Blue Chip Issue 94

BLUE
CHIP
0.5 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE FPI
Issue 94 • Feb/Mar/Apr 2025
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
0.5 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
01 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
01 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
1.5 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
1.5 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
ARE WE 02 IN CONTINUOUS AN AI BUBBLE?
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The anatomy of a bubble
02 CONTINUOUS
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
SUCCESSION PLANNING
Navigating the complexities
INVESTING IN THE US
Value the price you pay
GLOBAL ECONOMICS
Change is inevitable
THE ART OF INVESTING
Ray Mhere, CEO of Curate Investments

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The financial
global bubble
The FPI has reached a significant milestone in its history: as of 31 December 2024, it
has surpassed 5 000 CFP® professionals, reaching a total of 5 001. This achievement
reflects the growing recognition of the CFP® certification as the benchmark for
professional financial planning and advice in South Africa. Congratulations!
In this edition of Blue Chip, we speak to Kirsty Scully, board chairperson of the FPI, who
has been elected to serve as chairperson of the FPSB Council for 2025. The FPSB is the
standards-setting body for the global financial planning profession. Its mission is to manage
worldwide professional standards in the industry represented by the CFP® mark (page 18).
We also speak to the winner of the 2024 FPI Harry Brews’ Award, Bruce Whitfield, who
hosted The Money Show on 702 and CapeTalk for more than 20 years (page 48).
On page 24, we ask the question: are we in an AI bubble? Bubbles are a commonly
referenced phenomenon in today’s financial markets; however, the term has been around
since the early 18 th century. We can look back at history and easily pick out well-known
bubbles like the “Dot-Com Bubble”, but it is significantly more difficult to consider markets
today and ask yourself “Is this a bubble?” This question is only clear in hindsight as the
causes of bubbles tend to differ in each instance.
In the technology bubble of the late 1990s, investors justified investing at never-beforeseen
valuations of businesses, because they believed that the Internet was the harbinger
of a new world, and therefore businesses could not be valued on traditional “old economy”
metrics. This meant that what were known as “new economy” or “dot-com” businesses
were being valued on their revenue growth rather than their profit growth. Investors were
valuing businesses that had never made a profit at outrageous levels.
In March 2000, the technology bubble burst. It seems that to grow real value, at some
point businesses need to make money. This is not to say that nobody made money during
the technology bubble. During any bubble, usually the early investors make money, if
they get out before the bubble bursts. Investors are prone to poor decision-making when
markets fall. Rob Macdonald, Head of Strategic Advisory Services, Fundhouse, explains
what drives this poor decision-making process (page 52).
For those looking to invest in American companies, before concluding that the US
market is just too expensive, please read our article on page 44.
The 2024 election results in South Africa were met with widespread optimism and
showcased South Africa’s robust and innovative electoral and legal system. However, we
should also view the 2024 Trump victory in the US as a red flag.
The South African electorate seems smarter than its American counterpart in that for
the most part, it rejected radical populism in the May 2024 elections. Trump’s populist
approach threatens to weaken liberal democracy in the country. While South Africa has
its fair share of political, socioeconomic and environmental challenges, the democratic
fabric of the nation is not threatened in the same way. On page 46, read why the South
African electoral system has proved resilient and innovative in a way the US system seems
incapable of.
Enjoy the issue!
Alexis Knipe, Editor
Blue Chip Journal – The official publication of FPI
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ISSUE 94 |
FEB/MAR/APR 2025
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CHIP
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CONTENTS
ISSUE
94 FEB/MAR/APR 2025
04
08
EDITOR’S NOTE
By Alexis Knipe
A YEAR OF RENEWAL AND
PROGRESS
Message from the CEO of the FPI
10
16
ON THE MONEY
Milestones, news and snippets
HOW DO YOU CHARGE FOR
INVESTMENT ADVICE?
Column by Rob Macdonald, Head of
Strategic Advisory Services, Fundhouse
17
THINKING OUT OF THE BOX
Column by Kobus Kleyn, CFP®, Tax
and Fiduciary Practitioner, Kainos Wealth
18
I AM BECAUSE OF OTHERS
Blue Chip speaks to Kirsty Scully,
Board Chairperson of the FPI
24
THE ANATOMY OF A BUBBLE:
ARE WE IN AN AI BUBBLE?
Fundhouse ask the question
28
HOW PEOPLE
BECOME WEALTHY
The Mazi Global Equity Team speaks about
the true architect of enduring wealth
30
TIMING [TIME IN]
IS EVERYTHING
Grant Alexander, Founder and Director,
Private Client Holdings, on wealth
generation and preservation
32
CURATE INVESTMENTS: THE
ART OF INVESTING
Blue Chip speaks to the CEO of Curate
Investments, Ray Mhere
34
36
38
CURATE LOCAL AND
GLOBAL FUNDS
CURATE MANAGER
SELECTION PROCESS
UNLOCKING CHINA’S HIGH-
GROWTH POTENTIAL FOR
SOUTH AFRICAN INVESTORS
Altvest Capital helps South African investors
access one of world’s most dynamic
venture capital markets: China
40
TRANSFORMING THE PRIVATE
EQUITY LANDSCAPE
Blue Chip interviews Warren Wheatley,
Founder of Altvest Capital
42
FINANCIAL PLANNING
FOR CLIENTS WHO
ARE EMIGRATING
Advice around South African tax nonresidency
is more relevant than ever
43
CHANGE IS INEVITABLE.
GROWTH IS OPTIONAL
Warren Ingram, CFP®, Co-Founder, Galileo
Capital, talks about global economics
44
UNDERSTANDING THE PRICE
YOU PAY FOR INVESTING
IN AMERICA
Jonathan Wernick, Global Equity Analyst
from Sasfin Wealth, attests that those
looking to invest in American companies
may experience “sticker shock”
46
US ELECTION PROVIDES BOTH
RED FLAG AND PAT ON THE
BACK FOR SOUTH AFRICA
Dr Helen Macdonald, Freelance Political
Researcher and Analyst, warns that the
2024 Trump victory may be a red flag
48
CUTTING OUT THE NOISE
Blue Chip speaks to the 2024
winner of the FPI Harry Brews’ Award,
Bruce Whitfield
50
NAVIGATING THE
COMPLEXITIES OF
SUCCESSION PLANNING IN FINANCIAL
PLANNING PRACTICES
Adam Bacher, CFA®, CFP®, Director at DTB
Wealth, says that succession is both an art
and a science
51
CHOOSE YOUR POISON
By Andy Hart, Founder of the HUM
conference
52
TO INVEST SUCCESSFULLY
CLIENTS MUST OVERCOME
THE WALL OF WORRY
Rob Macdonald, Head of Strategic Advisory
Services, Fundhouse, argues that global
market movements mean less than you
think when it comes to successful investing
55
UNLOCK YOUR FUTURE
Explore the programmes at the
University of the Free State’s School of
Financial Planning Law
56
LESSONS FOR FINANCIAL
PLANNERS FROM NELSON
MANDELA
Author Andrew Russell draws correlations
between the themes in Nelson Mandela’s
life and financial planners’ businesses
58
UNLOCKING KEY INSIGHTS
OUT OF DISPARATE DATA
How effective business intelligence bolsters
your practice effectiveness, by Linktank
60
HOW A SECURE AI ASSISTANT
TRANSFORMS YOUR CLIENT
RELATIONSHIPS AND FREES UP
YOUR TIME
Zeldeen Müller, Founder and CEO of Insite
Connect and Creator of AgendaWorx.com,
explains how AI can help scale your business
62
THE ART OF TIMELY
ENGAGEMENT
Tim Slatter, Creator of Contatti and Director
of Slatter Communications, on identifying
clients experiencing transitions
63
AI AND AUTOMATION: TWO
SIDES OF THE SAME COIN
Francois du Toit, CFP®, Founder of
PROpulsion, explains the difference
between AI and automation
64
SOLVING THE PRACTICE
MANAGEMENT PUZZLE IN 2025
The management and oversight of financial
service providers has become extremely
difficult, says Anton Swanepoel, Founder of
Trusted Advisors
68
SPECIALISATION VS
DIVERSIFICATION: WHY YOU
DON’T HAVE TO CHOOSE
Vukile demonstrates that a well-crafted
specialist fund can reap the rewards of
diversification for its investors
5

2025 Membership
Declaration
For more information call us on +27 (11) 470-6000 or email: certification@fpi.co.za
www.fpi.co.za

Scan the QR code
to renew your
Membership for 2025

BLUE
CHIP
FPI UPDATES | CEO message
Lelané Bezuidenhout, CFP®, CEO,
Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa
A year of renewal
and progress
The CEO of the Financial Planning Institute of
Southern Africa shares the FPI’s latest news.
As we step into 2025, a quarter-century milestone, it is
a time to pause, introspect and realign. This year offers
an opportunity to reorganise and renew strategies for
progress. In the bigger scheme of things, 2025 is a year
of alignment and course corrections – a chance to refocus our
priorities on sustainability, inclusivity and innovation.
This sense of renewal is reinforced as we steer through
rapid technological advancements, pressing climate action
commitments and collective efforts to address South Africa’s
status on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey List.
Recent global events, such as the devastating Los Angeles
fires, remind us of the urgency of addressing climate issues.
They underscore the importance of having robust contingency
plans to ensure business continuity and resilience in the face
of unforeseen interruptions.
For South Africa, 2025 holds promise as we continue our
recovery journey. Efforts by the Government of National Unity
(GNU) and decisive actions to meet FATF requirements signal
progress toward unlisting, a development critical to restoring
economic stability and investor confidence.
This sense of renewal resonates deeply within our profession.
We are proud to celebrate a significant milestone this year: the
Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa (FPI) has surpassed
5 000 CFP® professionals.
This achievement reflects the growing recognition of financial
planning as a cornerstone of financial well-being in South Africa.
8 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

FPI UPDATES | CEO message
BLUE
CHIP
Each of you plays a vital role in elevating our profession and
building trust with the clients and communities we serve.
Our global influence within the financial planning
profession is also growing. We are delighted to acknowledge
Kirsty Scully, CFP®, as the new Chairperson of the Financial
Planning Standards Board (FPSB) Council. Her appointment
highlights South Africa’s contribution to the global network
of 27 territories and over 213 000 CFP® professionals. It is a
testament to the power of collaboration in shaping the future
of financial planning worldwide.
Each of you plays a vital role
in elevating our profession.
This collaborative spirit will also take centre stage as South
Africa prepares to host the G20 Summit later this year. This pivotal
event places our nation at the heart of global discussions on
economic resilience, sustainability and inclusivity – principles
that align closely with the values of professional financial
planning. Hosting the G20 presents an invaluable opportunity
to display South Africa’s commitment to progress and its capacity
for leadership on the global stage.
On the local front, February brings the National Budget Review,
a key moment for financial professionals to evaluate economic
policy and its implications for our industry. We are hopeful that
2025 will also see the long-awaited enactment of the Conduct
of Financial Institutions (COFI) Bill. This transformative legislation
aims to modernise financial sector regulation, focusing on
customer protection and ethical conduct. These developments
highlight the importance of staying informed and adaptable in
an ever-evolving field.
Lastly, South Africa continues to make strides in addressing
the challenges posed by the FATF Grey List. While progress has
been made, including strengthening anti-money laundering
measures, more work is needed to ensure effective enforcement
and compliance. As financial professionals, we must uphold the
highest standards of ethics and diligence, ensuring that our
actions contribute to these national efforts.
As we embrace these opportunities and challenges, I am
reminded of the resilience and adaptability that define our
profession. Together, let us continue to cultivate growth,
empower our clients and advance the financial well-being of all
South Africans.
Here’s to a year of renewal, collaboration and celebrating
oustanding progress!
Until next time.
Lelané Bezuidenhout, CFP®, CEO, Financial Planning Institute
of Southern Africa
The Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa
has surpassed 5 000 CFP® professionals.
www.bluechipdigital.co.za 9

BLUE
CHIP
On the money
Making waves this quarter
Consolidated Wealth goes pro and a win for Alexforbes
CONSOLIDATED WEALTH: AN FPI APPROVED PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
The FPI congratulates Consolidated Wealth for being approved as
an FPI Approved Professional Practice. This prestigious certification
signifies that Consolidated Wealth has met the FPI’s rigorous standards
for excellence in financial planning, joining an elite group of nearly 20
FPI Approved Professional Practices across South Africa.
To achieve this distinguished status, Consolidated Wealth has
demonstrated a firm commitment to upholding the highest standards
in the financial planning profession, which include:
• Core business focus. A primary dedication to offering comprehensive
financial planning services.
• Adherence to the FPI’s practice standards. Ensuring a systematic,
client-first approach in all financial planning engagements.
• Fiduciary responsibility. A clear commitment to acting in the best
interests of their clients.
• Documented investment philosophy. Transparency in investment
strategies, accessible and clearly communicated to clients.
• Quality assurance. Implementing robust quality control measures
to maintain service excellence.
• Professional members. Employing a team where at least 50% of
financial advisors are CFP® professionals, with additional team
members working toward FPI-recognised designations.
• Ethical standards. Adherence to the FPI Code of Ethics and
Professional Responsibility, ensuring integrity and professionalism
in every client interaction.
Alexforbes is proud to announce that its investment survey team has
been named the Best Investment Survey Provider in Africa for the sixth
consecutive year.
The award was presented in November 2024 at the New York-based
Africa Global Funds (AGF) Service Providers Awards, which celebrate
excellence in asset management services across the continent.
This recognition reaffirms Alexforbes’ commitment to delivering
high-quality, comprehensive investment surveys and data solutions that
empower clients across Africa with critical insights. The Alexforbes suite
of investment surveys continues to set the standard in its scope, covering
all major asset classes and supporting clients in making informed
investment decisions.
Don Andrews, head of the Alexforbes investment survey team,
expressed his appreciation for this achievement, stating, “Receiving
this award for the sixth consecutive year is a tremendous honour. It
reflects our unwavering commitment to delivering insightful, accurate
and timely survey data, and investment insights to asset managers and
“We are very excited to form part of the FPI Approved Professional
Practice community and look forward to engaging with, and sharing
best practices among, peers who have similar interests and practice
management philosophies,” say directors and key individuals Craig
Kiggen and Colin Long.
ALEXFORBES NAMED BEST INVESTMENT SURVEY PROVIDER IN AFRICA
other stakeholders. We are dedicated to continually advancing our
standards to support the African investment community.”
Building on its successful Institutional Manager Watch series, in
June 2024, Alexforbes introduced the Retail Manager Watch surveys.
Published monthly, these surveys cover multi-asset class (South Africa
and global), equity, bond, South African money
market and property, aligning with the Association
for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA)
categories. They offer detailed performance and
risk statistics.
Alexforbes is honoured by this recognition
and remains dedicated to leading the way in
investment survey excellence across Africa. This
achievement further fuels its commitment to
continuously enhancing our services, investment
data and insights, while driving innovation in the
investment industry.
Don Andrews, Head,
Alexforbes Investment
Survey Team

BLUE
CHIP
On the money
Making waves this quarter
Responsible investing and tax compliance
THE IMPORTANCE OF RESPONSIBLE INVESTING HAS NEVER BEEN CLEARER
Amid rising global uncertainty, Prescient Investment Management
reiterates its call for a sustainable approach to investment management
with the release of its Responsible Investing Report for 2024. The report
addresses key themes shaping sustainable finance, from advancing
ESG practices and leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) to shifts in
regulatory landscapes. “ESG is no longer peripheral – it’s central to
sound investment management,” says Conway Williams, head of
credit at Prescient. “Through ESG integration, we focus on prudent
risk management and sustainable growth, enhancing both financial
outcomes and societal impact.”
ESG branded initiatives and investing have come in for a high degree
of scepticism in both developed and emerging markets. However,
SA TAKES CENTRE STAGE IN GLOBAL TAX REFORM
“A tax risk anywhere in the world, is a tax risk everywhere,” stated
Commissioner Edward Kieswetter, following his recent appointment
as vice chairperson of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD) Forum on Tax Administration (FTA). This is a
significant milestone which places South Africa at the forefront of global
tax administration, alongside Canada and Norway. The OECD assists
countries to create better policies on issues such as trade, education
and taxation. The role of the FTA is to connect tax authorities globally
to improve tax systems.
Interesting, however, is how closely this aligns with SARS’s larger
strategic objectives, including to close in on non-compliance. This
has clearly struck a chord with role-players in international tax
administration and is a testament to the country’s growing influence
in shaping global tax policies. What can easily be missed is the proactive
approach also taken by SARS, particularly in relation to the use of data
the evidence shows that, if taken seriously,
integrating ESG into investment processes
offers enduring value. “A growing body of
research underscores ESG’s value in mitigating
risk and enhancing long-term financial
performance. We believe that by embracing
ESG factors, we can make more informed investment decisions that
anticipate future risks and capitalise on emerging opportunities. ESG
is not an add-on but a critical part of modern investment strategy,
enabling us to navigate a rapidly evolving world with confidence and
resilience,” explains Michelle Green, credit analyst and chair of the ESG
committee at Prescient Investment Management.
and innovative new technologies. This is especially important, given
South Africa’s continued grey-listed status by the Financial Action Task
Force (FATF).
The Commissioner’s new role strengthens SARS’s ability to
influence global tax discourse. For South African taxpayers, this
could hopefully translate to enhanced protection against unfair tax
practices and outcomes. As the Commissioner says, “No country is
a fiscal Island,” adding that it is critical for SARS to maintain solid
international networks and partnerships which enable crossborder
tax cooperation and improve voluntary tax compliance. This
appointment also amplifies South Africa’s voice in ensuring that
international tax frameworks, such as the Global Minimum Tax, are
equitable and considerate of developing countries’ needs. To the
hopeful taxpayer, this could be a step towards a more equitable and
prosperous South Africa in future.
SETTING A BENCHMARK FOR WEALTH MANAGEMENT EXCELLENCE
Citywire has just announced the top 50 financial advisors in South
Africa in its inaugural “Spotlight on Success: Celebrating Our Top 50
Advisers!”. The awards aim to celebrate the outstanding contributions
of local independent advisors who’ve demonstrated exceptional skill,
performance and service in guiding their clients’ financial plans.
Six of the top 50 financial advisors recognised in 2024’s list includes
Private Client Holdings’ Grant Alexander, Andrew Ratcliffe, Nicola
Langridge, Mark MacSymon, Luke Hirst and Warren Buys.
The selection criteria were based on applicants’ in-depth answers
to questions around independence, financial planning processes,
investment processes, practice management, community work and
innovation as well as their current approach and how they were
adapting and excelling in a changing landscape.
“We're delighted to be recognised for the work that we do in
helping our clients to realise their
wealth goals, especially given our
uncertain economic landscape and
the challenges facing investors here
and globally,” says Grant Alexander,
director of Private Client Holdings.

BLUE
CHIP
On the money
Making waves this quarter
Offshore investment and ABSIP
HOW TO MAXIMISE WEALTH WITH OFFSHORE INVESTMENTS
Investing offshore has long been a strategy for high-net-worth
individuals seeking to diversify their portfolios, capitalise on favourable
tax treatments and leverage estate planning options. For South
African investors, an offshore investment vehicle, known as a “loop
structure”, offers the opportunity to reinvest back into South African
assets. Legalised in 2021, loop structures allow investors to tap into the
benefits of offshore vehicles while retaining links to local assets. Coreen
Van Der Merwe, director at Sovereign Trust SA, says that investing in
loop structures has multiple advantages. “Offshore structures enable
access to international markets, yield enhanced asset protection and
optimise tax obligations over the long term. Sheltering a portion of an
estate outside of South Africa also presents unique estate planning
options and mitigates the tax burden on heirs, preserves wealth and
ensures smooth generational transitions.”
Loop structures allow South Africans to streamline cross-border
flows of income. South African businesses can transfer income streams
abroad in the form of dividends. This sidesteps the constraints of
personal investment allowances, which are capped at R11-million
annually. By routing dividend payments to an offshore trust in a
jurisdiction with a favourable double taxation agreement, local
investors could reduce their dividend withholding tax rate from the
domestic rate of 20% to 5%. Now, investors can hold their assets in
a single offshore structure. This simplification minimises compliance
obligations and cuts down on management expenses.
FAMILY OFFICES ARE BOOSTING PHILANTHROPY
New global research from Ocorian shows philanthropic giving by family
offices is set to grow strongly over the next two years but family offices
want to see some return.
It found that seven out of 10 family office professionals including
those working for multi-family offices estimate philanthropic giving
will rise by 15% or more over the next two years. Around a quarter
believe spending on philanthropy will rise by 20% or more over that
period. Ocorian’s international study among more than 300 family
office professionals collectively responsible for around $155-billion
assets under management found the key area for philanthropy is likely
to be healthcare and medical research. Around two-thirds said their
family office’s philanthropy is linked to that sector while more than
half (51%) pointed to diversity, equality and inclusion.
However, the study shows that family offices want some form of
investment return from at least some of their philanthropy – around
two-thirds expect to see some form of return on 25% or more of their
philanthropic giving with around one in six (16%) expecting to see a
return on 50% or more of their donations.
Lynda O’Mahoney, global head of business development –
private client at Ocorian, commented, “The level of philanthropy
from family offices and ultra-high-net-worth families is increasing
and they’re less interested in their money going into a vacuum –
they are enjoying increasing involvement and want to see tangible
outcomes from their donations.
“Flexibility is also important given philanthropic plans are often
long term. We’re noticing an increase in Middle East families setting
up Jersey-based charitable structures that allow flexibility to allocate
their donations to a UK, European, African or Middle Eastern charity, as
they choose, without cumbersome controls. This trend aligns with the
broader desire for increasing control over investments”
THE ABSIP RETAIL SYMPOSIUM
The ABSIP Retail Symposium, a joint venture with The Collaborative
Exchange, SA’s leading research, consulting and event management
business, was held at The Maslow Hotel in Sandton in November.
As the financial landscape continues to evolve, it is essential to
foster inclusivity, collaboration and sustainability within the industry.
The Symposium served as a catalyst for dialogue, innovation and
transformation, positioning Africa at the forefront of global wealth
management practices. About 250 delegates learnt about a broad range
of subject matter that included:
• How business owners, entrepreneurs and high-net-worth individuals
are accumulating wealth.
• How the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and the Financial
Sector Transformation Council (FSTC) are dealing with transformation
of South Africa’s wealth management industry.

