases where acts conflict," continues Hendricks. "Accordingly, arriving at a decision on how to distribute a death benefit requires a multi-faceted deliberation process, which we hope to elucidate," she concludes.

"The workshop will provide immense value to attendees," says Wayne Hiller Van Rensburg, IRFA President. "Both industry and the public need more clarity in this aspect of retirement funds, and as such the Navigator Workshops are extremely valuable."

Attendees of the workshops will earn six Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points. For more information or to register for the conference, visit www.irf.org.za

Many people making these monthly payments are unaware that, as defined by the Pension Funds Act, beneficiary funds exist, which provide a means to manage and administer these funds on behalf of minor beneficiaries and dependants. In the event of a pension fund member's death, a beneficiary fund ensures that they're able to derive meaningful benefit from this money until they reach the age of majority, says Fedgroup Financial Services.

Should a member of a pension fund pass away before their retirement age the fund's board of trustees are tasked with determining how the lump sum death benefit, other approved benefits such as retirement funds, and employment-related unapproved benefits such as funeral and accident cover should be allocated among the member's beneficiaries, dependants and nominees, according to the dictates of Section 37C of the Pension Funds Act.

Death benefits fulfil an important function in a society where those who are formally employed can often support up to 10 dependants. As such, these benefits act as a type of social fund that aims to ensure families and dependants do not become reliant on the state or, worse, destitute following the death of a sole or primary breadwinner.

And, beneficiary funds are one of the most cost-effective funds available and also offer institutional investment returns. Once lump-sum benefits have been placed in a beneficiary fund they're also tax exempt as they're taxed in the same manner as pension funds. This means that no tax is paid in the fund and any payment made out of these funds to beneficiaries is also tax free, as are investment returns.

Thanks to tax reforms the pre-retirement tax-free threshold for lump-sum benefits also increased to R500 000, which ensures that those who need this money most – the dependants – receive a larger portion of the death benefit.

However, these benefits are mitigated if a surviving spouse or legal guardian attempts to invest and manage these lump sum pay outs in their personal capacity or through a trust as they don't have access to institutional investment platforms, nor the aforementioned tax benefits. Furthermore, Beneficiary Funds are safer than trusts and are less onerous in terms of taxation. They are therefore a better tool to ensure fund preservation and protection.

Accordingly, it can be highly beneficial for Pension Fund members to understand the role of Beneficiary Funds and the benefits and advantages they offer to surviving family members and dependants. They are then able to stipulate in their nomination form that this is their preferred financial instrument to administer and manage their approved benefits – their Pension Fund and group life cover – as well as their unapproved benefits on behalf of their dependants.

To make 100% certain that these funds are invested in this manner the nomination form can be supported with the stipulation in a last will and testament. Supported and guided by the member's stipulations trustees are better able to decide on the disbursement used, ensuring peace of mind for fund members as they know the money will be used for what it was intended, and that it is ring fenced to deliver lasting, meaningful benefit to their children.

Fedgroup was also named in the top three in the country in Investment Products, and Group Pension and Provident Funds, further underlining the high quality of the Fedgroup offering. The reason the industry takes these awards so seriously, says Fedgroup Life CEO, Walter van der Merwe, is because these awards cannot be entered into and are determined solely by the ratings received from brokers in this field. "Because of this impartiality, they are highly coveted in the industry."

Each year, Fedgroup sees a steady improvement in perception and recognition by the industry. This, according to Van der Merwe, is as a result of a thorough examination of the feedback, which is used to constantly improve on systems and procedures. "As a people-centric organisation, we take customer service extremely seriously. We utilise all feedback to ensure we are constantly evolving and improving to meet ever-changing needs and expectations."

PMR.africa measures "competitiveness, effectiveness, excellence, leadership, and resilience", and the awards set a benchmark in the industry.

The allocation of awards is based on a national research process where a company is rated across a range of 14 criteria that include flexibility, innovativeness, quality and competitive pricing of products. Competence, efficiency and integrity are key in the voting process.

"The awards are the culmination of a research process whereby companies and institutions are rated based on respondents' perceptions, with a strong focus on evaluating and measuring customer service and customer satisfaction," according to PMR.africa.