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN:
WWW.THEINVESTMENTFORUM.CO.ZA
The financial world has always been defined by
paradox: stability amid chaos, innovation within
tradition. Over the last 15 years, the investment
landscape has been a reflection of this very
tension. The fundamentals - wealth, security,
growth - are constants, woven into the fabric
of human ambition. Yet, the tools we use, the
innovations we embrace, and the speed at which
we adapt have transformed dramatically.
From bonds and equities to crypto and AI-driven
robo-advice, it’s the same melody but played on
different instruments. Like a time warp, we see
echoes of past bubbles and crashes, all under
the guise of “it’s different this time.” And yet, at
the heart of it all, the essential human need to
preserve wealth and secure the future, remains
unchanged.
We live in an era where rapid technological
advances outpace our ability to assimilate them.
The challenge is not in the change itself but
in how we navigate it. The Investment Forum
2025 invites you into this paradoxical journey - a
place where past, present, and future converge.
It’s not just about embracing change; it’s about
understanding that change is the constant that
shapes us, whether we drive it or are driven by
it.
This theme challenges the industry to reflect
on its own evolution while remaining grounded
in the fundamentals. It’s a call to action for
professionals to acknowledge that while
markets, tools, and strategies may shift, the core
purpose of financial management remains. Let’s
redefine what it means to evolve while standing
firm in our purpose, as the world around us spins
faster and faster.
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BLUE
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COLUMN
How do you charge for
investment advice?
A client’s question to consider.
Rob Macdonald, Head of Strategic
Advisory Services, Fundhouse
Rob Macdonald has held several
senior positions in the investment
industry. At Fundhouse, he acts as
a consultant and coach to financial
advisors and develops and
facilitates training programmes
in behavioural coaching and
practice management. Before
joining the financial services
industry, Macdonald was MBA
director at the UCT Graduate
School of Business. He has
written the book The 7 Pillars
of Financial Health and is
co-author of Rethinking Leadership
and has consulted, written
and spoken widely on a range
of topics. Macdonald has a
Master’s degree in Management
Studies from Oxford University
and is a CFP® Professional.
I
know of many professionals such as engineers,
lawyers, accountants and doctors who have
never engaged the services of a financial
planner. Some have looked after their financial
affairs well, others not. One such professional
recently sought my counsel as she considered
working with a financial planner for the first time.
She spent 30 years doing her own financial
planning, but with retirement looming, decided
to seek professional financial advice and
consulted me on her choice of financial planner.
Not knowing the financial planner in question,
I did some research and gave the thumbs up. I
liked the financial planner’s flexible approach
to charging fees, depending on the service
sought. In this instance, the client wanted help in
reviewing her affairs and advice on any changes
to legal structures and existing investments. The
financial planner did a thorough job and charged
a once-off fee for the work done. The client was
happy with the work done and the fee charged.
The financial planner’s recommendations
were implemented, and the client was happy
but she recognised that there may be value in
engaging the financial planner’s services on an
ongoing basis. The client asked the financial
planner to quote for such a service, with a
primary focus on the client’s investments. The
financial planner quoted for the ongoing service
at a 0.25% fee charged as a percentage of assets
under advice. This proposal was the catalyst for
the client to seek my counsel for a second time.
Their dilemma was not about whether they
wanted to work with the financial planner (they
did), but rather about the way the fee was being
charged. The client had three questions in this
regard. The first question was, “Is this standard
practice for financial planners?” “Yes,” was the easy
answer. She then asked, “Why?”
This question was a little trickier to answer.
Her query related to the fact that the investments
were being managed by various fund managers
who were charging asset-based fees, so she
wondered why the financial planner charged
in the same way given that they don’t manage
the money. I explained that the financial planner
would provide ongoing oversight of the assets
and by charging an asset-based fee, the financial
planner’s interests were completely aligned with
that of the client as the fee rises or falls according
to the value of the assets. While the client
understood this, she didn’t accept it because of
her third question.
Why does the
financial planner
take a fee on the
initial value?
She explained that she had spent 30
years saving and investing her earnings as a
medical professional to achieve a portfolio of
significant value, and now the financial planner
was proposing to take an asset-based fee on
the full value of the portfolio, despite having
not been involved with its accumulation. Her
third question was, “Why does the financial
planner take a fee on the initial value?” The easy
answer was that this is industry practice. But I
knew that this would not suffice. After much
discussion, we agreed that what she needed
to do was agree with her financial planner
what the “ongoing service” would involve and
that she should ask for a “retainer fee” with the
financial planner.
To appease her concerns, the fee needed
to be disconnected from the value of her
portfolio, which she felt was the product of her
hard work. They came to an agreement on this
basis. But I remain uncomfortable that I could
not answer her question adequately. Why is
it standard practice for a fee to be charged
on all the assets that a client already has in
their investment pot? Is there a legitimate
explanation that it is in the best interests of the
client? Or is it simply standard practice because
few clients question it?
16
www.bluechipdigital.co.za

COLUMN
BLUE
CHIP
Thinking out of the box
Financial professionals must think outside the box with the technology revolution.
Kobus Kleyn, CFP®, Tax and Fiduciary
Practitioner, Kainos Wealth
Kobus Kleyn, CFP®, is a leading
financial planner and tax and
fiduciary practitioner in South
Africa. He has published over
200 articles, authored six
books and co-authored three
more. He is a multiple awardwinning
professional and holds
memberships with eight local
and international professional
associations. His awards include
four from the Financial Planning
Institute, including a Lifetime
Achievement Award, and two
from the Million Dollar Round
Table, including a Lifetime Award
and the President’s Award. He
also received the Liberty Group
Lifetime and INN8 Diamond
Award for Best Overall Impact
and Contributions to the Advice
Profession in South Africa.
As a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®,
I’ve consistently recognised the
transformative power of technology in
shaping our profession. Over the next
decade, technological advancements will disrupt
how we work and redefine clients’ expectations of
financial planners. Success will depend on how well
we embrace these changes while preserving the
human connection at the core of financial advice.
Embedded finance will directly integrate
financial products into platforms clients use
daily, such as e-commerce and social media. This
trend eliminates traditional barriers, making it
easy for clients to access insurance, investment
products or even loans at the click of a button.
Financial professionals must adapt by offering
hyper-personalised advice beyond what these
platforms can automate. Clients will look to us
for guidance on navigating the complexities of
financial ecosystems, ensuring they make sound
decisions amid the ease of instant access.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already making
waves by providing low-cost, algorithm-driven
financial planning solutions. Over the next decade,
these tools will become even more sophisticated,
offering highly customised and data-driven
insights. The future lies in blending human
expertise with AI-powered tools, using technology
to enhance our decision-making while deepening
the client relationship.
Big data will drive a new era of hyperpersonalised
financial advice. Financial planners
can precisely tailor strategies by analysing
vast amounts of information – from spending
patterns to investment behaviour. Machine
learning algorithms will anticipate client needs
before they arise, enabling proactive advice.
The challenge will be integrating these insights
seamlessly into client interactions while ensuring
data privacy and security. Clients increasingly
expect their financial experience to mirror the
convenience and intuitiveness of platforms like
Amazon and Netflix. Real-time updates, instant
communication and personalised dashboards
will become standard. Financial planners must
adopt technology that enhances the client
journey, from interactive financial modelling
tools to secure communication channels.
Blockchain technology and decentralised
finance are poised to revolutionise financial
transactions. Smart contracts, tokenised assets
and decentralised insurance products will
reshape traditional financial services. While these
innovations offer clients exciting opportunities,
they also introduce complexity. Financial planners
must be ready to guide clients through this evolving
landscape, ensuring they understand the risks and
benefits of engaging with decentralised platforms.
As financial services become increasingly digital,
cybersecurity will be paramount. Clients will
demand assurances that their data is protected
and used ethically. Robust cybersecurity protocols
and transparent communication about data usage
will be non-negotiable. Trust will remain the
cornerstone of client relationships and protecting
client information will be critical to maintaining
that trust in a digital-first world.
The way clients interact with financial
information may also change. Augmented and
virtual reality could create immersive experiences,
allowing clients to visualise their financial plans
in 3D and even holograms. These tools will help
clients better understand complex strategies,
making financial planning more engaging and
accessible. Technology will make financial advice
more accessible than ever before. Virtual meeting
platforms, AI-powered chatbots and multilingual
tools will allow financial planners to reach clients
anywhere. This opens opportunities for expanding
client bases and offering services across borders,
further diversifying revenue streams.
While technology will redefine the tools and
methods we use, it will not replace the core
values of financial planning: trust, empathy, and
personalised advice. Clients will continue to rely
on financial planners to navigate the complexities
of life, make informed decisions and align their
finances with their aspirations. The challenge lies in
balancing technology’s efficiency with the human
connection. By embracing these technological
advancements, financial professionals can stay
relevant and create a future where advice is more
competent, faster and impactful than ever. The
next decade will belong to those who leverage
technology to enhance – not replace – their value
as trusted advisors.
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
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BLUE
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FPI | Leadership
I am because of others
Kirsty Scully, board chairperson of the FPI, has been elected to serve as chairperson of the FPSB Council.
The FPSB is the standards-setting body for the global financial planning profession. Its mission is to
manage worldwide professional standards in the industry represented by the CFP® mark.
Please tell us about your journey over the years as a
woman in the financial planning profession.
While I originally started at a very young age, by
chance, in the financial planning profession, it was
at the age of 28 that I realised the vital need for
independence in my own financial planning. Sadly,
my husband passed away in an aircraft accident,
leaving me on my own at 28 years old, pregnant with
our first child. I would joke with my friends and tell
them that I was the only pregnant pensioner they
knew! It was no laughing matter: I was not financially
independent, and it was a real struggle for me to
know how I would manage financially as a single
mother in the years to come.
With this incredibly personal experience, I was
relentlessly motivated to ensure that other women
would not find themselves in a similar position. At
that young age, I always thought “it would never
happen to me”, but now I was a statistic, and I was
adamant that my role in the financial planning
profession was to help women create their own
financial independence. And that is what I do.
Please share your career trajectory to this point.
I’ve had the privilege of “growing up” in the financial
planning profession, and 36 years later, I can truly say
it has been a good experience. After completing my
initial post-school studies, I worked for many years in
asset management. Once I had completed the CFP®
certification, I started working at Core Wealth Advisory
Services, where I now work as a senior financial
planner, specialising in investments.
Kirsty Scully, Board Chairperson of the FPI.
Blue Chip congratulates you on your recent
appointment as the 2025 Financial Planning
Standards Board (FPSB) Council Chairperson. How
do you feel about this achievement?
It is a real honour for me to play such a significant role
in financial planning from a worldwide perspective. I
am excited and look forward to working hard to ensure
excellence in the standard of financial planning in so
many territories.
18
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FPI | Leadership
BLUE
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As a public speaker, TV and radio personality, Scully is known for her ability to explain financial concepts in a simple manner.
Financial planning, or the lack
thereof, plays an enormous
and very crucial role in shaping
the lives of individuals.
those connections and experiencing love, trust and mutual respect
along the way. My financial planning “style” attempts to reflect this.
For me, success is about reaching specific milestones, whether
they are career-related or personal. I believe that by following
my passions, I can achieve anything. And for this reason, I “play”
hard and I work hard to achieve my goals. This has allowed me
happiness, contentment, personal growth and balance in life.
How has your role as FPI Chairperson impacted your career?
Working with a board of directors who are so competent and
committed to improving the standard of financial planning in
Southern Africa has been an eye opener to me. I am constantly
inspired by this team, as well as the Exco at the FPI. They have
allowed me to exponentially grow my knowledge of strategic
planning and the governance of an organisation. A vast amount
of my professional growth is thanks to the FPI.
What are your objectives for the FPI?
My objectives align with the strategy of the FPI: we lead the
financial planning and advisory profession in Southern Africa;
creating awareness of the CFP® certification and other financial
advice-related designations. We ensure that financial planning
is recognised as a profession; and we continue to establish and
maintain the standard of excellence for financial planning within
Southern Africa.
What does success mean to you?
Being a relator is one of my top strengths and so I value strong,
meaningful relationships with friends and family. It’s about creating
Please discuss the powerful impact that financial planning has
on individuals in South Africa.
Financial planning, or the lack thereof, plays an enormous and
very crucial role in shaping the lives of individuals. Good financial
planning can ensure a sense of security, control and empowerment.
The impact it has can be far-reaching, in both the immediate wellbeing,
as well as the long-term sustainability of an individual.
Sound financial planning can help us to work towards achieving
incredible long-term goals such as purchasing our homes,
supporting our children through tertiary education, travelling on
a regular basis, ensuring that we have no debt and, finally, being
able to retire with the same standard of living to which we have
become accustomed.
It is a well-known fact that financial pressure is one of the
biggest stresses many people face. This draining anxiety can be
avoided by good budgeting, saving and investing and so creating
peace of mind.
I’m a firm believer in the very powerful impact that financial
independence has, especially on women. Having independence
allows us to make choices which can enable us to follow our
passions in life, and thereby achieve personal satisfaction.
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
19

BLUE
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FPI | Leadership
profession. I am a firm believer in Ubuntu: “I am because of others”.
My identity and my successes have not been solely my individual
achievements, but rather shaped by the people and relationships
I have within the financial planning profession.
You currently mentor young financial planners. What is your
motivation for doing so?
There is a selfish, human motivation: to see them succeed allows
me to share in their joy. The financial planning profession is often
regarded as the most noble profession, following on from the
medical profession. It is for this reason that I am passionate about
helping younger financial planners to work with their clients to
create a better quality of life for them.
I am deeply grateful for the many mentors that I have had over
the past 36 years, and it feels good to “pay it forward”.
Mentoring is leadership and it requires patience, good
communication skills and the ability to guide others without
controlling what they do. I enjoy working with younger financial
planners to see their strengths and grow those strengths. I hope
to help them foster inner motivation and allow them to build a
strong client base. I want to see them achieve their goals and
ultimately be well rewarded financially.
Good financial planning can
ensure a sense of security,
control and empowerment.
Scully in action at the annual FPI conference and gala awards.
Please discuss the importance of networking and building
relationships in the financial planning profession.
Financial planning is a people-centred profession. Many people
think that as a financial planner I should be good with numbers, but
on the contrary, a financial planner needs to be good with people
and understanding the psychology of people. We have software
solutions for the numbers. Technical expertise is important, but
the ability to connect with our clients, colleagues and fellow
professionals is vital. We are a long way from being replaced by AI!
We all know that the financial planning profession can be
incredibly demanding, where we work long hours and there
are high expectations set for us. By building relationships with
other like-minded professionals, I am encouraged, supported
and motivated. When we attend events or conventions, I enjoy
connecting with compatible professionals who share their
experiences with me. It inspires me to continue contributing to our
Please share your top tips on how financial planners can elevate
their practices.
As financial planners, we need to work hard to ensure that we are
working with our strengths and that should mean working with
our clients not working on our businesses. However, to ensure
that this can be done, we need to implement strategies that
facilitate this. I would recommend that you consider the following
in your practices:
• Have an operations manager in the practice who is in a fairly
senior role and manages processes such as administration,
compliance and marketing.
• Have specialists within your business. You cannot be a “jack of all
trades” as this will certainly make you a “master of none”. For this
reason, if your business is big enough, bring in separate specialists
to cover areas such as investments, healthcare, risk, group benefits,
tax and legal. This will allow you to have a comprehensive financial
planning offering to your clients, ensuring your ability to deal with
all aspects of your clients’ finances.
Please share a message with women wishing to develop
themselves personally and professionally.
People will rather follow a leader who is always real than one who is
always right. Be authentic, relational, genuine, transparent, honest
and real. That way, people will trust you, follow you and love you.
What more do you need?
20 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

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BLUE
CHIP
INVESTMENT | Markets
The anatomy of a bubble:
are we in an AI bubble?
A speculative bubble is a situation where the price of something, usually an asset, increases significantly
above its fundamental value.
Bubbles are a commonly referenced phenomenon in today’s
financial markets; however, the term has been around
since the early 18th century. Speculative bubbles have
occurred in a wide range of assets over time as can be
seen in Figure 1. Although they tend to result from a combination
of investor speculation and herding behaviour, accurately defining
bubbles and identifying where they may occur is difficult. In fact,
the only certainty is that speculative bubbles tend to increase the
price of an asset higher and for longer than most people assume.
In addition, we can only be certain that bubbles exist once they
have burst.
We can look back at history and easily pick out well-known
bubbles like “Tulip Mania” or the “Dot-Com Bubble”, but it is
significantly more difficult to consider markets today and ask
yourself “is this a bubble?” This question is only clear in hindsight
as the causes of bubbles tend to differ in each instance. In this
article we ask the question: are we in an AI bubble? While each
bubble differs, all bubbles have common characteristics, so we will
assess the AI bubble using an established framework that defines
the key components of all speculative bubbles.
Figure 1: The price of select bubbles over time relative to Nvidia
in 2024
Sources: FMRCo, Bloomberg, Haver Analytics, FactSet. Data as of
07/07/2024. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
The Bubble Triangle: a universal definition of speculative bubbles
The “Bubble Triangle”1 was developed by studying past bubbles
to identify the commonalities between them. It consists of three
elements: marketability, money/credit and speculation. These
components interact in various ways to fuel the rise and eventual
burst of financial bubbles, often requiring external forces such as
a political change or a new technology to ignite their formation.
While one can apply this framework to bubbles ranging from
Tulip Mania in the 1600s to the Roaring Twenties,2 we will use it to
evaluate whether the hype around artificial intelligence (AI) has
potentially created a new bubble.
The first side of the Bubble Triangle is called Marketability or
the ease with which a financial asset can be freely bought and sold
and is the “oxygen” needed to fire up a boom. Marketability is also
related to how divisible a financial asset is. For example, if a buyer
can buy just a small amount of an asset, that means they will be
more likely to do so as the initial investment is not that risky. How
easy it is to transport and store a financial asset is also important for
marketability, as something that is heavy and dangerous is unlikely
to cause a bubble, but a weightless digital asset is perfect.
The second side of the Bubble Triangle is Money/Credit
Expansion (or the “fuel”). If money and credit are tight it will be
difficult to borrow money from banks to purchase new, especially
risky, financial assets. But if banks are extending credit freely,
investors can borrow in the “sure and certain” hope they can make
a profit and repay the loan.3 If the asset appreciates as hoped, then
everyone will be happy.
The final leg of the triangle is Speculation (or “heat”). Just as
a fire will not ignite without sufficient heat applied to the fuel, a
financial bubble will not form without enough speculative activity.
Speculation encompasses the psychological and behavioural
dynamics that lead investors to engage in irrational, herd-like
behaviour. Driven by a fear of missing out on potential gains,
investors may exhibit excessive optimism, overconfidence and
a willingness to invest in assets with little regard for their actual
value. This speculative frenzy, where investors chase rising prices,
is a crucial driver of bubble formation and growth.
The interplay of these three elements creates a self-reinforcing
cycle that can lead to the rapid inflation of asset prices. However,
this cycle is often ignited by external forces such as a political
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INVESTMENT | Markets
BLUE
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change or a new technology, which can disrupt established
valuation metrics and create the conditions for a potential bubble
to form.
Ultimately, this interplay continues to grow if these forces
interact. However, any disruption to these elements, such as
tightening credit conditions (interest rate increases), loss of
investor confidence (recession) or changes in marketability
(closure of exchanges) can trigger the bubble’s collapse, leading
to a sharp decline in asset prices. This can extend further into a
full banking crisis depending on the degree of debt and leverage
taken on, resulting in significant economic disruption.
Figure 2: The core tenets of speculative bubbles
The latest bubble?
The rapid advancements in AI technologies over the past few years
have captured the imagination of investors, entrepreneurs and the
public. However, there are growing concerns that the current hype
surrounding AI-linked stocks may be indicative of a bubble in the
making. Rather than speculate, let’s assess whether the AI market
exhibits the characteristics of the Bubble Triangle framework:
External causes
The external factor in this case was the launch of ChatGPT in
November 2022. Although it has long been argued that AI is the
most significant technological innovation since the launch of the
Internet, it was only with the launch of ChatGPT that the public
became aware of the advances AI had made in generating humanlike
conversations, solving complex problems and assisting with
various tasks. This created a surge in interest and confidence in the
potential of AI technology across different industries. As a result,
companies involved in AI development – such as those offering
software, hardware and data services – experienced increased
investor interest, which contributed to a rise in AI stock values.
If we consider a company like Nvidia in particular, their
graphics processing units (GPUs) are highly suited for the complex
calculations needed for AI tasks like deep learning, machine
learning and data processing. GPUs, originally designed for video
gaming, excel at handling parallel processing, which is essential for
training large AI models. As demand for AI grows across industries
– like autonomous vehicles, healthcare and cloud computing – so
the demand for Nvidia’s products grows too. While Nvidia benefits
from demand for their hardware, the rest of the Magnificent 7 –
Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Meta (Facebook)
and Tesla – are all deeply involved in AI, but in different ways.
Moving onto the three parts of the Bubble Triangle:
Marketability
There has been one clear driver of increased marketability in recent
years. There is the rise of retail investor online stock trading platforms
such as Robinhood which have “gamified” stock ownership with
their ability to instantly trade stocks in small denominations at close
to zero fees. Robinhood alone has introduced over 23-million new
“investors” to the stock market.
Money/Credit availability
There have been two key drivers of increased money supply and
credit availability over the past few years. The first was the fiscal
stimulus provided to individuals by many governments, including
the US, during the Covid pandemic. This was done to help people
cover basic needs while the economy was struggling. However,
not everyone needed the cheques for immediate expenses. For
many individuals, whose jobs were secure and expenses like
travel or dining out were reduced, these stimulus payments led
to increased savings⁴. With extra savings and easy access to online
trading platforms like Robinhood, more people started investing in
stocks. The combination of savings, low interest rates and market
hype (especially in sectors like tech and AI) encouraged many
individuals to trade and invest more actively.
The second driver has been the amount of “dry powder” or
excess cash available to both private equity and venture capital
firms. As private equity investing has become more popular and
seen large inflows of capital, these firms have needed to invest this
capital. This has seen a surge in capital chasing a limited number of
opportunities. Private equity investment into just one AI sub-sector
rose from $0.04-billion in 2018 to over $2-billion in 2023. Venture
capital funding for AI was over $47-billion in 2023 alone. Given the
limited amount of opportunities in private markets, and the excess
cash available, we have seen spillover in public equity markets with
the likes of SailPoint taken private in a $6.9-billion deal by Thoma
Bravo, a private equity firm, in 2022. This type of transaction increases
the price premium for other AI-related companies.
Speculation
The current narrative around AI companies draws strong parallels
to the Dot-Com Bubble. Just like during the dot-com era, stock
prices are surging on speculation as they announce new AI projects
or developments which could deliver profits but have no clear
avenue to do so. The risk is that many AI-related companies with no
real profits or business models are attracting massive investments,
only to potentially crash when the hype can’t be sustained.
As an example of this, BuzzFeed (a digital media company)
announced that they would integrate AI to create content for
their website. After the announcement, BuzzFeed’s stock surged
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25

BLUE
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INVESTMENT | Markets
by over 150% in just two days. Only to fall in the following months
as it became clear that there was no path to improved profitability
from the AI integration.
This highlights why the effect of the marginal investor on
bubbles is also an important consideration. Retail investors are
generally more susceptible to speculative and herd behaviour,
which can contribute to the formation and growth of asset price
bubbles. In contrast, institutional investors, with their greater
access to information and more disciplined investment approach,
are less likely to drive bubble dynamics. The dominance of retail
investors in a market can therefore increase the likelihood of bubble
formation, as their emotional and trend-following behaviour can
amplify speculation. The rise of the retail investor, particularly in
US equity markets, has been a hallmark of the potential bubblebuilding
in AI-linked asset prices.
While the development of AI technologies holds immense
promise, the current hype and price behaviour of AI-linked stocks
may very well be indicative of a bubble, especially given that every
single one of our Bubble Triangle criteria is being met. However,
it is essential to note that the AI industry is still in its early stages,
and the long-term impact of these technologies remains uncertain.
As the AI industry continues to evolve, there is the potential that
some companies like Nvidia, where there are good underlying
businesses, can generate positive returns for investors despite price
action. The starting point is tough though, with high expectations
already reflected in share prices.
That is the challenge with markets. You cannot say with certainty
that you are in the midst of a bubble. You can only test it against
previous experiences. Ultimately, the approach to navigating
markets should not be binary. The key is to apply a disciplined,
fundamentally driven approach that carefully evaluates the
underlying merits and risks of specific opportunities, while also
maintaining a diversified portfolio that can weather the ups and
downs of the market cycle.
The current narrative around
AI companies draws strong
parallels to the Dot-Com Bubble.
Stuart Copely, Head of Investment Process, Fundhouse
1. This framework was created by Quinn, William, and John D. Turner and popularised via their book: Boom and Bust: A Global History of Financial Bubbles. Cambridge University Press, 2020.
2. The “Roaring Twenties” refers to the 1920s, a decade of rapid economic growth and speculative investment, fuelled by easy credit and investor optimism.
This created a bubble in stocks and real estate. The bubble burst in 1929, leading to the Wall Street Crash and the onset of the Great Depression.
3. Margin lending is the practice of borrowing money from a broker to buy securities, using the purchased securities as collateral, allowing investors to leverage their investments but increasing their risk.
4. By mid-2020, the US personal savings rate hit a record 33%.
26 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

BLUE
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INVESTING | Equity funds
How people become wealthy
Some people strike gold with a lottery ticket, others marry into wealth or inherit a fortune.
But the true architect of enduring
wealth? People who patiently invest in
high-quality companies that grow and
compound over time.
Think Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway,
Bernard Arnault and Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy,
Bill Gates and Microsoft, Mark Zuckerberg and
Meta and closer to home, icons Jannie Mouton
and PSG, Michiel Le Roux and Capitec as well as
Johann Rupert and Richemont come to mind.
Building wealth over the long term presents two
investing challenges:
1. Identifying high-quality companies that have
the potential to compound over time.
2. Having the discipline to stay invested, even when
patience runs thin – because compounding
takes time, and most people struggle to wait
for the payoff.
The Mazi Global Equity team, led by seasoned
global fund manager, Andreas van der Horst,
embraces a quality investment philosophy
designed to tackle these two essential
investment challenges. Mazi’s approach
combines a time-tested philosophy with a
meticulous, repeatable process, ensuring
consistent and disciplined execution.
The philosophy is crucial as it removes
subjectivity, ensuring that the portfolio
manager and team objectively identify
genuinely high-quality companies with
compounding potential, while minimising
risk and the potential loss of investor capital.
Following a quality investment philosophy de
facto ensures that risky companies are eliminated from investing as they don’t
meet the rigorous investment criteria of high-quality companies, e.g. low debt,
sustainable future cash flows, high returns on invested capital (RoIC) or high
economic value add (EVA).
Deckers' five-year share performance.
Deckers Outdoor, known for HOKA running shoes and the fashionable UGG
footwear brand, is a great example of our process. Mazi’s global team recognised the
company’s exceptional qualities, growing market share and unique product offering,
portending sustainable profits for years to come. Deckers has delivered, to the end
of November 2024, for our investors a compound annual return of 85% in US dollars.
The success of Mazi’s investment approach shines through in the performance
figures of Reference Feeder Fund, but present performance of UCTIS fund,
launched during the tumultuous equity market peak of the Covid era. This success
paved the way for creating the offshore, Ireland-domiciled, USD-denominated
Mazi Global Equity Fund, offering our investors both rand and US dollar access to
our high-quality global investment solution. The fund is a Bank of Ireland regulated
Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) fund and
its management company is Prescient Ireland.
The takeaway? The Mazi Global Equity team invests in great companies and lets time
do the work… compound into wealth for our investors.
28 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

BLUE
CHIP
FINANCIAL PLANNING | Retirement
Timing [time in] is everything
Wealth generation and preservation.
Given current longevity trends, it’s not unusual for
people to live to 95. This means that they can spend
up to 30 years living off the capital they spent 40 or
so years generating. For many investors, this wealth
preservation phase is likely to be a longer term than they have
planned for. It’s important therefore that investors do not derisk
their portfolios too early and reduce their potential returns as they
could face financial shortfalls in their later years.
The following example highlights the benefit of not derisking
too soon:
A person starts his wealth generation journey in his 20s
and builds his savings nest egg until age 60. He invests in high
equity funds throughout the wealth accumulation phase and
preservation phase. This allows him to draw 5% pa of his capital
to fund his lifestyle until he reaches 90.
This scenario only works if he remains invested in high equity
funds. If he had derisked at retirement (65 years) or suddenly got
nervous about the markets and wanted to move from high equity
to a typical income or defensive fund, he would have earned
returns of inflation +2%. While he may feel comfortable for some
time by not experiencing the volatility in the markets, he will run
out of money 11 years sooner than if he had remained invested
in high equity funds.
The switch from high to low equity or income funds usually
happens at the time when retirement annuities are transferred
into living annuities. The reason for the underperformance
is because most returns are realised after retirement. In fact,
87% of investment returns are generated during this phase.
Unfortunately, most people think they should derisk at the point
of retirement, which may be a monumental mistake.
It is advisable to have at least 60% of your portfolio invested in
equities and between 25% and 55% in offshore assets to ensure
that you maximise the probability of achieving successful lifestyle
goals. From an investment perspective, investors must really take
care not to derisk too much or too early.
This is where your wealth manager is worth their weight in
gold. It is important to establish this relationship during your
wealth creation phase. Meet regularly so that your financial
advisor understands you and ensures that you remain on track
with your wealth goals.
“Even the wealthiest of families are often resource-constrained
in their capacity to allocate financial, intellectual and social
capital to their aspirations,” says Grant Alexander, director, Private
Client Holdings, a boutique multi-Family Office in Cape Town.
“Sophisticated cash flow modelling software helps to represent
client goals graphically, which enables us to track progress and
the probability of success over time. We have regular check-ins to
ensure that the client remains aligned as their goals evolve over
time. The power of this process is that it keeps clients engaged and
invested,” adds Alexander.
The industry treats the wealth generation and preservation
phases differently and manages them according to a client’s
risk profile, which may shift from growth to balanced over time.
Private Client Holdings treats both phases as a whole journey
and not as two separate parts. The wealth creation mindset
continues throughout the wealth generation and preservation
journey, with defensive assets only used to fund relatively
short-term (ie < 5 years) cash requirements, while the balance
of capital remains invested in growth assets.
The company applies a Goals-Based Wealth Management
approach, which involves spending time with an advisor to
establish what your financial priorities are. In most cases, the
lifestyle goals (primary residence cost, living expenses, etc) are
the most important, with any excess capital applied to other goals
like buying a second property or leaving a legacy. “We evaluate
the timeline as to when the capital will be required and apply a
risk and return profile and optimise the mix of assets to suit each
goal independently. These strategies then run side by side, so the
focus is on the journey towards the goals and not on short-term
noise,” says Alexander.
Grant Alexander, Founder and Director, Private Client Holdings
PRIVATE CLIENT HOLDINGS IS AN AUTHORISED FINANCIAL SERVICES PROVIDER (LICENCE #613). Private Client Holdings has taken care to ensure that all the information provided herein is true and
accurate. Private Client Holdings will therefore not be held responsible for any inaccuracies in the information herein. The above content does not constitute advice and the reader should contact the
author for any related concerns. Private Client Holdings shall not be responsible and disclaims all loss, liability or expense of any nature whatsoever which may be attributable (directly, indirectly or
consequentially) to the use of the information provided.
30 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

BLUE
CHIP
INVESTMENT | Asset manager
Curate Investments:
The art of investing
Curate Investments is a new asset manager that opened in 2024 with a clear mission: to find the best
people to look after its clients’ money and provide clients with access to top-tier global expertise,
whatever their investment goals. Blue Chip speaks to CEO, Ray Mhere.
Ray, please tell us about the trajectory of your
professional journey to your current position as CEO
of Curate Investments.
I began my career at Allan Gray, where I spent a decade
in various roles across operations and distribution.
My final position there was Johannesburg regional
manager, overseeing the company’s strategic
expansion in the region.
In March 2020, I joined Momentum as Head of
Investment Distribution, responsible for marketing
and distributing Momentum Investments to financial
advisers across South Africa. I later served as Head
of Retail Business at Prescient before setting out to
launch Curate Investments in February 2023.
What is your academic history?
I am currently pursuing an Executive MBA at the
University of Oxford. I hold a Bachelor of Commerce
degree in Economics and Law from the University of
Cape Town and a Postgraduate Diploma in Financial
Planning from the University of the Free State.
Curate officially opened its doors in August 2024. As
the CEO, what are your objectives for Curate?
My primary goal is to establish Curate as a trusted
asset manager known for delivering on its promises
to clients. We aim to be a global business rooted in
simplicity, excellence and relevance. We treat our
investors as real people by being transparent and
straightforward in everything we say and do.
Ray Mhere, CEO, Curate Investments
Please provide a brief overview of Curate, as well as
its goals and philosophy.
We give investors the comfort of knowing that we
have handpicked top managers for each of our funds,
so they do not have the hassle of choosing between
thousands of funds. Our comprehensive fund range
provides investors with the strategies they need to
meet their different goals.
32 30 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

INVESTMENT | Asset manager
BLUE
CHIP
What is the art of investing?
To curate is to care for or collect the best to put on display.
Therefore, as our name would suggest, it's in our DNA to handpick
the best people to take care of your money. Unlike many asset
managers, we don’t manage the funds ourselves. Instead, we’ve
searched for exceptional teams of people with different skills to
manage each one of our funds.
With decades of experience and extensive knowledge, our
fund research team has identified great people who align with our
values and can meet investor expectations so you can be confident
that you and your clients’ money is in good hands. Quite simply,
what we do comes from the quality of the people we work with.
That is the art of investing.
We aim to be a global
business rooted in simplicity,
excellence and relevance.
How do you curate your fund managers?
Selecting the right people is at the heart of what we do. Curate’s
disciplined and rigorous selection process seeks out outstanding
investment teams, wherever they may be across the world.
Our process entails extensive research, evaluating managers
based on their track records, philosophies and ability to deliver
long-term value. We also believe in looking beyond the numbers.
We are looking for long-term partners who show professional
integrity, loyalty and alignment with our values and expectations.
Each team we appoint also needs to offer something unique.
They must have a distinct approach or quality that makes them
stand out, so that we know we are offering investors something
they won’t find anywhere else – whether it’s a novel approach
to risk management, a specialised focus on niche markets or a
distinctive investment philosophy.
Please give an overview of your selection of unit trust funds.
Curate offers solutions designed to complement advisory services,
including local and global equity funds, fixed-income solutions,
a global property-focused strategy and a multi-asset balanced
fund. Each fund is designed to provide a unique value proposition,
managed by specialists who are leaders in their respective fields.
As we expand, we will offer a comprehensive range of local and
international funds, ensuring investors have access to all necessary
strategies in one place.
Curate recently introduced three new global equity funds.
Please expand.
In addition to two hard currency funds (and their respective
feeder funds) managed by Robeco, who are the world leaders in
systematic/enhanced indexing strategies, Curate has launched
three new global equity funds that are actively managed. For the
first time in South Africa, Curate clients will exclusively have access
to highly rated global managers including:
• Jennison Associates. Experts in identifying growth-oriented
companies with exceptional earnings potential, delivering a
focused portfolio of high-growth opportunities.
• Lyrical Asset Management. A value-driven specialist that
targets undervalued businesses poised for long-term success,
leveraging disciplined analysis to uncover quality hidden within
the market’s cheapest shares.
• Evenlode Investment Management. Dedicated to sustainable
income and capital preservation, with a focus on high-quality
companies demonstrating dividend growth and resilience.
These three new funds reflect our promise to connect investors
with globally renowned asset managers, offering diverse strategies
to meet varying investment goals.
To curate is to care for or collect
the best to put on display. By
choosing Curate, investors benefit
from the art of investing.
Why choose Curate? How do investors benefit by investing in
Curate funds?
Our mission is to deliver relevant and meaningful investment
solutions to investors by partnering with the best fund managers
locally and globally. We aim to simplify investing. We’ve scoured
the globe to find the best people to manage each of our unit
trusts, so our investors don’t need to search through thousands of
different funds to find reliable and trustworthy managers – we’ve
done that work for them.
Our emphasis on transparency ensures that investors are always
informed about their portfolios. Moreover, our rigorous manager
selection and oversight processes guarantee that every fund meets
our high standards. By choosing Curate, investors benefit from the
art of investing.
31
www.bluechipdigital.co.za 33