Says Van der Merwe: "Fedgroup has always maintained that our staff show a commitment to our clients that is hard to surpass. Additionally, we have a highly innovative management model in place that encourages improvements to service levels, and sophisticated technology supporting our staff. As an independently run company, which encourages and values independent thinking, we do things differently, and attract staff that are motivated by an ethos that runs throughout our company – Fedgroup certainly owes this honour to them."

While this form of disruption has been a boon for banks by improving customer satisfaction and reducing expensive people-driven processes, fintech disruption is also hurting traditional models. Take, for instance, mobile peer-to-peer money transfers and point of sale payments, in all their various guises – PayPal, Alipay, M-Pesa, Nomanini, Google Wallet, and Apple Pay are just a few examples.

This type of disruptive technology was a massive step toward disintermediating the banks from the transaction process, and even led to the disruption of the concept of money itself, with digital currencies such as Bitcoin offering a new means to transact and invest.

In developed markets such as those of the US and Europe, this form of fintech has started to erode the traditional revenue streams of banks. Interestingly, though, in developing nations, fintech is helping to give the unbanked masses – the so-called unclaimed market – a means to transact outside of traditional channels, thereby helping to grow the market.

It is understandable then that global investment in fintech ventures tripled to $12.21 billion in 2014 and continued climbing, with US$19 billion invested into the sector in 2015, according to research by KPMG and CB Insights.

And it is not just transactional banking that is receiving all the attention. The insurance and investment markets are now poised to experience a period of disruption that will undoubtedly change the sector's landscape, including the traditional role of the intermediary.

In a process that is being dubbed the 'Uberisation' of fintech, the smartphone and Internet have become the platform on which financial services and products are delivered on demand, at the touch of a button.

In this realm, the virtual world is disintermediating the real one – no more trips to your banker or broker to complete a mountain of paperwork, because your smartphone is now the middleman. It's DIY investing via a Web-based platform, giving investors direct access to anything from stocks and currency trading to peer-to-peer (P2P) lending and equity crowdfunding.

All of these on-demand services are helping end-users bypass intermediaries to access the financial products they want and need to build their own portfolios and manage their wealth. But it's not just the process of accessing traditional financial products that is changing, as the types of investments and financial instruments being offered are rapidly changing too.

Crowdfunding via services such as SeedInvest and Fundable, for example, enables individuals to fund an idea or company for an equity stake. Whether it's a fintech start-up or renewable energy provider, the opportunity to invest across market verticals and in just about any asset class imaginable is now readily available.

With so much disruption happening, particularly in the intermediary channel, should the traditional financial industry be worried? The general consensus is, no. Rather than compete, most banks and financial service providers are acquiring fintech start-ups or are developing their own platforms, services and apps to evolve alongside them.

And, with such an abundance of options, coupled with what is proving to be an increasingly difficult sector to regulate, the need for sound financial advice from intermediaries who are savvy to this new breed for financial offering has never been greater. The ‘Uberisation' trend can apply to independent financial service advisors, too, with the potential for a Web-based advice and engagement channel. This will obviously require a shift in the knowledge and understanding of the investment and insurance market, along with the new tech that underpins it, not to mention a new revenue model, but in this age of rapid innovation, it probably won't be long before there's an app for that, too.

By offering benefits that include medical aid and wellness schemes, retirement annuities and, increasingly, group risk cover that includes lump-sum critical illness and disability cover, and income protection, companies are not only able to meet this demand, but are also finding it is a powerful tool to attract and retain key employees, most of whom now understand the inherent benefits of these perks.

Comprehensive group risk cover can, for instance, ensure that should an employee be unable to work due to injury, most commonly caused by car accidents, or illness, the most prevalent of which is cancer, they continue to receive an income through an income protection plan, to sustain their standard of living.

This could be in addition to receiving a once-off lump-sum disability or critical illness payment that could assist with any other financial commitments or to cover additional medical treatment or medication, should there be a shortfall in their medical aid.

While both income protection and lump-sum disability would both require a waiting period before the employee receives the benefit, and specific definitions of impairment would have to be met for the insurer to pay out, they are distinctly different products. Where a disability claim is an upfront, lump-sum payment, in the case of income protection, there would be an ongoing monthly benefit received to replace the employee's monthly after-tax salary.