Curate local local funds
Client Client
need need being being
addressed
Fund Fund
Underlying
manager
Unique Unique attributes about about the the underlying manager
Curate Curate Momentum
Enhanced Yield Yield Fund Fund
Curate Curate Momentum
Income Flexible Flexible Income Income Fund Fund
Curate Curate Momentum
Income Income Plus Plus Fund Fund
Curate Curate Momentum
Balanced Fund Fund
Capital Curate Curate Momentum
Growth Equity Equity Fund Fund
Curate Curate Momentum
Flexible Flexible Property Property
Fund Fund
Momentum Fixed Fixed Income Income has has access access to to extensive expertise, research research and and
investment opportunities that that would would be outside be outside the the reach reach of most of most other other
managers. Their Their credit credit processes leverage leverage the the group’s group’s debt debt origination team team
to to introduce them them to to corporate funding funding deals deals that that other other asset asset managers
would would not not have have sight sight of. of.
Visio Visio seeks seeks to unlock to unlock value value by actively by actively engaging with with companies’
management teams. teams. They They prioritise prioritise thorough research research to to minimise risk risk for for
investors, always always investing with with a margin a margin of safety of safety to preserve to preserve capital capital and and
avoid avoid significant losses. losses.
Laurium Laurium is large is large enough enough to be to credible, be credible, but but small small enough enough to be to nimble be nimble thus thus
able able to move to move quickly quickly to take to take advantage of the of the opportunities that that it sees, it sees,
generating the the best best outcomes for for investors. The The diversity diversity of of backgrounds
and and experience in the in the team team contributes to to Laurium’s ability ability to find to find and and take take
advantage of great of great investment ideas. ideas.
As a As a specialist property property fund fund manager, Sesfikile Sesfikile has has an an experienced team team of of
experts experts focused focused on finding on finding opportunities in the in the listed listed real real estate estate sector sector around around
the the world. world. The The team team members come come from from a diverse a diverse range range of of backgrounds,
ensuring ensuring that that different different perspectives are are always always present present in any in any decision. decision.
S
E
E
C
R
6
Curate global funds
Client Client
need need being being
addressed
Fund Fund
Underlying
manager
Unique Unique attributes about about the the underlying manager
Rand-denominated
Curate Curate Momentum
Global Global Sustainable
Equity Equity Feeder Feeder Fund Fund
Curate Curate Momentum
Global Global Emerging
Markets Markets Equity Equity
Feeder Feeder Fund Fund
Foreign currency
Curate Curate Global Global
Sustainable Equity Equity
Fund Fund ($ / ($ £) / £)
Global Global Curate Curate Global Global
Emerging Markets Markets
Equity Equity Fund Fund ($) ($)
Curate Curate Global Global Value Value
Equity Equity Fund Fund ($) ($)
Curate Curate Global Global Quality Quality
Equity Equity Fund Fund ($) ($)
Curate Curate Global Global Growth Growth
Equity Equity Fund Fund ($) ($)
Robeco Robeco is a is world a world leader leader in in systematic and and sustainable investing solutions solutions and and
believes believes every every strategy strategy should should be be research-driven.
Robeco Robeco is a is world a world leader leader in in systematic and and sustainable investing solutions solutions and and
believes believes every every strategy strategy should should be be research-driven.
New New York-based Lyrical Lyrical Asset Asset Management is a is a specialist boutique firm firm that that
focuses focuses on on analysing the the cheapest 20% 20% of shares of shares across across the the world, world, aiming aiming to to
find find the the Gems Gems Amid Amid the the Junk. Junk.
Evenlode Investment Management, an independent firm firm based based out out of West of West
Oxfordshire, looks looks to identify to identify exceptional companies with with strong strong competitive
advantages that that will will persist persist into into the the future. future.
Jennison Jennison Associates is focused is focused on consistently identifying innovation
and and disruptive ideas ideas that that will will drive drive growth. growth. It prizes It prizes independent thought, thought,
considered risk-taking, and and delivering outperformance for investors.
Local Fund Local Disclaimer: Fund Disclaimer: This document This document was prepared was prepared by Curate by Curate Investments Investments (Pty) Ltd (Pty) (“Curate”). Ltd (“Curate”). Curate is an authorised an authorised financial financial services services provider provider (FSP No. (FSP 53549). No. 53549). Registration Registration number number 2023/747232/07. 2023/747232/07. The information The information given in given this document in this document is for investment is for investment professionals professionals and is only and for is only gen
information information this document, in this document, including including opinions opinions expressed, expressed, is derived is derived from proprietary from proprietary and non-proprietary and non-proprietary sources sources that Curate that Curate deems deems reliable, reliable, and are and not are necessarily not necessarily all inclusive all inclusive but are but accurate are accurate at the publication the publication date. For date. investments For investments collective in collective investment investment schemes schemes (CIS), please (CIS), pleas refer
without without the prior the written prior written consent consent of Curate. of Curate. While we While make we all make reasonable all reasonable attempts attempts to ensure to ensure the accuracy the accuracy of the information of the information this document, in this document, neither neither Curate Curate nor its affiliated nor its affiliated companies, companies, make any make express any express or implied or implied warranty warranty about the about accuracy the accuracy of the information of the information this document. in this document. Past perf Pa
Global Global Fund Disclaimer: Fund Disclaimer: This a This marketing is a marketing communication. communication. Collective Collective investments investments are generally are generally medium medium to long-term to long-term investments. investments. The value The of value units of may units go may down go as down well as well up and as up past and performance past performance is not necessarily is not necessarily a guide a to guide the future. to the future. Collective Collective investments investments are traded are traded at ruling at
their own their charges. own charges. Higher Higher risk investments risk investments include, include, but are but not are limited not limited to, investments to, investments smaller in smaller companies, companies, even in even developed in developed markets, markets, investments investments emerging emerging markets markets or single or country single country debt or debt equity or equity funds and funds investments and investments high in yield high or yield non-investment or non-investment grade debt. grade Foreign debt. Foreign securiti s
the availability the availability of market of market information. information. Investment Investment in the Fund in the may Fund not may be not suitable be suitable for all investors. for all investors. Investors Investors should should obtain obtain advice advice from their from financial their financial adviser adviser before before proceeding proceeding with an with investment. an investment. This document This document should should be read be in read conjunction in conjunction with the with prospectus the prospectus of Momentum of Momentum Global GFu
relating relating to the Fund to the or Fund its underlying or its underlying investments. investments. It is for It information is information purposes purposes only and only has and been has prepared been prepared and is made and is available made available for the for benefit the benefit of the investors. of the investors. While all While care all has care been has taken been by taken the by Investment the Investment Manager Manager in the preparation in the preparation of the information of the information contained contained this document,
in this or omissions or omissions in the information. the information. This Fund This is Fund a sub-fund is a sub-fund of the Momentum of the Momentum Global Global Funds SICAV, Funds SICAV, which is which domiciled is domiciled in Luxembourg in Luxembourg and regulated and regulated by the by Commission the Commission de Surveillance de Surveillance du Secteur du Secteur Financier. Financier. The Fund The conforms Fund conforms to the requirements to the requirements of the European of the European UCITS Directive. UCITS Directive. FundRock Fund M
Depositary Depositary with its with registered its registered office at office European at European Bank & Bank Business & Business Centre, Centre, 6, route 6, de route Trèves, de Trèves, L-2633 L-2633 Senningerberg, Senningerberg, Luxembourg. Luxembourg. Telephone+352 Telephone+352 462 6851. 462 This 6851. document This document is issued issued by Momentum by Momentum Global Global Investment Investment Management Management Limited Limited (MGIM). (MGIM). is MGIM the Investment is the Investment Manager, Manager, Promoter
regulated regulated by the by Financial the Financial Conduct Conduct Authority Authority No. 232357, No. 232357, and is exempt and is exempt from the from requirements the requirements of section of section 7(1) of the 7(1) Financial of the Financial Advisory Advisory and Intermediary and Intermediary Services Services Act 37 of Act 2002 37 of (FAIS) 2002 in (FAIS) South in Africa, South Africa, in terms in of terms the FSCA of the FAIS FSCA Notice FAIS Notice 141 of 2021 141 of (published 2021 (published 15 December 15 December 2021). Either 2021). Momentu Either M

Annual Annual
Management
Benchmark
Fee Fee
(excl (excl VAT) VAT)
Why Why use use this this fund? fund?
TeFI STeFI + 0.5% + 0.5% p.a. p.a.
0.40% 0.40% The The fund fund is is designed to give to give investors a slightly a slightly higher higher return return than than they they can can earn earn from from a bank a bank deposit deposit or a or money a money
(B5-class) market market fund. fund.
STeFI STeFI + 1.5% + 1.5% p.a. p.a.
0.45% 0.45%
(C-class)
Best Best of blend of blend fixed fixed income income mandate that that allows allows the the team team to access to access the the best best opportunities across across the the fixed fixed
income income landscape.
STeFI STeFI + 2.5% + 2.5% p.a. p.a.
0.60% 0.60% Unique Unique credit credit fund fund that that can can also also access access interesting opportunities which which most most other other funds funds cannot cannot because because of the of the
(C1-class) backing backing of a of large a large institution. This This offers offers diversification benefits benefits due due to a to low a low correlation with with other other asset asset classes. classes.
ASISA ASISA Multi- Multi-
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ASISA ASISA General General
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An equity An equity fund fund that that invests invests South in South African African and and global global companies, aiming aiming to diversify to diversify risks risks and and build build a a balanced
portfolio portfolio to to outperform other other local local equity equity funds. funds.
Composite: 40% 40%
NGR RNGR (ZAR) (ZAR) and and
0% 60% ALPI ALPI (J803T) (J803T)
1% 1%
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A A specialist property property fund fund that that can can invest invest local in local and and global global property.
Annual Annual
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Why Why use use this this fund? fund?
MSCI MSCI World World NR NR
Index Index
0.2%* 0.2%*
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A A low-cost, low-tracking error, error, data data driven driven fund fund aiming aiming to to outperform developed markets markets whilst whilst integrating
sustainability.
MSCI MSCI Emerging
Markets Markets NR USD NR USD
0.2%* 0.2%*
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A A low-cost, low-tracking error, error, data data driven driven fund fund aiming aiming to to outperform emerging markets. markets.
MSCI MSCI World World NR NR
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0.3% 0.3%
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0.4% 0.4%
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A A low-cost, low-tracking error, error, data data driven driven fund fund aiming aiming to to outperform emerging markets. markets.
MSCI MSCI World World NR NR
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0.85% 0.85%
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A A concentrated global global equity equity fund fund that that buys buys shares shares reflecting its its investment philosophy, which which centres centres on the on the
most most critical critical factors factors of returns: of returns: price price and and future future earnings.
MSCI MSCI World World NR NR
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MSCI MSCI ACWI ACWI NR NR
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0.85% 0.85%
(R-class)
0.85% 0.85%
(R-class)
A A concentrated global global equity equity fund fund that that invests invests high in high quality, quality, cash cash generative companies that that are are bought bought at at
sensible sensible valuations.
Curate Curate Investments | August | August 2024 2024
A A concentrated global global equity equity fund fund that that invests invests innovative, market-leading companies with with significant
competitive advantages in industries with with high high growth growth potential.
* excluding * excluding fees pertaining fees pertaining to the underlying to the underlying fund fund
for eral general information information purposes purposes and not and not invitation an invitation or solicitation or solicitation to invest. to The invest. information The information is not intended is not intended to be accounting, to be accounting, tax, investment, tax, investment, legal or legal other or professional other professional advice advice or services or services as set out as set in the out Financial the Financial Advisory Advisory and Intermediary and Intermediary Services Services (FAIS) Act, (FAIS) 37 Act, of 2002, 37 of or 2002, otherwise. or otherwise. The The
e to refer the minimum to the minimum disclosure disclosure documents documents (MDDs), (MDDs), which are which available are available from the from CIS the Manager’s CIS Manager’s website website and curate.co.za. and curate.co.za. The MDD The contains MDD contains detailed detailed investment investment information information relating relating to each to CIS each portfolio. CIS portfolio. The information The information contained contained this document in this document may not may be not used, be published used, published or redistributed or redistributed
st performance is not necessarily is not necessarily a guide a for guide future for returns. future returns. Financial Financial advisers advisers should should conduct conduct a suitability a suitability analysis analysis and due and diligence due diligence with clients with clients on the on investments the investments mentioned mentioned in this document in this document as part as of part their of investment their investment mandate mandate investment and investment advice advice process. process.
prices. ruling prices. Commission Commission and incentives and incentives may be may paid be and, paid if so, and, would if so, be would included be included the overall in the overall costs. All costs. performance All performance is calculated is calculated on a total on a return total basis, return after basis, deduction after deduction of all fees of all and fees commissions and commissions and in and US dollar in US terms. dollar terms. The Fund The invests Fund invests other in collective other collective investments, investments, which levy which levy
es ecurities may have may additional have additional material material risks, depending risks, depending on the on specific the specific risks affecting risks affecting that country, that country, such as: such potential as: potential constraints constraints liquidity on liquidity and the and repatriation the repatriation of funds; of macroeconomic funds; macroeconomic risks; political risks; political risks; foreign risks; foreign exchange exchange risks; tax risks; risks; tax settlement risks; settlement risks; and risks; potential and potential limitations limitations on
lobal nds, Funds, in which in all which the current all the current fees additional fees additional disclosures, disclosures, risk of investment risk of investment and fund and facts fund are facts disclosed. are disclosed. This document This document should should not be not construed be construed as an investment as an investment advertisement, advertisement, or investment or investment advice advice or guidance or guidance or proposal or proposal or or recommendation in any form in any whatsoever, form whatsoever, whether whether
ument, neither neither Manager the Manager nor Investment nor Investment Manager Manager make any make representations any representations or give or any give warranties any warranties as to the as correctness, to the correctness, accuracy accuracy or completeness or completeness of the information, of the information, nor does nor either does either Manager the Manager or Investment or Investment Manager Manager assume assume liability liability or responsibility or responsibility for any for losses any arising losses arising from errors from errors
Rock anagement Management Company Company S.A., incorporated S.A., incorporated Luxembourg, in Luxembourg, is the Management is the Management Company Company with its with registered its registered office at office 33, Rue at 33, de Rue Gasperich, de Gasperich, L-5826 L-5826 Hesperange, Hesperange, Luxembourg. Luxembourg. Telephone+352 Telephone+352 271 111. J.P. 271 Morgan 111. J.P. Morgan Bank Luxembourg Bank Luxembourg S.A., incorporated S.A., incorporated Luxembourg, in Luxembourg, is the Administrator is the Administrator and and
and moter Distributor and Distributor for the for Momentum the Momentum Global Global Funds SICAV. Funds SICAV. MGIM is MGIM registered registered in England in England Wales and No. Wales 03733094. No. 03733094. Registered Registered Office: Office: The Rex The Building, Rex Building, 62 Queen 62 Queen Street, Street, London London EC4R 1EB. EC4R Telephone+44 1EB. Telephone+44 (0)20 7489 (0)20 7489 7223EmailDistributionServices@momentum.co.uk. MGIM is MGIM authorised authorised and and
omentum m Global Global Investment Investment Management Management Limited Limited (MGIM) (MGIM) or FundRock or FundRock Management Management Company Company S.A., the S.A., management the management company, company, may terminate may terminate arrangements arrangements for marketing for marketing under the under denotification the denotification process process in the new in the Cross-border new Cross-border Distribution Distribution Directive (Directive (Directive EU) 2019/1160” EU) 2019/1160”

Curate handpicks the best people
to look after your money
To identify the best people to manage our funds, Curate goes through a disciplined and
rigorous selection process that seeks out outstanding people, wherever they may be
across the world. Here are the five steps in our selection process:
1. Find managers who have shown their ability to deliver
The process starts with quantitative screening, to identify managers who have produced the kinds of returns that
might match Curate’s specific mandates.
However, the numbers themselves are less important than understanding how those numbers came about. They
must be true to their philosophy and are consistent in the way they make decisions.
2. Analyse managers to find the qualities we are looking for
2.1 Core belief system
We want to see the specific traits that we believe make for outstanding managers. They must be experienced
professionals, that are passionate about delivering on objectives for investors, that they are committed to what they
are doing, and that they can recognise and learn from their mistakes. Vitally, they must have a core belief system
that guides their thinking.
2.2 Alignment with client interests
One of the big differentiators we look for is the alignment of interests within the business. Does the culture focus
on performance rather than gathering assets, and are team members incentivised accordingly? Do the people
managing money have real “skin in the game” either by being shareholders in the business, having their own money
in their funds, or both? We want to see that teams have autonomy to make decisions and that the way the business
is structured supports their ability to do so.
2.3 Business stability and focus
The businesses themselves must be stable and financially sound. We want to see close-knit teams that have stayed
together, and where roles are clearly defined. They should be hungry for success through delivering for investors, set
themselves high targets and have the competitive drive to be the best in their field.
Having a clear focus is important. We look for managers who understand their key strengths and have a range of
products that match that. Their fees also need to be appropriate, both to be fair to investors and to support the business.
2.4 Robust risk management
Since we believe that the best way to help investors stick to their journey is by making sure that they get as few
surprises along the way as possible, we spend a lot of time analysing how managers think about and deal with risk.
They should be constantly learning, evolving and incorporating new ideas to improve the outcomes for investors.
2.5 Unique offerings
To deliver something that is truly differentiated for our investors, our partners must be differentiated themselves.
We want to partner with innovative people who have a distinct approach or quality so that we know we are offering
investors something they won’t find anywhere else.
3. Visit the managers to better understand them
We visit the managers to observe how they work, and how they make decisions. We aim to evaluate beyond the
numbers. Our experienced team can thoroughly assess a manager from many angles, separating hype from substance.
Any manager that we pick up through the screening process are thoroughly scrutinised, questioned and analysed.
Curate – Manager selection process | 1

4. Select the best people for our investors
We select the best people to partner with us on each of our funds, setting up long-term relationships that will deliver
results for our investors.
People Process Business
• Talented and quality experience • Clear, coherent philosophy • Long-term investment mindset
• Small decision-making teams • Clear competitive advantage
• Asset management is the
core business
• Adequate depth of resources
• Cultural alignment and clear
belief system
• Strong recruitment and training
• Adequate macro awareness
in process
• Thorough vs opportunistic
research
• Fluid decision making (little
bureaucracy)
• Stable ownership, financing
and staffing
• Strong compliance technology
• Willingness to limit asset growth
• Low staff turnover • Ability to access small stocks • Employee ownership
• Strong portfolio construction
• Good understanding of risk
5. Monitor managers to ensure that they keep meeting our high standards
While our focus is on long-term performance, our scrutiny of how each of our funds is being managed is constant.
We are continuously monitoring the decisions managers make, whether they exhibit consistent behaviour, and how
each fund is performing to make sure that they are meeting our expectations.
Buy discipline
Sell discipline
Appoint
manager
Sell
manager
What we’re looking for:
Sell indicators
Manager
evaluation
Sound philosophy
Disciplined process
Proven team/implementation
Robust capacity
management
Alignment of interests
Business stability
Continuous
monitoring
Upgrade decision
Key individual/ team leaves
Poor capacity management
Inconsistent behaviour
Negative corporate change
Operational issues
Manager
re-evaluation
Idea
generation
Re-evaluate
universe
Our unique range of funds takes the complication out of choosing between funds because
we have identified exceptional teams of people with different skills to manage each of our funds.
Quite simply, what we do comes from the quality of the people we work with.
That is the Art of Investing.
Curate – Manager selection process | 2
Curate Investments (Pty) Ltd is an authorised financial services provider (FSP No. 53549). Registration number 2023/747232/07. This document is not an offer to purchase any specific investment fund and
should not to be construed as financial advice from Curate. Investors are encouraged to obtain independent professional investment advice before making investment decisions. The terms and conditions,
frequently asked questions as well as the minimum disclosure document (MDD) and quarterly investor report (QIR) for each investment fund are available on curate.co.za.

BLUE
CHIP
INVESTMENT | Private equity
Unlocking China’s high-growth
potential for South African investors
As Altvest Capital prepares to investigate the feasibility of a launch of the Altvest Orient Opportunities Fund
on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, we are excited to present an unprecedented opportunity for South
African investors to access one of the world’s most dynamic and promising venture capital markets: China.
This listing brings to South Africa an investment vehicle
previously reserved for institutional and high-net-worth
individuals, offering retail investors and retirement funds
access to the unparalleled growth and diversification
opportunities that Chinese venture capital (VC) provides.
My recent visit to China cemented my confidence in the
country’s powerful economic trajectory, particularly in sectors
like technology, biotechnology and renewable energy. These
industries are aligned with China’s long-term growth objectives
and bolstered by robust government support, creating an
environment where innovative companies are scaling rapidly.
Through the Altvest Orient Opportunities Fund (AOOF), Altvest
is making these exclusive opportunities available on the
Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), marking a pivotal shift in
South African investment options.
A gateway to China’s thriving VC ecosystem
The VC market in China is the second largest globally, driven
by the country’s evolution from “the world’s factory” to a hightech
innovator. China’s VC landscape is bolstered by a booming
domestic market, extensive R&D investment and government
support in targeted sectors. This presents tremendous growth
potential in industries at the forefront of global innovation, such
as artificial intelligence, life sciences and renewable energy. For
instance, companies like WeRide in autonomous driving and
Zeekr in electric vehicles are scaling to global prominence with
support from the VC ecosystem. The country’s five-year plans
specifically promote growth in these sectors, giving investors
in Chinese venture capital a unique alignment with national
strategic priorities.
However, the exclusivity of Chinese venture capital has meant
that most retail investors cannot participate due to high minimum
investments, commitment-based structures and limited liquidity.
Traditional VC funds typically require large sums of committed
capital, sometimes locked for a decade or more with no secondary
market for exits. In contrast, AOOF’s listing on the JSE addresses
these barriers by providing retail investors a pathway to highgrowth
opportunities within a regulated, publicly-traded structure.
Structured for flexibility and high-growth potential
Altvest has designed the AOOF with a phased, diversified
investment strategy to manage risk and maintain flexibility. The
initial capital raised will be placed in liquid, China-focused public
equities and short-term treasury instruments, ensuring immediate
exposure to Chinese economic trends while providing a flexible
treasury function. This strategy allows us to deploy capital into
high-potential, venture-backed startups as opportunities arise.
RisCura, our trusted partner in managing AOOF, brings significant
38
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INVESTMENT | Private equity
BLUE
CHIP
local presence and expertise in China, leveraging deep networks
and due diligence capabilities to navigate this complex market.
With over a decade of experience in Chinese markets, RisCura
offers essential on-the-ground insights, an invaluable advantage
when investing in emerging markets.
The AOOF then transitions to a focus on venture capital,
capitalising on high-growth companies at various stages of
development. This approach diversifies the portfolio across
emerging sectors and growth stages, balancing risk while
maximising potential returns. Through our partnership with
RisCura, we’re investing in funds like the Orient Opportunities
China Venture Capital Fund (OOCVCF), gaining access to
exclusive opportunities in sectors identified as core to China’s
growth trajectory.
Comparative fee structure: accessing venture capital without
the premiums
One of the most attractive aspects of the AOOF is its competitive
fee structure. Traditional VC funds charge substantial fees, often
comprising a 2% management fee and 20% performance fee, or
“carry”. For instance, prominent VC funds in the United States and
Europe operate on a “2 and 20” model, which can significantly
impact investor returns, especially over long investment horizons
where fees accumulate.
In contrast, the AOOF offers a 1% annual advisory fee, a 2% initial
fee and a 5% carry, making it a more cost-effective alternative.
This structure benefits both professional and retail investors by
reducing the fee burden, ultimately allowing for more capital to
be deployed in the market and enhancing potential returns. For
South African investors, this means an affordable entry into one of
the world’s fastest-growing VC ecosystems, previously out of reach
for most individuals and smaller funds.
Exclusive access to high-growth markets
The AOOF listing on the JSE democratises access to venture capital
in an emerging market while allowing retail investors to benefit
from a secondary market for potential liquidity. This setup differs
significantly from the commitment-based structures typical in the
venture capital industry, where investors are locked in for long
periods with limited liquidity options. By listing Class D shares,
Altvest provides a flexible exit mechanism – a unique advantage
for retail investors, especially in the venture capital space, where
liquidity is notoriously constrained.
Through the AOOF, retail investors can participate in a
sophisticated asset class with a level of access, transparency and
flexibility that has not been available before. This innovation
aligns with Altvest’s mission to democratise finance, empowering
ordinary South Africans to participate in global growth.
many others may fail or underperform. This pattern is both a risk
and an opportunity: it underscores the importance of selecting the
right investments and the expertise required to navigate volatile
and emerging markets like China.
The AOOF’s structure, which combines immediate liquidity
options with strategic VC investments, is designed to provide a
balanced risk-return profile. However, investors must understand
the volatility inherent in venture capital. Market conditions,
regulatory changes and geopolitical tensions are all factors that
may impact returns, particularly in a complex and fast-evolving
market like China’s. Our partnership with RisCura, a firm with a
decade of experience in Chinese markets, ensures that we are wellpositioned
to navigate these challenges with expert insights and
disciplined management.
Why IFAs should consider AOOF for their clients
For financial advisors, the AOOF represents an innovative addition
to any diversified portfolio. The Fund’s exposure to high-growth
sectors like technology, healthcare and renewable energy – paired
with competitive fees and enhanced liquidity options – offers
a compelling opportunity for clients seeking returns beyond
traditional asset classes. With an expected listing on the JSE, the
AOOF provides IFAs with a unique tool to broaden their clients’
portfolios, particularly in high-potential, non-correlated markets.
The Chinese venture capital market is a powerhouse of
innovation and growth, and we believe that the AOOF provides a
fitting vehicle for South African investors to access this potential.
As Altvest prepares to launch this fund, we invite IFAs and
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERS® to explore how the AOOF can
meet the growing demand for alternative investments among
South African investors.
For more information about the Altvest Orient Opportunities
Fund and how to participate in this landmark offering, please visit
our website or contact our team.
www.altvestcapital.co.za
Understanding the rewards and risks of venture capital
Venture capital is a high-risk, high-reward investment that focuses
on early-stage companies with the potential for exponential
growth. Historically, VC funds follow a “power law” distribution
where a small number of investments yield outsized returns, while
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
39

BLUE
CHIP
INVESTMENT | Private equity
Transforming the private equity landscape
Altvest Capital is a local investment platform committed to democratising access to alternative investments,
primarily in high-growth sectors. Blue Chip caught up with Founder, Warren Wheatley.
Warren, please tell us about Altvest Capital?
By opening access to exclusive opportunities typically reserved for
institutional investors, Altvest empowers ordinary South Africans
to diversify their portfolios beyond traditional assets, gaining
exposure to investments like SMEs, Chinese venture capital and
other alternative asset classes. This mechanism simultaneously
provides a platform for entrepreneurs to raise capital for their
businesses or projects by raising funding from the public. Altvest’s
vision is to redefine private equity and alternative investments for
retail and professional investors alike, providing a flexible platform
to participate in some of the world’s most dynamic growth markets.
What is Altvest’s philosophy and mission?
Our philosophy is centred on democratisation, inclusivity and
driving economic growth. A primary part of our mission is to fund
SMEs and entrepreneurs, strengthening the backbone of our
local economy by providing essential capital to businesses with
potential to scale. We believe that the benefits of high-growth,
high-potential investments should be accessible to a broader base
of investors, not just the wealthy or institutional.
Altvest’s mission is to break down financial barriers by creating
transparent and accessible investment opportunities, allowing South
African investors to access alternative assets and, consequently, help
fuel economic growth both locally and internationally.
How do you fulfil this mission?
We fulfil this mission by developing hybrid financial instruments
and structured investment vehicles that can be listed on public
exchanges like the JSE, providing retail investors and large funds
alike with regulated and liquid access to alternative investments.
Our platform offers a range of options, from equity in SMEs to
venture capital, each designed to meet varying investor needs and
tolerances. Our latest innovation, the Altvest Orient Opportunities
Fund (AOOF), exemplifies this approach, allowing South African
investors to gain exposure to the Chinese venture capital market
– a region traditionally limited to major institutional investors.
Please tell us about Altvest’s Orient Opportunities Fund?
The AOOF is a groundbreaking fund that we are trying to list
on the JSE. Focused on technology, healthcare and renewable
energy, the fund is structured to mitigate risks while maximising
growth potential. Initially, investments are placed in liquid assets
like Chinese equities and short-term treasury bonds, maintaining
flexibility before transitioning capital into venture-backed startups.
Through our partnership with RisCura, the AOOF brings deep
expertise and local knowledge in Chinese markets, allowing us to
navigate regulatory complexities and source exclusive investment
opportunities in line with China’s national strategic priorities.
Altvest recently reached a major milestone and was listed on the
JSE. What is Altvest’s strategy behind this move?
Listing on the JSE was a strategic step for Altvest, one that reflects
our commitment to making high-quality investments accessible to a
broad audience. Through public listings, we’re able to offer liquidity,
transparency and accessibility, especially in asset classes like venture
capital, which traditionally require long-term commitments. By
creating a secondary market, we’re enhancing flexibility and
providing a more accessible, regulated entry point into private
equity and venture capital for South African investors. This strategy
also enables large institutional investors, such as retirement funds, to
diversify into these high-growth sectors with a structure that aligns
with their need for both growth and responsible management.
How is Altvest transforming the private equity landscape?
Altvest is transforming the private equity landscape by breaking
down the exclusivity traditionally associated with private equity
and venture capital. Through our structured products and public
listings, we are providing both retail and institutional investors
with access to high-growth markets that would typically require
substantial capital and a willingness to commit for long periods.
Our approach includes creating a regulated secondary market,
allowing for liquidity where it has historically been limited. This
transformation means that private equity investments, like
those in Chinese VC through the AOOF, are now accessible with
a level of flexibility and transparency that aligns with modern
investors’ needs.
What does this mean for South Africa?
For South Africa, Altvest’s approach means broadening financial
inclusivity and stimulating economic growth. By allowing retail
investors to participate in alternative assets,
we’re enabling South Africans to diversify
their wealth and take part in global growth
opportunities. Additionally, as capital flows into
SME development and high-growth sectors
through funds like AOOF, South Africa stands to
benefit from increased economic participation,
job creation and innovation. Altvest is helping to
bridge local capital with international and local
high-growth opportunities, creating a positive
cycle of economic empowerment and financial
resilience for South Africans.
Warren Wheatley
CA (SA), CFP®,
Founder, Altvest
40 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

INVEST IN CHINA’S HIGH-GROWTH
VENTURE CAPITAL MARKET
Access exposure to some of the most innovative new businesses in the world,
operating in one of the world’s fastest-growing economies.
HIGHLIGHTS:
Economic exposure to a VC Fund of Funds that we intend to LIST
on regulated exchanges for convenient access and liquidity;
Invest alongside some of the largest institutional investors in
the world, in affordable increments for your clients;
Gain exposure to potential unicorns across technology,
healthcare, and renewable energy;
Chinese venture capital looks poised to deliver annual returns
in excess of 25% over the life of the Fund.
TO LEARN MORE SCAN THE QR CODE OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE
To secure early access contact your stock broker,
financial advisor or enquire at
info@altvestcapital.co.za or
visit www.altvestcapital.co.za
The ordinary and preference shares of Altvest Capital Limited, registration number
2021/540736/06, are listed on the Alternative Exchange of the JSE and A2X,
respectively. Advice and intermediary services are rendered by Altvest Wealth (Pty) Ltd
, an authorised financial services provider, FSP No. 45810, and Altvest Securities (Pty)
Ltd, which is a juristic representative of Altvest Wealth (Pty) Ltd. This document is for
information purposes only, and does not constitute advice. Opinions expressed in this
document may be changed without notice at any time after publication.

BLUE
CHIP
FINANCIAL PLANNING | Offshore
Financial planning for clients who are emigrating
Since formal emigration through the Reserve Bank was phased out in 2021, global mobility has become more
accessible for South Africans, yet advice around the new regulations and South African tax non-residency has
become more relevant than ever.
During the state capture era, there was understandably
a noticeable increase in the number of South Africans
leaving the country. Fortunately, with most of our clients
either approaching or already in retirement, and either
not willing or able to leave, the impact on our business was far less
significant than it was for many firms with a younger client base.
Nonetheless, we received (and still do) a significant number
of queries from clients and their children about the process,
with many also being settlors or beneficiaries of South African
and/or offshore trusts. Most of our clients who have left South
Africa settled in the UK, and although they wanted to retain the
relationship with us, we knew that this would not have been in
their best interests. In the past, we reluctantly referred them on
to another independent UK financial planning firm to ensure that
they received proper advice in the UK.
This got us thinking about the possibility of starting up our own
UK financial planning business. After doing the research, it was
clear that the regulatory environment and related costs of setting
up in the UK were prohibitive. Seeking an alternative, we have
spent the last few years building a relationship with an established
UK independent advice firm like our own.
As our goal was to retain our existing client relationships, we
started the long process of registering one of our advisors to give
advice in the UK, who will soon be working under the licence of the
UK firm. After completing the necessary qualification and UK CFP
accreditation, undergoing the obligatory period of supervision
and meeting all the compliance and professional indemnity cover
requirements in the UK, this process is almost complete. We have
started growing our UK client base, and while there are ongoing
challenges, we are grateful for this opportunity.
We have learnt many valuable lessons, but one of the most
important of these has been our realisation that there are South
African advisors who are advising UK tax residents without the
authorisation to do so. They are potentially putting their clients at risk.
There are many cases of South Africans having moved to
the UK without receiving the correct advice regarding their
tax residency in either jurisdiction. Most have simply retained
the investments they held while living in South Africa, with
no understanding of the implications. The funds, investment
vehicles and structures which are appropriate for South African
tax residents are not suitable for UK tax residents and can have
punitive tax consequences in the UK. Where a South African or
offshore trust is involved, this adds further complexity.
Clients in the UK working with an authorised UK advisor do so
with the protection offered by the UK Financial Conduct Authority
(FCA), Ombud and Financial Services Compensation Scheme. They
will have no recourse to the South African regulatory authorities
for bad advice given to them by an advisor in South Africa on their
UK planning.
UK tax legislation is complex (and is changing constantly), and
the rules around UK tax residency are stringent. We also work
closely with a small UK tax firm which specialises in cross-border
planning, while we do the necessary planning to mitigate the
adverse tax and financial consequences of leaving South Africa.
This may involve bringing in specialists in South Africa for complex
structures or entities.
Local financial planners should not continue giving advice
to their UK clients unless they are authorised to do so by the
FCA. UK residents need proper lifestyle financial planning
advice in their new jurisdiction – retirement and tax planning,
risk cover, inheritance tax planning, tax-efficient savings and
investment vehicles all require extensive knowledge of the UK
environment, as well as access to UK cashflow modelling software
and paraplanner support.
A two-dimensional approach has resulted in peace of mind and
better financial outcomes for our clients in the UK, from the preplanning
stage to implementing best advice. It has also proved
invaluable for our South African clients with family in the UK.
Clare Cousins, CFP®, CFP(UK), Financial Planner, Veritas Wealth
42 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

Change is inevitable.
Growth is optional
The world is in a state of flux... again. It seems that many different
factors are converging to cause change on many levels.
FINANCIAL PLANNING | Offshore
BLUE
CHIP
There is a swing in geopolitical power away from the West
to the East, where India and China are flexing their might
in different ways. At a societal level, Western democracies
are increasingly volatile. Inequality is increasing, and
young people are feeling betrayed “by the system” and looking
for change. Africa is struggling with unemployment and
lacklustre economic growth, with poor governance and irrational
government policies as the biggest roadblocks to growth.
Technological advancements will play a role in the employment
markets, but perhaps not in the way predicted.
What am I monitoring?
There are real concerns about valuations of part of the US stock
market; valuations are like gravity. Eventually, they will impact
share price growth. However, the impact could be variable. Prices
might fall, drift sideways or continue climbing for a time. While
we know that share prices of expensive businesses cannot rise
forever, they might remain high for longer than anticipated.
The US is faced with political uncertainty, with Trump
promising to shake things up. It is important to remember that
Trump could deliver on his promises, do the opposite or effect
some small changes and claim them as big successes! Remember
his promise to “Build the wall and make Mexico pay for it”? The
only confident prediction I can make about Trump is that his
presidency will not soothe markets through stability.
In addition, the UK continues to decline in economic and
political relevance. Britain’s historical role as a world power is
a few chapters old, and Brexit will continue to diminish Britain’s
global significance. Europe is also very unstable, with Germany
now being a source of instability instead of its traditional role as
a stabiliser. Political change is afoot across Europe, and the new
normal will take a few years to solidify.
In contrast, some developing markets are cheap and might
offer investors great opportunities. Consider how India is
emerging as an economic and geopolitical powerhouse. Western
investors continue to classify China as an emerging market, which
now seems outdated.
Technological change might not be as devastating to
employment as forecast. If artificial intelligence (AI) is as impactful
as predicted, the outcome could be increased productivity and
economic growth. Any economic historian will know there are
always winners and losers when new technologies are unleashed
on business. The fear mongers will always predict that change
will be harmful. History has not been kind to these fearmongers
during previous times of technological change.
With the US at the forefront of so much technological
innovation, one will expect unemployment to be sky-high
if technology harms job creation. However, unemployment
numbers in the USA show that most people can get a job if they
wish. The problem is that the salaries they earn for the work
are too low. This is not the fault of technology; it is a sign of an
imbalance between the handfuls of incredibly wealthy people
who have lobbied the government to suit their needs at the
expense of workers.
What to do?
Let’s exercise extreme humility in the current circumstances.
There are so many variables that it would be very brave or
foolish to allocate significant portions of your capital to sectors
or geographies based on forecasts. US tech shares might all
collapse in price next year or they could double in value. While
short-term forecasting is a nice hobby, I’m not convinced it is a
high-probability strategy for making money.
If anything, I would allocate capital as widely as possible.
In times of elevated uncertainty, additional diversification is a
very rational decision. This includes diversification over time.
In other words, if you invest lump sums next year, it might be
worth phasing your capital into the investment markets over
a six-month to 12-month period. This strategy might cost you
some growth if stock markets boom in 2025, but the possibility
of capital protection, if markets implode, is more valuable to me
than lost growth. Lastly, don’t ignore your South African holdings;
the local economy has been stagnant for so long that any positive
surprises could lead to significant growth off a low base.
Warren Ingram, CFP® Co-Founder, Galileo Capital
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
43

BLUE
CHIP
INVESTMENT | Offshore
Understand the price you pay
for investing in America
Anyone who has travelled to the United States recently has at some point experienced “sticker shock”. For
those looking to invest in American companies, the experience may be no different.
The S&P 500 index is currently trading at 22x next year’s
earnings, notably higher than its historical average. It is
also trading at a rather large premium when compared to
most other indices across the globe. Before concluding,
on optics alone, that the US market is just too expensive, we
would ask that you consider the following.
One of the reasons that the US market commands a higher
valuation is that it has the highest concentration of top-quality
businesses compared to any other country in the world. Higherquality
businesses tend to trade at a premium. Investors are
generally willing to pay up for quality. Quality offers a level of
comfort and certainty around a company, be it financial stability
or the predictability of future earnings.
Growth has also been a driving factor behind the higher
valuation for American stocks. When growth becomes scarce,
investors are willing to pay up for it. Research from Goldman
44 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

INVESTMENT | Offshore
BLUE
CHIP
Sachs shows that since the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), global
growth, be it economic or corporate, has slowed. The US was not
immune to this slowdown, but it still offered relatively higher
growth compared to other developed nations. US technology
stocks grew substantially post the GFC.
US technology stocks now account for a sizable portion of the
S&P 500. Eight out of the 10 largest stocks in the S&P 500 would
be considered “tech” in nature. These eight stocks alone account
for more than one third of the entire market cap of the index. They
also trade at higher valuations compared to most other stocks,
both inside as well as outside the US. The combination of their
higher weightings in the index as well as their relatively higher
valuations has been a contributing factor to the S&P 500 index
valuation moving higher. The high level of index concentration
and elevated valuations have led many to sound the alarm bells
around these tech stocks and, more broadly, the US market.
As bottom-up investors, we prefer to evaluate each company
on its own merits. This will help inform our decision as to
whether the multiple currently being offered by the market is
too high or too low. A “cheap” company on a 5x multiple could
still underperform one that is trading at 50x. We would also
caution against using a valuation multiple in isolation. Embedded
within that number are a host of assumptions that the market is
currently implying. These assumptions tend to revolve around
“valuation drivers” such as growth, risk and profitability.
Many of these technology companies may appear expensive
at first glance, but once you pop the hood and take a closer
look at these assumptions, your perception may change. These
companies are growing faster, some much faster, than your
average company. They are also exceptionally profitable. It is
certainly possible that despite possessing strong fundamentals,
some may have “gotten ahead of their skis”. That said, if they
continue to grow at a faster pace than your average company
while churning out swathes of cash for shareholders, we will
caution betting against them.
As much of the focus on the US market tends to revolve
around technology stocks, one could easily forget about the
number of great businesses on offer that are non-tech in nature.
Again, we would evaluate each stock individually rather than
jumping to conclusions after a cursory glance at a multiple.
Some trading at expensive-looking multiples may be just that.
You may also find that despite a high multiple, the market is in
fact underappreciating the growth and quality inherent in the
underlying business.
Of course we haven’t addressed the elephant in the room, the
mighty US dollar. Like the US equity market, a growing number of
voices have expressed concern that that dollar is just too strong.
Some have even gone as far as to predict that the dollar is set to
lose its reserve currency status.
As we are bottom-up fundamental analysts, we are not
too focused on predicting currency movements. We also
acknowledge that no empire lives on forever. The demise of the
Roman, Ottaman, Dutch and British empires are well documented.
The sun will eventually set on America and the dollar will lose its
status, but will this happen anytime soon? We remain sceptical
that a BRICS currency will fill the void; and cryptocurrencies still
have a long, long way to go.
To be clear, we are not advocating to only target the US as
your offshore investment destination of choice. Markets, be it
stock or currency, tend to move in cycles. There will be periods
where the US underperforms in both. Diversifying across multiple
geographies would be a wise approach for most. We do however
disagree with the doomsday scenarios currently being scripted
about the US.
Taking a long-term bet against the dollar, and the US for that
matter, has not been a winning strategy. Would you want to
bet against a nation that is home to the largest, most diverse
economy and stock market in the world, the most powerful
military, is energy independent and is still the immigration
destination of choice, just to name a few? China and India may be
catching up, possibly leading, in certain areas, but US hegemony
look sets to continue, at least for now.
Jonathan Wernick, Global Equity Analyst, Sasfin Wealth
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
45