In this way, income protection is generally a larger benefit as it is paid over a longer period, which means that premiums are often higher. These monthly payments would continue for as long as the employee is unable to earn an income due to an impairment that meets the insurer's definition, or for a predetermined period in the case of a temporary income disability plan. If the employee recovers and is able to return to work, then the disability income benefit would end. The employee could, however, make additional claims should there be another instance of impairment or illness. Understanding these parameters is important, particularly at the group scheme inception stage.

Employers have a duty to clearly communicate the specifics of the group risk cover options that are being selected and that employees will be entitled to. Selections in this regard are often dictated by affordability, which means companies with large work forces of lower income earners will structure their group risk offering differently to companies with predominantly higher earners, and income protection is usually a significant contributor to premiums. As such, a temporary income protection product is often preferred in terms of affordability, but in so doing, the financial implications to staff of this choice need to be taken into account.

From a group risk perspective, there will be one benefit definition that applies to everyone as individualisation costs more. However, there may be occupations or positions that are riskier from an insurance perspective than others within a company, which would need to be rated to ensure everyone gets the right amount of cover, at the right price. In this regard, the help of a qualified and competent financial planner can be invaluable.

Not only can they perform a financial needs analysis for staff to determine if additional individual gap cover may be required to supplement the group cover offered by the company, but their knowledge of the various products on offer from the numerous providers is essential at inception stage to ensure a good fit for the company and that their employees receive the most relevant and affordable cover.

Moreover, because disability and critical illness claims, be they for income protection or lump-sum disability, are not as clear-cut as death claims, it is beneficial to know which providers pay claims based on the relevant medical info and their ability to assess claims against predetermined definitions. This ensures there are seldom any surprises should an employee need to access the financial support provided by this form of insurance at a time when they need it most.

However, this type of technology has become the de facto standard within the life insurance market. While there is still innovation happening on a systems level, the next technological evolution that will reshape the industry is happening outside of the life insurer's network, and actually requires minimal capital expenditure.

The rise of big data – extremely large data sets that can be analysed to reveal patterns, trends and associations – is being driven by cloud computing, where data can be integrated and easily accessed, and in large part by developments in consumer tech, most notably advancements in wearable devices and smartphone technology.

These devices are yielding massive amounts of information about the habits of people in their everyday lives, which insurers can then use to improve underwriting and better manage risk. This ensures better outcomes for the insurer, while also enabling better ratings for consumers who lead healthier lifestyles, and for various populations as a whole, too.

While these capabilities require investment into data analytics tools, the major costs of developing these devices are carried by the manufacturers. Take the Apple Watch as an example. Apple invested huge upfront capital and considerable expertise into the research and development of this device, which is something that life insurers simply cannot afford to do. However, monitoring heart rate and activity tracking, as examples, have now been made relatively cheap, both for consumers and insurers. The same applies to vehicle satellite tracking technology, which now delivers data on driving behaviour to help create more personalised short-term insurance premiums.

Beyond the device, we're also experiencing tectonic shifts in the data available to insurers through the rapidly advancing sphere of biotechnology. Spearheaded by advances in modern medicine and other disruptive technologies that are still in their infancy, such as DNA analysis, these technological capabilities are reshaping the way life insurance is underwritten.

From a medical perspective, take the treatment of HIV as an example. Not even a decade ago, those with HIV had heavy loading applied on their premiums, but today, it is a disease that can be controlled to the point where it hardly impacts mortality risk. If you take away the stigma, it is conceivably easier to live with HIV than it is to live with diabetes.

In terms of the insights that DNA analysis offers, biotech companies are now able to ascertain the potential risk that an individual has of suffering from various dread diseases. However, this is dependent on myriad other factors, but this technology could conceivably be used to rate mortality risk once stronger associations between genes and these diseases can be made.

While issues such as data ownership and how best to make use of this depth of information still pose barriers to implementation, those who get it right first will have a huge competitive advantage.

Despite these advances, the business of life insurance hasn't changed much. It is still a matter of taking what we know, and then using predictive, statistical modelling to determine what will happen in the future, but now we have extended means to make these predictions. It is not so much the data that matters most in the information age, but rather what you're able to do with it that determines your success.