BLUE
CHIP
GLOBAL ECONOMICS | Politics
US election provides both red flag and
pat on the back for South Africa
The 2024 election results in South Africa were met with widespread optimism and showcased South Africa’s
robust and innovative electoral and legal system. However, we should also view the 2024 Trump victory in
the US as a red flag.
The South African electorate seems smarter than its
American counterpart in that for the most part, it
rejected radical populism in the May 2024 elections.
The majority voted for mainly centrist parties and
turned against a party (ANC) that is widely seen as failing them
by forcing a re-alignment of the political scene and pushing
Zuma (MK: 14.6%) and Malema (EFF: 9.5%) and their fiery brand
of populism to the opposition benches (for now).
In stark contrast, 72-million Americans (51%) voted for Trump
and his populist approach that threatens to weaken liberal
democracy in the country. Trump 2.0 will likely follow his wellworn
strategy of attacking press freedom, revoking gun-safety
policies and possibly rolling out a nation-wide abortion ban. He
has promised to expel 20-million immigrants in mass deportations
and raids and to attack LGBTQ+ rights. His administration will
likely retard efforts to deal with climate change and withdraw
support from multilateral institutions resulting in a period of
foreign policy instability (to say the least).
While South Africa has its fair share of political, socioeconomic
and environmental challenges, the democratic fabric
of the nation is not threatened in the same way. The South
African electoral system has proved resilient and innovative
in a way the US system seems incapable of. The US system
effectively offers a binary, limited choice between two parties
and two candidates. How can this narrow choice represent the
length and breadth of the American electorate? In contrast, the
South African system offers a plethora of choice (52 parties on
the national ballot and three different ballots) thanks to recent
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electoral amendments that offer the electorate greater choice
and increase the chances of public representation that mirrors
a complex and diverse society. South Africa’s multiparty system
means that smaller parties can establish a political presence and
influence the political climate in a way that is just not possible in
the US. South African voters were not trapped between only two
“not great” choices but were rather inundated with choice. The
majority (61.99%) chose two centrist parties who must now work
together (albeit under difficult circumstances) to best represent
the country’s interests.
South Africa has not yet fielded a female president; however,
women make up 43% of the National Assembly and are a
powerful force of political representation in the country. President
Ramaphosa consistently champions women’s rights and actively
supports women empowerment and representation in politics. It
was clearly not possible for the US electorate to vote for a female
candidate (flashback to the competent, capable Hilary Clinton
beaten by Obama and then by Trump). The fact that Kamala
Harris is also a woman of colour would have (astonishingly)
proved a stumbling block for many voters.
Populism requires both a supply and demand to thrive. There
are contextual differences in the USA and South Africa that affect
the demand and supply of populism in each country. Trump’s
supply of radical populism meets a growing demand among
the US electorate based on his ability to tap into anti-immigrant
sentiment, opposition to multiculturalism, dissatisfaction
with democracy and government performance and economic
disillusionment. While these issues also exist in South Africa, MK
and the EFF have not (yet) been able to successfully manipulate
them into massive electoral gains. The demand for radical
populism among the electorate is (for now) limited and diluted
by wider electoral choice. Malema’s angry, radical rhetoric has
not appealed to a mass audience and the EFF has not grown
its support base. Although MK benefitted from disgruntled ANC
and EFF voters, neither party could sell themselves as a credible
governing alternative to the ANC despite their populist style.
Demand for populist politics and policies from the electorate
seem limited for now. Zuma was also held in check by the courts
and ruled ineligible to stand for election due to his criminal
record, unlike Trump who was not prevented from running for
office despite criminal cases against him. Zuma was allowed to
campaign and remain on the ballot paper – this is a key difference
where the South African legal system acted as a gatekeeper,
denying him the opportunity to be re-elected to parliament and
formally re-enter politics.
If MK and the EFF eventually merge it is possible that the
supply of populism will be more concentrated and effective,
but the Government of National Unity (GNU) has the potential
to stem the demand for populist politics. There are likely to
Populism requires both a
supply and demand to thrive.
be intense leadership struggles between the Malema and
Zuma factions which will inevitably weaken the influence of
a focused populist movement. Trump 2.0 is largely unopposed
and tightly controls the Republican Party in a much more
dominant manner than in the 2016 US election. In South
Africa, the GNU occupies the centrist political space, diluting
radical elements on the left and right, and populist parties
have less influence on policy. While there are many alarming
similarities between Trump and Zuma/Malema, the centre
holds for now, while in the USA it has fallen apart and populist
interests with scant appreciation for liberal democratic norms
will dictate policy for the next five years.
It is essential for our GNU to succeed to prevent the demand
for populist politics and political candidates increasing in
the country. The GNU should focus on combatting long-term
influences of populist voting like government unresponsiveness,
distrust in government and political institutions as well as
economic insecurity if it wants to take the sting out of the
populist’s tail.
Dr Helen Macdonald is a senior researcher with a PhD in
Political Science. She has worked in the corporate, NGO
and academic sectors across a range of projects dealing
with political behaviour. Dr Macdonald is also a part-time
lecturer in Political Behaviour at Stellenbosch University.
Dr Helen Macdonald, Freelance Political Researcher and Analyst
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FPI UPDATES | Awards
Cutting out the noise
The FPI Harry Brews’ Award recognises an individual who has made a significant contribution to the financial
planning profession through service to society, academia, training, government, media and any other
professional activities. Blue Chip speaks to Bruce Whitfield, winner of the FPI Harry Brews’ Award, 2024.
Bruce Whitfield, Winner of the FPI Harry Brews’ Award, 2024.
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FPI UPDATES | Awards
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What led you to working in financial journalism?
At about 2am on Sunday 15 March 2000, I had a conversation with
a former colleague about what they were doing, and he revealed
he was at a little startup that had a radio show, a website and big
ambition.
Two months later, I joined Moneyweb after 10 interviews in
which no-one believed me when I asked, “So, what is this All-Share
Index thing you guys talk about?” They soon found out that I did
not have a clue... luckily, I was a fast learner.
Upon winning the Harry Brews’ Award, you said the goal in your
work has been to bridge the gap between expert financial advice
and the public. What have you seen as the biggest challenges in
bridging this gap?
Learning about money is like learning a new language; increasingly
difficult to do as you get older. Business terminology and even the
language of financial advice can be alienating and intimidating
and because most people don’t want to appear ignorant, they
don’t ask questions and therefore don’t understand much of what
they are buying much of the time.
I also noticed how so much of the selling around investments
was done on fear and the “Do you want to live on cat food?”
principle. It’s changed a lot over time, but I became determined
to talk positively about money and find ways to inspire investing
rather than amplify the downside of not doing so.
When it comes to investing, the media can be seen as friend and
foe, offering education on the one hand, and hype on the other.
How did you get the balance right?
A loaded question! The problem is that very few journalists
understand money and markets and look for stories that will get
attention because that pleases their bosses. No real journalist
I know wants to get things wrong and I suspect much of what
riles the investment community about media could be addressed
through gentle coaching rather than hostility and admonishment.
The Sanlam Winter School for journalists is wonderful, but
intensive and unless participants are immersed in financial news,
too little sticks.
I have found real relationship-building between the industry
and journalists helps, not to manipulate coverage but make it
better. A journalist’s job is to draw attention to what is wrong, not
be a PR mouthpiece – that is called advertising and costs money.
You regularly used to interview businesspeople and personalities
about how they managed their money. What are some of the key
lessons that stood out for you from these interviews?
I have a short attention span and get bored easily so I skipped the
formulaic stuff and instead found interesting tales of differentiation
like Michael Fridjohn’s wine cellar and Michael Vlismas’ art habit, for
example. Talking to people explaining why they prefer balanced
funds over general equity funds is not interesting. My personal
realisation is that independent advice is a critical success factor
for people who achieve financial independence.
For over a decade you hosted former Financial Planner of the
Year, Warren Ingram, on your show. From the conversations with
Warren over the years, what stands out for you as the biggest
things that people struggle with when it comes to their money?
People are driven by fear rather than the potential of what is
possible. When the conversation is too focused on scarcity and
risk people are more likely to make silly mistakes in times of crisis.
There needs to be more conversations about the power of
growth over time and real education beyond the slogans like, “It’s
not timing the market, but time in the market,” which is true but
exhausted and over-used. Warren introduced me to “Julia” whose
story we told annually in savings month as an antidote to the
tired theme: “Only 6% of South Africans have enough money to
retire…” It may be true, but it's uninspiring and done. Find new and
interesting ways of doing it.
What is the biggest mistake you have made with your own
financial planning?
Starting too late and not being sufficiently aggressive. Paying off
long-term debt too fast rather than running a proper strategy and,
and, and. The cobbler's children have no shoes…
What is the most important lesson about money that you
learned from hosting The Money Show?
Ignore the noise. Following the underlying trends of development
and innovation and ignoring the hype of the day to day. The
five scariest events of the past two decades had dramatic, but
ultimately short-lived impacts on markets. Invest money. Do it
regularly. Forget about it.
What advice would you give to someone who is considering a
career in financial journalism and/or financial planning?
Financial planning pays better.
You have recently launched a podcast about decision-making.
What prompted you to choose this as the theme?
No-one else was doing it and it has been at the core of everything
I have done for more than 20 years. It allows me to cut out the
noise and focus only on what I find interesting and relevant. So
far so good.
Any advice to financial planners and/or the Financial Planning
Institute about how they can best serve clients?
Find new, provable stories to tell to inspire what is possible. Please.
Bruce Whitfield is the host of “The Art of Deciding” podcast in
which he interrogates high-profile professionals around the
world on how they make life-changing decisions. He is the
author of three best-selling books and is working on a fourth.
He is a sought-after professional speaker who hosted The
Money Show on 702 and CapeTalk for more than 20 years.
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
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FINANCIAL PLANNING | Succession planning
Navigating the complexities of succession
planning in financial planning practices
In September 2021, Reg Thomson, Anthony Delport and I finalised
a transition plan to merge our respective businesses. Delport &
Thomson Wealth Management was a well-established business,
while I was looking to expand my solo advisory practice. At
the time, Reg was 68 and scaling down his work commitments,
Anthony was 58 and eager to keep building and I was 48 and
fully focused on growing my business. Having shared an office
for years, we knew each other well and decided to merge our
businesses, facilitating Reg’s phased retirement over the next
five years.
The agreement was straightforward, built on a foundation
of trust and shared philosophies. In September 2021, we signed
the merger agreements, filled with excitement about our future.
However, we had not yet ironed out the details of how Reg’s
retirement transition would unfold, as our immediate focus was
on the merger itself. Around 4pm that very day, Reg called with
devastating news: Anthony had passed away unexpectedly at 1pm.
While mourning the loss of an extraordinary person and
future partner, Reg and I faced a difficult decision. Our merger
agreement was not yet effective, and we each had the option to
walk away. Reg could have sold to a corporate entity, and I could
have continued as a solo advisor. After many tough conversations,
we chose to proceed with the merger. Three years later, it is clear
we made the right decision – for all concerned.
Following Anthony’s passing, Reg and I navigated the
intricacies of succession planning. This was especially challenging
as I assumed the role of the successor while Reg transitioned
towards retirement. Succession planning is a complex process
with countless considerations. While entire books have been
written on the subject, I’ll highlight two critical areas we had to
address: firstly, Defining the Founder’s Future Role and secondly,
The Great Income Debate.
Defining the Founder’s Future Role
The founder’s short-, medium- and long-term roles in the
business must be clearly outlined. Will the founder remain
involved in daily operations or take on a different role until full
retirement? Crafting this roadmap requires ongoing discussions,
not a single conversation. It’s an evolutionary process that often
stirs strong emotions.
A helpful tip is to conduct these discussions outside the office,
in a more relaxed setting. With patience and the right partnership,
these conversations can pave the way for a successful transition.
Once the roadmap for the founder’s future role is established, the
next crucial step is tackling the income debate.
The Great Income Debate
One of the most important distinctions in succession planning
is understanding the difference between ownership and
management. Ownership represents a stake in the business – it
can be bought or sold, but not taken away. Management, on the
other hand, is a role within the business – it cannot be bought
or sold and must be compensated appropriately for the value it
brings. Ownership should not interfere with this principle.
If the founder is stepping back from day-to-day operations,
their salary should reflect this shift. In our case, Reg and I gradually
adjusted our compensation to align with our operational
contributions. This process is easier said than done.
A key factor that facilitated this transition was Reg’s financial
planning over the years, which allowed him to view the income
debate from a long-term perspective. Rather than focusing on
maintaining the same salary, Reg prioritised the future success
of the business, where he remained a shareholder.
By reducing his monthly salary, we freed up cash flow to
invest in the company’s growth. This included hiring another
wealth manager who also purchased shares from Reg. Without
reallocating monthly income, the firm’s future growth would
have been at risk.
The best-case scenario for an exiting founder is to sustain
their income level while scaling down their workload. The key
difference is that income now comes primarily from business
profits rather than a monthly salary.
Conclusion
Succession planning is both an art and a science, requiring
emotional intelligence, strategic foresight and meticulous
execution. Addressing challenges proactively and following best
practices enables financial planning firms to achieve seamless
transitions that benefit clients, employees and the business itself.
A well-executed succession plan reflects the advisor’s
commitment – to their business and to the clients and
colleagues who have contributed to its success. It secures the
continuation of a trusted legacy, ensuring the practice thrives
for years to come.
For financial planners who advocate long-term planning
to their clients, embracing succession planning for their own
practices is not just prudent – it’s essential.
Adam Bacher, CFA®, CFP®, Director, DTB Wealth
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FINANCIAL PLANNING | Compliance
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Choose your poison
Standing between the advisor and their mission is a compliance framework obsessed with box-ticking,
over-simplified metrics and irrelevant assessments.
Our mission as financial advisors is simple: helping
clients achieve their cherished life and financial goals,
ensuring they don’t run out of money and defending
them against the silent, lethal force of inflation. This is
our duty. It’s what we signed up for and why we do what we do
every day.
However, we increasingly find ourselves caught between doing
what we know is right for our clients and bending to a compliance
system designed to serve itself rather than those we have a duty
to protect.
The stakes are our clients’ financial futures, our livelihoods and
our integrity. Enough is enough. It’s time we stood up and called
out the problem for what it is.
This compliance system has conjured up imaginary dragons for
us to fight, and we’re expected to play along.
The first of these dragons? “Attitude to risk.” This concept boils
down to a fixation on volatility – just one flavour of risk, and
frankly, not even the most important one. Let me make this clear:
volatility is not the villain. It’s not a bug in the system; it’s a feature.
It’s part of the natural rhythm of investing. Volatility is the price
we pay for long-term growth, and yet we’re forced to act like it’s
a fire-breathing monster we need to eliminate. Volatility must be
understood and respected, but let’s stop treating it like the enemy.
The second compliance dragon is the so-called “capacity for
loss”. This concept assumes that our clients will panic, sell out
and lock in losses whenever a portfolio drops temporarily. This
has never happened with my clients in nearly two decades of
advising real humans. Even during the chaos of Covid-19 in
March 2020, when the market fell off a cliff, clients
didn’t crystallise losses. They acted with equanimity,
stayed the course and reaped the rewards when the
market bounced back (as it has always done). Yet we
are still told to base our investment strategies on this
absurd concept.
Our fellow advisors face real dragons, but they aren’t
the ones compliance is currently obsessed with. The true
enemies are permanent capital loss, inflation and low
investment returns due to asset misallocation. These are
the risks that keep us up at night, the risks we should
focus on, the risks that matter. But because they aren’t
as easy to quantify or stick on a spreadsheet, compliance
turns a blind eye and leaves us to battle the real dragons
ourselves.
The result is that we are being asked to compromise
our duty to clients for the sake of ticking a box. Our
compliance system needs an overhaul.
Advisors and compliance teams share a common objective:
safeguarding our clients’ financial well-being. While we may
sometimes disagree on the methods, our goal is the same, and
I recognise the vital role compliance plays in maintaining the
integrity and trust of our profession. However, we must refine our
strategies to ensure they align more closely with clients’ real-world
needs. The ultimate risk to avoid is dying after your money does
and having to go cap in hand to your family or the government.
Let’s continue this conversation with a spirit of collaboration
and mutual respect. By working
together, we can design frameworks
that uphold regulatory standards
and equip us to address the true risks
our clients face – permanent capital
loss, inflation and inadequate longterm
returns. Through dialogue and
innovation, we can develop solutions
that balance necessary compliance
with the practical, human elements
of financial advising.
If we can work together to build
a bridge between our roles, we can
foster a future where compliance
elevates our service rather than
hinders it. In doing so, we can
protect and enhance our clients’
financial futures.
Andy Hart, Founder of
Humans Under Management
and Maven Adviser
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
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FINANCIAL PLANNING | Behavioural finance
To invest successfully, clients must
overcome the Wall of Worry
Global events and investment market movements mean less than you think when it comes to successful investing.
time it’s different” are probably the four most
famous and dangerous words in investing. Whenever
something dramatic happens in the world, and
“This
investment markets respond, whether up or
down, investors generally justify their knee-jerk reactions to such
movements with the words, “This time it’s different”. Importantly
these words can be used to justify decisions to invest or disinvest.
When markets rise investors want a piece of the action
In the technology bubble of the late 1990s, investors justified
investing at never-before-seen valuations of businesses, because
they believed that the Internet was the harbinger of
a new world, and therefore businesses could not be
valued on traditional “old economy” metrics. This
meant that what were known as “new economy” or
“dot-com” businesses were being valued on their
revenue growth rather than their profit growth.
Investors were valuing businesses that had never
made a profit at outrageous levels. If they were
bringing in revenue, that’s all that counted. What
was “different” now, was that “profit” was an outdated
measure of a business’ financial performance. Global
stock markets reached stratospheric levels on the
“This time it’s different” approach.
Yet in March 2000, the technology bubble burst, and
all the so-called, “This time it’s different” stocks came
tumbling down. It seems that to grow real value, at
some point businesses need to make money. This is not
to say that nobody made money during the technology
bubble. During any bubble, usually the early investors
make money, if they get out before the bubble bursts.
We see this playing out 30 years later with cryptocurrency. Some
people have made money trading cryptocurrency and others have
lost it.
When markets fall investors want to run to the exit
Investors are also prone to poor decision-making when markets
fall. Particularly for an extended period. The graphic below, the
Wall of Worry, outlines many events that precipitated a fall in
global investment markets, whether it was the 9/11 terrorist
attacks in New York, the global financial crisis of 2008, the Covid-19
pandemic or the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Again, investors
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react to these events, usually by selling their investments and
seeking the safety of cash because they perceive that the world
as we know it has ended. In other words, “This time it’s different”.
Benjamin Graham, author of The Intelligent Investor, and mentor
to Warren Buffett, offers a simple explanation why investors behave
this way. He said, “In the short run, the market is a voting machine
but in the long run, it is a weighing machine,” and people very
often vote unintelligently but over the long term it’s the weight of
companies and economies that ultimately determine the returns
to investors. The problem is, when investors vote unintelligently
by buying overpriced assets or selling underpriced assets, they
are guaranteeing that they won’t benefit from the weight of the
companies they have invested in.
What drives unintelligent voting (investing)?
There are three key factors that drive “unintelligent voting” which
I have labelled as the three sides of the “Bermuda Triangle of
Financial Behaviour”. Falling foul of one or more of these factors
invariably leads to financial loss.
Firstly, as social creatures, human beings are influenced by what
other people do. When markets are going up, we want to be part
of the action. We don’t want to be left out. Our social desire is to
“flock” together. And when markets go down, we “flee” together.
Secondly, emotions are often a key driver of investor behaviour.
When markets go up, we get greedy and when they fall, we get
fearful. But our emotions are more complex than that, as the
graphic below, The Rollercoaster of Investment Emotion, shows.
When markets rise, we can move from optimism, through
excitement to euphoria. When they fall, we can go from anxiety,
through denial and depression to panic and despondency.
Thirdly, while humans think they are rational creatures, we are
it’s not only our emotions that are influencing our actions, but also
our brain. It is extrapolating that the upward trend will continue,
simply because of recency bias, and the fact that the brain is a
pattern-seeking device.
When it comes to our money, we often have an action bias,
believing that doing something is better than not. Disinvesting
and putting our money into cash feeds this action bias, as well as
our present bias which arises from the difficulty for our brains to
look far into the future. Our brain wants to keep us safe now. So,
we compromise our long-term financial health by acting on our
cognitive biases.
The risk of seeking safety when our brain perceives a threat
from a negative return is shown in the graphic below showing
annual declines on the S&P 500 over the past 25 years. As can
be seen, every year the S&P 500 has been in negative territory
during the year, with negative annual returns of over -20% in two
years (2003, 2022) and almost -40% in 2008. Yet the index had
positive returns in 18 out of 25 years, with an average annual return
including dividends in $US of 7% pa for the period.
Source: AMP
cognitively flawed, and psychologist Hebert Simon argues we
have “bounded rationality”. We can see this in the Rollercoaster of
Investment Emotions graphic, at the point of Maximum Financial
Risk, investors want to buy and at the point of Maximum Financial
Opportunity they want to sell. Another word that can describe this
behaviour is “irrational”.
Our brains are designed to keep us safe. They are also the
operating machine that processes all the information that comes
our way daily. But our brains are lazy. In processing information,
the brain takes shortcuts, which is the source of the many cognitive
biases we fall foul of. So, when the AMP graph is going upwards,
What can we do to improve our approach to investing?
The Wall of Worry graphic reminds us that there will always be
reasons to invest or disinvest. One could look at the graphic and see
that when a dramatic event happens, in time this will just be a blip
on the Wall of Worry. Sadly, this is unlikely to prevent self-sabotaging
behaviour from investors. Certainly, it will help provide an investor
with perspective, and this may be helpful as a reminder that perhaps
“This time it’s not different”.
But human behaviour has shown itself to be unresponsive
simply to information. For the past 30 years Dalbar Inc has
conducted research annually on investor behaviour and shows that
investors continually sabotage themselves. For the calendar year
2023, the S&P 500 Index returned 26.3% but according to Dalbar
the average equity investor achieved 20.8%, an underperformance
of 5.5%. Over the longer term, this investor gap has been lower at
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FINANCIAL PLANNING | Behavioural finance
around 3.6% pa which means that since 2000 the average $US
equity investor has achieved long-term equity returns less than
4% pa, rather than the 7% pa return achieved by the S&P 500 since
2000. Why? Because they have responded to many of the events
listed in the Wall of Worry graphic. Disinvesting at the wrong time.
Re-investing at the wrong time and incurring significant costs in
the process.
This poor investor behaviour is despite the investment
industry spending millions on ongoing investor communication
and education. Simply providing investment education and
information to influence investor behaviour is not enough.
We have seen that there are multiple factors, social influences,
emotional responses and cognitive mistakes that lead us astray.
So, it appears we need more than information or education to
adjust our behaviour.
Nudging investors seems more effective than educating them
According to Richard Thaler (Economics Nobel Prize winner) and
Cass Sunstein, authors of the book Nudge, we need to find ways
to nudge people’s behaviour because offering information is not
enough. In their book they relate the story of the men’s public
toilet at Schiphol Airport, which had a problem with spillage at
the men’s urinals. Despite ongoing efforts to address this problem
with posters in the doorways and on the walls imploring the users
of the toilets to be considerate to others, and warning of the
hygiene dangers of spillage, there was no shift in the behaviour
of the users of the men’s urinals. Finally, instead of pleading for a
change in behaviour, a decision was taken to nudge the men into
a change. A fly was painted into the basin of each urinal. Suddenly
rather than appealing to men’s cognitive reasoning, a target was
provided for them to aim at in the urinal. The spillage problem
was solved literally overnight. What can we learn from this story
and apply to investing?
It is about the power of a nudge. The key characteristic of a
nudge is that it doesn’t require you to think about your action,
which is very appealing to our lazy brains. If you’ve ever driven
your car home and wondered how you got there, it’s thanks to
your brain loving to work on autopilot so that it doesn’t have to
use up the energy to think. How can investors nudge themselves
into improved behaviour that is not self-sabotaging?
The most obvious way for us to avoid acting when the Wall of
Worry hits us, is to have an automated investing process, which
means that our decisions are not dependent on our thoughts,
emotions or social pressure. A good example of an automated
process is when we invest via debit order. The decision to invest
does not depend on anything other than the date of the debit
order run. Similarly, an automated redemption instruction
operates on the same principle. Investors who have a living
annuity are effectively disinvesting once a month, and this is not
dependent on what is happening in the markets. So, a nudge is a
way to help us invest or disinvest irrespective of what is going on
in markets and depends more on our own circumstances.
Pre-commitment: a way to keep the Wall of Worry at bay
The real power of a nudge is that it provides a pre-commitment
to an action, no matter what is going on around you, whatever
the Wall of Worry is throwing at you or wherever you find yourself
on the rollercoaster of emotion.
By anticipating when clients are likely to experience emotions
in response to a Wall of Worry event, financial planners can
prepare clients for what they are likely to feel when the going gets
tough and help them develop a plan to prevent them from acting
on their emotions in the heat of the moment or responding to
social pressure or making a cognitive mistake.
The formal act of pre-commitment is key. In the context
of financial planning and investing, any form of verbal precommitment
carries no weight unless it is documented and
signed. The form of the document may vary according to the
financial planner’s advice process, but clients could sign one
or more of a financial plan, a record of advice or an investment
policy statement. Whatever the document is, it should ideally
include the behaviour the client commits to in the future, given
a set of possible circumstances.
As the Wall of Worry suggests, there will always be events that
trigger emotional, cognitive or social pressure to invest or disinvest.
The Dalbar study shows that successful investing involves being
able to resist these triggers, and a documented pre-commitment
will help clients preserve and grow their investments.
Rob Macdonald, Head of Strategic Advisory Services, Fundhouse
54 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

FINANCIAL PLANNING | Education
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Unlock your future
Explore the programmes at the University of the Free State’s School of Financial Planning Law.
In today’s world, ethical considerations in financial planning
are paramount. At the University of the Free State, we prioritise
ethical education, ensuring our students understand the
importance of integrity and transparency in their professional
practices. This commitment to ethical standards prepares our
graduates to be competent professionals and responsible
citizens in the financial landscape.
Your future in financial
planning law begins here.
In an ever-evolving financial landscape, the demand for skilled
professionals who can navigate complex legal frameworks and
financial strategies has never been higher. At the University of
the Free State’s (UFS) School of Financial Planning Law (SFPL),
we offer innovative programmes to equip students with the
necessary knowledge and skills to excel in this dynamic field.
The SFPL in the Faculty of Law at the UFS was established in
2001 and was the first academic institution in South Africa to
offer formal financial planning education, and is currently also the
largest. The SFPL is especially well-known for the Postgraduate
Diploma in Financial Planning, a cornerstone qualification for
becoming a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®. During the past 23
years, here at the SFPL we have gone from strength to strength and
added many accredited programmes to our repertoire, specifically
focused on providing holistic financial planning education for
financial planners to theoretically and practically meet the unique
needs of individual clients.
The School of Financial Planning Law is also a hub for research,
contributing significantly to the body of knowledge in the field.
The academic staff members are educators and active researchers,
engaging in projects that address real-world financial issues.
We truly believe that individuals need the best financial advice
to become financially free and, therefore, ensure that our students
receive the best education possible. We are continually updating
and expanding our programmes and are committed to continuing
to be the leader in the financial planning industry.
The University of the Free State’s School of Financial Planning
Law is dedicated to shaping the next generation of financial and
legal experts. Our comprehensive programmes, emphasis on
professional development and commitment to ethical practice
make us confident that our graduates will lead the way in the
financial planning industry.
We are proud of what the SFPL has achieved in the past 23
years and are excitedly looking towards the future to flourish in
an industry that has so much to offer and can change people’s
lives, not only those of our students but especially the lives of their
clients. On the unfortunate day of John F Kennedy's death, he was
due to deliver the following words:
“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”
Keep learning and educating yourself, and be a leader in the
financial planning industry. We stand behind you. Join us and
unlock your potential – your future in financial planning law
begins here!
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
55

Lessons for financial
planners from
Nelson Mandela
Themes in Nelson Mandela’s life and how they can assist financial planners
in their businesses.
When I was invited to talk at the 2024 Cape Town
Humans Under Management conference, I chose
to focus on three themes in Nelson Mandela’s life
which are applicable to financial planners:
1. OVERCOMING CHALLENGES
Nelson Mandela faced numerous obstacles throughout his life,
from systemic racism to 27 years of imprisonment. His approach
to overcoming these challenges provides several lessons for
financial planners:
1. Persistence and resilience. Mandela’s unwavering
commitment to his cause, despite decades of setbacks,
exemplifies the importance of persistence. Mandela’s mental
resilience during his 27-year imprisonment is legendary. He
maintained hope and continued to develop his ideas despite
isolation. Similarly, financial planners need to develop mental
toughness to weather professional challenges, such as market
downturns or difficult client situations. You also have the
challenge to help your clients build financial resilience through
proper planning and risk management strategies.
What is certain is that markets fluctuate, policies change,
and clients will face unexpected life events. Persistence in
maintaining a long-term perspective and adhering to sound
financial principles is crucial. Encouraging your clients to stay
the course during market downturns or when facing financial
setbacks demands resilience from both you and your clients.
2. Maintaining dignity and integrity. Mandela always
maintained his dignity and integrity, earning respect even
from his guards. He never wavered from this path throughout
his life – particularly when facing the greatest challenges.
When financial planners face challenging market conditions
or difficult client situations, you are required to always
maintain your professional integrity. Uphold ethical standards
and transparent practices, even when it might be easier to cut
corners. This builds long-term trust and respect with clients
and colleagues.
3. Building strong relationships. Mandela was a master at
fostering relationships with diverse groups, which proved
crucial in negotiating a peaceful transition. Financial planners
too need to cultivate strong relationships not just with your
clients, but also with industry professionals, work colleagues
and even regulatory bodies. These relationships can be
invaluable when navigating complex financial situations or
when you need to advocate for your clients’ interests.
4. Strategic thinking, long-term vision and patience.
Mandela’s approach to ending apartheid was strategic and
patient, understanding that lasting change takes time. When
he stood in the dock on 20 April 1964, he was prepared to take
as long as it required to see his dream of a free and democratic
South Africa come true. Financial planners need to help clients
understand that significant financial goals often require time
and a strategic approach. Your role is to encourage patience
with long-term investment strategies and wealth building,
and caution against impulsive financial decisions driven by
immediate gratification and short-term market fluctuations.
Just like Mandela, you have the challenge to help your clients
think beyond their own lifetimes to how their financial
decisions will impact future generations.
2. GARDENING
During his 18 years of imprisonment on Robben Island and six
years at Pollsmoor, Nelson Mandela found solace and purpose
in gardening. In both prisons he cultivated gardens, growing
vegetables and flowers. These gardens became a source of
nourishment for Mandela, his fellow prisoners and even his
guards. Mandela’s love for gardening offers unlikely insights for
financial planners.
1. Planning. In gardening, one envisions a thriving landscape.
Mandela pictured a united, democratic South Africa. A financial
planner helps clients set clear monetary goals. All three require
a well-defined end-state to guide decision-making.
At first glance, planning a garden and Nelson Mandela’s
planning for a post-apartheid South Africa may seem worlds
apart. Yet, these two endeavours share surprising similarities
in their approach and philosophy. Gardeners often plan for
seasons beyond their own time. Mandela worked to establish
enduring democratic institutions, and financial planners
frequently help clients do sound estate planning.
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FINANCIAL PLANNING | Development
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2. Patience and nurturing. Gardening requires patience and
constant nurturing – qualities that are equally important in
financial planning. Just as a garden doesn’t bloom overnight,
financial goals often take time to achieve. Financial planners
should cultivate patience in yourselves and your clients,
understanding that wealth-building, like gardening, is a
process that requires consistent care and attention over time.
Like gardening, financial growth often occurs incrementally.
A gardener provides water, sunlight and nutrients to
plants. Mandela nurtured relationships, reconciliation and
new democratic institutions to help his nation grow. So too
must financial planners aim to help clients grow wealth. All
three focus on creating conditions conducive to growth
and development.
3. Adapting to different conditions. Successful gardening
requires adapting to changing seasons and environmental
conditions. Similarly, as financial planners, you must help your
clients navigate different life stages and economic climates.
By understanding the “seasons” of financial life – from early
career to saving to retirement – planners provide appropriate
strategies for each phase. You help clients build financial
resilience to withstand economic downturns and personal
financial challenges. And just like Mandela grew a variety of
plants in his gardens, so too must financial planners emphasise
the importance of a diversified portfolio to mitigate risks and
optimise growth.
4. Pruning and growth. In gardening, pruning is essential for
healthy growth. In financial planning, this principle applies
to regularly reviewing and adjusting financial plans and
investment portfolios. Clients may need to spend less to save
more or cut underperforming assets and redirect resources to
areas with greater potential. Like a skilled gardener, a good
financial planner knows when to “prune” a financial plan to
promote healthier growth.
5. Finding joy in the process. Mandela found great joy and
peace in gardening. Financial planners ideally will strive to
help clients find similar satisfaction in their financial journey.
By celebrating small incremental victories and helping clients
connect their financial plans to their life goals and values,
planners can make the financial planning process more
engaging and rewarding and allow clients to find satisfaction
in watching their wealth grow, celebrating milestones along
the way. A well-tended financial plan can provide security and
peace of mind for clients throughout their lives.
3. CHANGING LIVES
Mandela’s impact extended far beyond his own life, fundamentally
changing South African society and inspiring millions worldwide.
Financial planners, too, have the potential to profoundly impact
clients’ lives for generations to come:
1. Vision and long-term thinking. Mandela’s vision of a free and
equal South Africa guided his actions over decades. Financial
planners help clients develop a long-term vision for their financial
future. This vision should guide all financial decisions, from daily
budgeting to retirement planning. Key to the financial planner’s
role is to encourage clients to think beyond immediate financial
goals to consider their legacy and long-term impact.
2. Empowerment through education. Mandela believed in the
power of education to transform lives and societies. Financial
planners educate clients about financial concepts and empower
them to make informed decisions, they don't just provide advice,
but ensure clients understand the reasoning behind financial
strategies. This approach builds trust and helps clients take
ownership of their financial future.
The financial landscape is constantly evolving, requiring
financial planners to stay current with new financial products, tax
laws and economic trends. Financial planners must help clients
be prepared to adapt strategies to changing circumstances while
maintaining core principles.
3. Reconciliation and conflict resolution. Mandela’s approach
to reconciliation after apartheid showcased his ability to bridge
divides and find common ground. So too do financial planners
need to develop skills in mediating financial conflicts, especially
in family finance situations. The challenge is to help clients
find balanced solutions that consider all stakeholders’ needs,
particularly in estate planning or business succession scenarios.
CONCLUSION
Nelson Mandela’s life offers profound lessons in overcoming
challenges and changing lives that are deeply relevant to the
practice of financial planning.
Remember, as a financial planner, you’re not just managing
money, you’re helping to shape the financial future of
individuals, families and potentially even communities.
By drawing inspiration from Mandela’s legacy, you can
approach this responsibility with the dedication, wisdom and
transformative mindset it deserves.
Andrew Russell is the author of The Leadership We Need:
Lessons for Today from Nelson Mandela and speaks both
locally and internationally on this topic. More information
is available at www.theleadershipweneed.co.za.
Andrew Russell, Author
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
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PRACTICE MANAGEMENT | Technology
Unlocking key insights out of
disparate data
How effective business intelligence bolsters your practice effectiveness.
At Linktank, our independent research and practical
experience in working with financial planning
practices consistently reveals that most advisors
and intermediaries in South Africa utilise multiple
overlapping software applications within their businesses, usually
with no data-sharing mechanisms between them. This is often a
result of efforts to address the increasingly complex demands
of building a client base, effectively managing relationships,
providing advice and implementation to clients as well as
meeting regulatory requirements. Understandably, advisors tend
to prioritise client engagement and compliance, which means that
developing a “best-practice technology strategy” is not a primary
focus. Consequently, when it comes to selecting and embedding
technology, advice businesses tend to make the best decisions at
the time to meet their most pressing needs, but often without a
cohesive technology roadmap in mind.
As a result, nearly three-quarters of practices end up with
multiple datasets within their businesses, often containing
duplications and variations, depending on the specific purpose of
each technology solution in use. This issue is further compounded
by numerous external data sources from various financial product
providers and investment platforms, resulting in significant
frustration, as evidenced by the industry challenges tracked in
Linktank and Hadeda’s annual advice technology survey reports.
In an environment where integration between internal
applications and those of product providers and platforms is very
limited, and where competing independent software solutions
don’t offer a sufficiently broad range of standard integrations to
meet demand, we regularly work with advisory teams who spend
way too much time managing client data. Manual input, duplicated
across multiple interfaces, is the norm, followed by hours spent on
manual collection, collation and cleansing of data, all to provide
clients with, at the very least, consolidated reporting.
Trying to ensure that data is accurate and consistent across
systems is challenging enough in itself; taking it a step further
is therefore perceived as completely out of reach. Accessing the
critical insights that can enable practices to better understand
their clients, analysing the revenue they are receiving, supporting
operational efficiency and tracking against strategic goals are
essential ingredients to business growth that are frequently
simply deemed too complex to produce. New legislation like
POPIA and COFI bring reporting requirements that create an
additional layer of complexity. This all makes for an environment
of faulty foundations, upon which it becomes increasingly difficult
to build onto by automating or leveraging new technologies like
artificial intelligence (AI). When it is this challenging to achieve a
“single view of the client” or to maintain an accurate and current
source of truth, are there any strategies out there to support
business intelligence and growth?
In a rapidly evolving financial and technological landscape,
ensuring data accuracy and harnessing the power of that data
can help practices make more informed business decisions.
These decisions support optimal operations and provide more
accurate reporting for both management teams and clients. While
some software solutions offer business intelligence reporting as
embedded features, these typically only
provide insights into the subset of data
stored within that solution. To achieve
more robust and inclusive data analytics,
an overarching solution is necessary –
one that integrates data from multiple
sources to provide a holistic view across
the entire business and bridge the gaps
created by unintegrated environments.
Over the past decade, we’ve seen
every FSP data environment imaginable
and have learned some tricks along
the way. Data cleansing and integrity
exercises are crucial for successful technology adoption, but they
are only one part of the solution. Where automated no-code
integration isn’t possible, business intelligence dashboards are
a relatively quick, simple and non-invasive way of consolidating
disparate information to achieve deep insights. The lack of
expertise within the business needn’t be a stumbling block either,
since businesses like Linktank are out there to help.
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PRACTICE MANAGEMENT | Technology
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Essentially, dashboards are set up
to collect “raw” information from
multiple sources, such as internal
practice management applications
or revenue management systems
or even external data in the form
of Excel or CSV files from product
providers. Source data doesn’t
need to be moved outside of a
practice’s own secure environment
to feed the dashboards, thereby
ensuring complete compliance
with regulatory standards and data
security protocols.
Using off-the-shelf tools, data
can be queried, mapped and
aggregated consistently and efficiently, greatly reducing the need
for manual intervention and enabling practices to visualise their
data in ways that make the most sense to them. Interactive charts,
graphs and heat maps provide a holistic view of financial and other
data, allowing stakeholders to make informed decisions quickly.
• Managing KPIs and interrogating the efficacy of internal
workflow processes.
In an era where data is a valuable currency, FSPs of all sizes can and
should leverage advanced analytics to overcome the challenges
that arise from poorly integrated environments.
Visualising data across a range of systems and sources ensures
that decision-makers get a better understanding of their businesses
and can reduce the risk of outdated insights, which impact both their
operational and strategic decisions. Moreover, although AI tools are
always available, without a clear understanding of the accuracy of
your data or an ethical and compliant way of aggregating sensitive
data, it will be extremely difficult to truly engage the functionality
in a way which adds any real value to your business. But that is a
conversation for another day.
A simple set of business intelligence dashboards can address
aspects like:
• Achieving a “single view” of clients, despite the fragmentation
of their profiles across multiple applications and data sources.
• Understanding the risks and opportunities within a client base,
such as determining the exposure rate of clients to business
services or accurate segmentation.
• Visualising key financial metrics like assets under advice (AUA),
client profitability and revenue trends.
• Supporting strategic decision-making and tracking against
strategic and operational goals.
• Gauging the integrity and consistency of client data across various
internal systems and highlighting “dirty” data.
• Tracking the effectiveness of client advice or implementation.
• Measuring user adoption, for instance to determine how well
specific software features or processes are being used and
thereby helping to measure the ROI of the business’ investment
into technology.
Co-authored by Robyn Clay and Jen Mckay, Directors, Linktank
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
59

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PRACTICE MANAGEMENT | Technology
How a Secure AI Assistant transforms your
client relationships and frees up your time
Everyone has heard of or is using Artificial Intelligence. But how can it help us – financial planners and
employee benefits consultants – scale our businesses? How can it make us look more knowledgeable
or professional, get work done in a fraction of the time, or simplify life for the average person?
With the rise of personal Secure AI Assistants, all this has
become possible.
What does a personal Secure AI Assistant do?
Let’s explore a case study to see it in action:
Meet John, an overwhelmed financial advisor.
John has been a dedicated financial advisor for over a decade, building
a practice that now serves 300 clients. While he loves helping people
secure their financial futures, the sheer volume of work is overwhelming.
Every day brings a barrage of phone calls and emails:
• “John, what’s my life cover? I can’t remember.”
• “Do I have disability cover? If so, who is it with?”
• “I just noticed this deduction from my account. What is it for again?"
• “When was the last update to my will?”
Each question sends John scrambling through folders and digital
files. He must extract information, compile it, send it back and field
follow-up queries. Clients frequently need explanations of complex
terms like “unapproved benefits” or “education protectors” and
John must explain policy jargon into understandable language.
Meanwhile, John is trying to grow his practice, meet new
prospects and keep up with changing regulations. But the constant
demands of maintaining his current clients leave him with little time
for anything else. He’s stuck in a cycle of reactive work, firefighting
instead of planning, and his stress levels are through the roof.
John’s turning point: a Secure AI Assistant
John decides to try a Secure AI Assistant, integrated into his clients’
portal. This transforms John’s day-to-day operations!
• Client portal. Each client uploads their important documents –
insurance policies, wills and even receipts for items to be insured
– into their private, secure portal or John quickly drags and drops
the client policies into his AI portal.
• AI-powered assistance. Clients ask questions directly to their AI
assistant. Instead of calling John, they can get instant answers to
questions about their policies, terms or upcoming deadlines.
• Advisor’s dashboard. John has access to the same AI, which can
summarise a client’s coverage, explain their benefits simply – all at
the click of a button.
With his AI assistant answering his questions about specific clients’
policies, benefits and more, in seconds, John has time to focus
on what he loves most: building new relationships and providing
strategic financial advice. His clients are happier, too. They receive fast,
accurate answers from John; they can even speak to their AI 24/7. For
John, it’s no longer just a practice; it’s a scalable business.
Before and after: a shared transformation
John was stuck in reactive cycles, constantly juggling demands and
feeling like he was one missed detail away from chaos. With Secure
AI Assistants, his life is transformed.
• For John: The AI assistant gives him the time and tools to provide
exceptional service while growing his practice. His clients are
happier, and his stress is reduced.
• For his clients: The AI assistant is their personal genie, ensuring they
can easily get info about their affairs without being overwhelmed.
They finally have peace of mind.
A secure solution for everyone
The best part? These AI assistants operate in a protected
environment, powered by platforms like AgendaWorx AI and others.
Unlike public AI tools, they keep sensitive data safe behind robust
firewalls, ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.
How easy is it to set up your AI?
The million-dollar question is: this all sounds super complex, right? It’s
not. You can simply drag and drop your files into your secure AI client
portal, and your AI can answer questions about them.
Your documents stay in the portal,
neatly organised for each client, and
everything is completely secure. Plus,
your discussions with the AI are fully
private – neither your team nor your
client can see them.
The future of AI is here, don’t let your
competitors offer this to your clients.
These are not just tools; they are
partners, bringing calm and simplicity
to lives that were once weighed
down by complexity. Whether you’re
a financial advisor like John or an
entrepreneur like Samantha, a Secure
AI Assistant could be the game-changer
you’ve been waiting for.
Zeldeen Müller, Founder and
CEO, inSite Connect (creator
of AgendaWorx.com)
60 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

Agenda
W RX
Secure Client Portals
No wishes needed—just
answers in seconds
Precision Pitstop has a
GLA of 3X and PHI of
50% with XYZ. Do you
want to know their
portfolios, John?
Eco Solutions’ funeral
premium is R54 p.m.
with ABC insurer
Thabo Mokoena
is invested in the
Your Future Fund
Work smarter, not harder.
Access your client info
in seconds with AI.
info@agendaworx.com
www.agendaworx.com
You can also do board packs and minutes :)

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FINANCIAL PLANNING | Client experience
The art of timely
engagement
Identifying clients experiencing transitions.
As financial planners, your value is often most evident
during life’s pivotal moments. Transitions – whether
driven by choice or trauma – are when clients need
clarity and guidance the most. It’s at these intersections
that the art of timely communication becomes a defining feature
of excellent financial planning.
Transitions are part of the fabric of life. These moments often
come with heightened emotions, cognitive overload and a pressing
need for financial clarity. For planners, the ability to proactively
anticipate and address these transitions is key to building trust and
fostering deeper client relationships. As Susan Bradley, founder of
the Sudden Money Institute, once said in a TEDx talk, “Change will
launch the next chapter of your life, whether you want it or not.”
The human side of transitions
Transitions fall into two categories: those championed through
choice and those triggered by trauma. Transitions by choice
might include starting a business, moving countries or pursuing
a work-optional lifestyle. In contrast, transitions through trauma
can be sudden and destabilising – divorce, loss or an unexpected
health crisis.
Bradley emphasises the importance of recognising the
emotional charge of these moments. She advocates creating
space for clients to process change, ensuring financial decisions
are not made under duress. Paul Armson, a champion of lifestyle
financial planning, adds that these transitions are an opportunity
to focus financial plans on life goals. Your role as a planner extends
beyond the technical. It involves empathy, patience and the ability
to align financial strategies with evolving client circumstances.
This is where proactive communication becomes a superpower.
Connection before correction
In an age where content saturates every digital platform, planners
must focus on quality over quantity. The goal is not to bombard
clients with information but to connect with them authentically.
This involves crafting communication that resonates with their
experiences and sparks meaningful dialogue.
Creating content during transitions requires a balanced approach:
• Empathy in messaging. Acknowledge the emotions tied to
transitions. For example, a blog post addressing the emotional
aspects of retirement can help clients see beyond the financials
to focus on their next chapter.
• Timely engagement. Consistent communication ensures
you remain top of mind. Regular check-ins, whether through
newsletters, blogs or social media help you anticipate client
needs rather than react to them.
Tim Slatter, Creator of Contatto and
Director, Slatter Communications
• Client-focused narratives. Content should revolve around client
journeys, celebrating milestones and addressing challenges.
Through strategic and empathetic communication, you create
an environment where clients perceive you as a steady presence
during times of uncertainty.
Leveraging digital tools
Modern planners have access to a suite of digital tools that enhance
their ability to connect with clients. These tools are about enabling
genuine, human interactions at scale.
• Personal websites serve as a professional home base. A wellmaintained
website allows clients to engage with your ethos
and approach, acting as a platform for personalised resources.
• Email campaigns provide insights into client readiness.
Tracking open rates and click-throughs reveals topics of interest,
enabling timely follow-ups.
• Social media fosters connection. Platforms like LinkedIn offer
opportunities to engage with clients informally, sharing insights
that resonate with their current challenges or aspirations.
By integrating these tools, planners can move from reactive to
proactive communication, ensuring they’re present when clients
need them the most.
The Four Rs of effective communication
When creating content, consider the Four Rs:
• Real. Authenticity builds trust. Speak with a voice that reflects
your genuine care and expertise.
• Relatable. Address the shared experiences of your clients.
Whether it’s a post on downsizing or an article on preparing for
a child’s education; relatability ignites conversations.
• Relevant. Timing matters. Content should align with social and
political changes that we’re all experiencing together.
• Regular. Consistency establishes trust. Frequent touchpoints
ensure clients feel supported, even between formal reviews.
Shaping the future
The art of timely engagement is about anticipating client needs,
understanding their transitions and being present in ways that
matter. By combining empathetic communication with digital
tools, planners can create a seamless experience that reinforces
trust and builds long-lasting relationships.
As Gandalf said, “A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives
precisely when he means to.” The same can be true for financial
planners. With the right strategy, you can ensure your clients
perceive you as present exactly when they need you.
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AI and automation: two
sides of the same coin?
Understanding the difference between AI and automation, and how each
can benefit your practice, will help you make the most of these technologies.
Francois du Toit, CFP®, Founder,
PROpulsion
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation are changing
the way businesses work. While both tools can save time,
improve efficiency and reduce errors, they are not the
same thing.
What is the difference?
Automation is about performing repetitive tasks automatically,
without human intervention. It works by following predefined
rules or workflows.
Think of it as getting a machine to do something you would
normally do manually. Examples are automating client email
reminders or generating monthly reports using templates. AI
simulates human intelligence. It can (help) make decisions,
solve problems and even adapts based on data and past
experiences. AI systems learn as they go and improve over time.
For example, using an AI-powered tool that reviews transcripts of
recorded meetings, creates summaries and identifies and creates
action items. The key difference? Automation simply follows
instructions, while AI analyses information, learns, creates and
makes decisions.
Automation in financial advisory practices
Automation is a great tool for handling routine, time-consuming
tasks. By automating workflows, you reduce errors, save hours of
manual work and ensure tasks are completed on time. Here are
some examples of automation in an advisory practice:
1. Client onboarding. Automating the onboarding process
ensures new client details are captured, verified and set up
in customer relationship management (CRM) systems swiftly.
Many CRMs allow you to set up workflows that trigger tasks
like identity verifications and welcome emails automatically.
2. Scheduling and communication. Automated systems can send
reminders for appointments, upcoming reviews or document
deadlines. This eliminates the need to send emails manually.
Calendly and similar tools integrate with your diary to automate
appointment scheduling.
Data entry and reporting. Most firms rely on spreadsheets
or paper-based processes. Automation tools can extract data,
populate reports and ensure accuracy. You can automate monthly
portfolio performance reports using a tool like Seed Analytics or
manage your revenue with deep insights using Commspace. By
automating these simple but essential tasks, you free up time to
focus on client relationships and more strategic work.
The next level
AI steps in when your practice needs insights, predictions or
decision-making capabilities that go beyond predefined rules.
AI-powered tools analyse huge amounts of data quickly, spot
patterns and provide intelligent recommendations. Here’s how AI
enhances advisory practices:
1. Meeting notes. AI tools automatically transcribe and
summarise meeting notes, ensuring you never miss key
details from client discussions. AI-powered tools like Fathom.
video, Fireflies.ai or Otter.ai record meetings, extract action
points and create detailed summaries for easy follow-up.
2. Marketing insights. AI analyses client behaviour and trends to
help you target your marketing more effectively. It identifies
what works and when to engage your audience. Platforms
like HubSpot can track client interactions and predict the best
times to send emails or content to maximise engagement.
3. Enhanced communication. AI tools improve communication
with clients by automating personalised updates and
handling routine questions. AI chatbots on your website can
answer FAQs, schedule appointments and ensure clients are
answered 24/7, improving satisfaction.
4. Report writing. AI helps generate reports based on meetings
notes, transcripts, written communications and the like.
Building a CustomGPT that is trained to create reports in your
style and format saves hours of time. With AI, you not only
streamline tasks but also gain intelligent insights and tools
that improve the quality of your service and communication.
Using AI and automation together
AI and automation work brilliantly together to create seamless,
intelligent workflows. By combining the two, you save time on
manual processes while also improving the quality of your advice
and service.
Final thoughts
AI and automation support you and make you work faster, more
efficiently and more effectively. By automating routine tasks and
using AI to provide smarter insights, you create more time to do
what you do best: build relationships and deliver exceptional advice.
Stay curious!

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PRACTICE MANAGEMENT | Strategic planning
Solving the practice
management puzzle in 2025
Apart from the political, economic, Covid and regulatory challenges, the management and oversight of
financial service providers in a highly competitive and onerous industry has become extremely difficult,
and according to some, even impossible.
Over the last two decades, I have become increasingly
fascinated by the challenges that financial service
providers (FSPs), key individuals and representatives
had to face in their businesses over the years, and the
trials that they still face daily. With COFI initiatives being revived
in the latter part of 2024, it is going to take an incredibly special
person to continue with managing a small independent practice
successfully in the future. It is for this reason that I have embarked
on a yearlong project to write a practice management book,
titled, Practice Management, the ultimate leadership blueprint for
FSPs. My objective with this book is to offer a comprehensive
practice management guide for FSPs, especially for key
individuals and representatives of small to medium-sized FSPs. I
have the wonderful privilege of introducing the book to industry
in this article by giving you, the reader, a brief overview of what
the publication is all about.
INTRODUCTION
There are many underlying components in every advisory
practice, like a jigsaw puzzle. Unlike a puzzle, effective practice
management is always going to be a work in progress, never fully
complete, because changes in the market and legislation as well
as technological enhancements can disrupt FSPs’ businesses on
an ongoing basis.
In this new publication, I identify all the key components
(pieces of the practice management puzzle) of an FSP, large
or small, that will contribute to the sustainability of advisory
businesses in the future. Most of the key components of an FSP
practice are based on business principles that are timeless, which
will help you to lay a sound foundation for your practice, whether
it be under FAIS or COFI. This will benefit readers in many ways,
but one significant benefit can be found in one of the comments
that founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, made about principles that
are timeless. He said:
“I very frequently get the question: ‘What’s going to change
in the next 10 years?’ And that is a very interesting question; it’s
a very common one. I almost never get the question: ‘What’s not
going to change in the next 10 years?’ And I submit to you that
the second question is actually the more important of the two
– because you can build a business strategy around the things
that are stable in time.”
Years of surveys, formal and informal show that the following
operational framework and underlying components of FSPs have
been “stable in time”, to use the words of Bezos:
Twenty of the 53 chapters in the book deal with the leadership
approach and operational components of leading FSPs and one
can say that the illustration above highlights the importance of
64 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

PRACTICE MANAGEMENT | Strategic planning
BLUE
CHIP
the heart and mind of successful FSPs. The heartbeat of an FSP
deals with its values, culture and client engagement process,
because the heart pumps blood through your veins and keeps
the body going. Winning clients and retaining them for the FSP
earns revenue for the business and keeps funding business
development that will sustain the FSP. Your values and culture
do for FSPs what good exercise does for the body. The brains
deal with leadership strategies, effective management and
appropriate allocation of capital in the business to ensure that
FSPs remain profitable.
STRATEGY
There is an exceptionally good chance that COFI will be
promulgated in 2025, and when that happens, FSPs will seriously
have to consider one or more strategic planning sessions to
make sure that their foundations are laid firm and that they are
well-positioned for the future. Existing business strategies may
have to be stress-tested, and some may even need a serious
face-lift. Practice Management, the ultimate leadership blueprint
for FSPs, can be used in every practice as a guide for strategic
planning purposes in 2025 and beyond. The book, scheduled
for publication on Monday, 3 February 2025, features research
from the best business minds in the world and lessons learned
from 2024’s 50 most admired companies in the world. One of the
timeless business principles that most successful and admired
companies tend to focus on is customer obsession, articulated
so well by Jeff Bezos:
“Amazon’s first and most important guiding principle is
customer obsession. For Amazon it means that leaders start with
the customer and work backwards.”
FSP leaders will do well in the years that follow to go beyond
merely treating customers fairly and focusing on blowing their
customers’ socks off with their value propositions. Working
vigorously to earn and keep customers’ trust should be one of
the most important strategic objectives of FSPs for 2025 and
beyond. The WHY is simple. Trust is the only thing that will sustain
your FSP under any circumstances. WHAT to do and HOW to do
it consistently well requires serious planning.
In his bestselling book, The Speed of Trust, Stephen MR Covey
concluded that “the higher the trust, the quicker things happen,
at a lower cost”.
In his book, there are case studies that prove his theory, and
I have witnessed this principle play out in practice many times.
Systems
What every FSP needs in a complex, competitive and onerous
environment is to scale their operations effectively and efficiently.
As your client base grows, technology can accommodate
increased data volumes and more complex client scenarios
without a proportional increase in manual workload or significant
additional cost. Poor systems will have the opposite effect as
stated by W Edwards Deming, professor, author, lecturer and
management consultant:
“If you put good people in bad systems, you get bad results.”
While many FSPs do have good systems in place, very few have
managed to convince all their key individuals, representatives
and administrators to embrace their processes and systems fully.
If you put good people into good systems but poorly embraced,
you will also get poor results. The second aspect that FSPs will
simply have to implement in 2025 is to change the mindset of
representatives and administrators pertaining to their adoption
of their FSP system.
CONCLUSION
The book, Practice Management, the ultimate leadership
blueprint for FSPs provides insights that will help you in your
strategic planning and decision-making processes in 2025
and beyond. Another unique feature of this publication is
that 60 leading industry stakeholders have participated in the
publication, offering the reader a comprehensive range of value
propositions from world-class product and service providers.
Their contributions to the book also made it possible for this
business manual to be made available electronically at no cost
to every key individual, advisor and intermediary in South Africa.
Happy reading and wishing all of you the best for 2025.
LACK OF CAPACITY
The book also contains a particularly important chapter on the
need to optimise your systems and technology. The reality is
that most FSPs struggle with the lack of capacity and most FSP
stakeholders are over-extended. There are two key aspects in
every business that can free up capacity, namely:
The speed of trust
Cost
Trust
Speed
Anton Swanepoel, Founder, Trusted Advisors
www.bluechipdigital.co.za
65

2025
Annual
Durban
Cape Town
Johannesburg
Pretoria
Virtual
11 th March 2025
th
18 th March 2025
19 th March 2025
26 th

Refresher
Masterclass

BLUE
CHIP
INVESTMENT | Property
Specialisation vs diversification: why
you don’t have to choose
Conventional wisdom pits diversified property funds against specialist ones. But, as Vukile shows, a wellcrafted
specialist fund can also reap the rewards of diversification for its investors.
When researching investment in real estate investment
trusts (REIT) you’ve likely read that you must choose
between diversified and specialist funds. But is this
really an either/or proposition?
Yes, investing in a diversified REIT offers a shortcut to crosssector
diversification. However, companies excelling in their
specialised areas often yield superior results. Private investors may
benefit from building their own diversified portfolios by selecting
top-performing sector-specific funds. At Vukile Property Fund, we
believe that with the right approach, you can get the best of both
worlds in one fund. Our model combines retail real estate subsector
specialisation with geographical diversification across South
Africa and the Iberian Peninsula.
Mastering our niche
As a specialist fund focused on retail property, we’ve found that
deep expertise in a specific sector can be a powerful driver of
value. Concentrating efforts and resources on what we know
best achieves a level of insight and understanding that more
generalist funds simply can’t match.
This drives the ability to identify opportunities, manage risks
and drive returns in ways that would be impossible with a more
scattered approach.
Take Vukile’s scalable consumer-led business model. By
understanding our shoppers’ needs, we create experiences at
our shopping centres that exceed expectations. This leads to
increased time and spending at our centres and builds loyalty.
Our customer-centric approach drives value creation for all
our stakeholders. Our model is scalable and relevant to each
community and country where we invest.
Multi-layered diversification
But specialisation doesn’t mean putting all your eggs in one
basket. At Vukile, we’ve built a diversified portfolio that spans
South Africa and the Iberian Peninsula in Spain and Portugal
We further diversify across regions and retail property types,
encompassing everything from large malls to smaller convenience
centres, as well as retail brands and, finally, individual shop units.
A single shop closure has minimal impact on the overall portfolio.
This diversification provides a robust foundation, spreading
risk and increasing the potential for consistent returns over the
long term.
Disciplined dealmaking
Of course, diversification is only as good as the quality of the
underlying assets. That’s why we’re so selective about the properties
we bring into our portfolio and value-adding developments.
Strong capital allocation lies at the heart of our strategy, and this
is where our specialisation truly comes to the fore.
Every potential acquisition is subjected to rigorous scrutiny.
We’re not interested in chasing yield and growing for scale’s sake
– our goal is to build a portfolio of truly exceptional properties
that are strategically aligned and financially accretive in our core
markets of Spain, Portugal and South Africa.
A consistent track record
Combining a specialist’s focus with the benefits of diversification
provides a strategic approach to capitalise on retail property
sector opportunities while mitigating its challenges.
Over the past 20 years, Vukile has delivered consistent dividend
growth (bar one Covid-19-impacted year), outperforming the
SAPY Index and industry peers. This is a testament to the power
of a specialised yet diversified model, clear strategy, best-of-breed
governance, robust financial management and strong teams that
operate on the ground, locally. With our proven business model
and performance record, our investors continue to demonstrate
confidence that their capital is in good hands.
The best of both worlds
So why choose between specialisation and diversification when
you can have both? We believe there are exciting returns and
opportunities to be found in the world of retail property and
across our core markets of South Africa, Spain and Portugal – and
we look forward to unlocking them.
Laurence Rapp, CEO, Vukile Property Fund
68 www.bluechipdigital.co.za

OUR 220 MILLION SHOPPER VISITS
A YEAR CREATE SUSTAINABLE GROWTH
AND SUPERIOR VALUE.
This is Faith M, aged 55. She shops weekly, mostly mid-morning when the roads
are quiet. It’s a short drive, and this is her favourite community centre close to home.
She used to shop monthly, but now enjoys doing more frequent top-ups. She likes to
spend time in the centre and will often arrange to meet a friend at the local coffee shop.
Faith and her husband like to pop in at the centre over weekends, especially
when there’s a spice festival or other community event, or when they’re with their
grandchildren in the school holidays.
We know all this and more about Faith M and our other visitors, too. Our multi-faceted
consumer behaviour research, combined with our deep understanding of the needs and
desires of the communities we serve, leads us every step of the way.
Our unique focus on a superior customer experience ultimately benefits all our key
stakeholders, including our tenants and investors.
As a Vukile stakeholder, you too will benefit from our extensive analysis of shopper
behaviour and the factors that drive continuously evolving retail trends.
There’s never been a better time to invest in people like Faith M.
BUILDING COMMUNITIES,
GROWING VALUE.

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