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Brokers held personally liable for clients' losses
The Ombud for Financial Services Providers has held two advisers personally liable for money investors lost in dubious investments.
[Full Story...]
Breaking free from debt does you and the country good
The National Credit Act (NCA) has been getting the blame for a lot of things recently, from the slow-down in the economy to the non-profitability of banks.
[Full Story...]
National Savings Month: get into the saving habit
It is National Savings Month. The reason for the emphasis on saving for the next 30 days is that South Africans do not save enough to protect themselves from financial disaster and ensure they can enjoy a better standard of living.
[Full Story...]
Survey shows we're still poor savers, but are managing to service our debt
Eighty percent of South Africans are saving either the same or less than they were saving last year, according to the Old Mutual Savings Monitor, which was released this week.
[Full Story...]
Save yourself - and help your country
"Save for the goal: the path to recovery" is the theme for this year's national Savings Month. Prem Govender, the chairperson of the South African Savings Institute (Sasi), announced the theme at the launch of Savings Month this week.
[Full Story...]
Our money woes could end in 'perfect storm'
South Africa is in the middle of a savings crisis and the situation could get worse, but you can help to improve both your situation and that of the country if you minimise your debt and start saving as soon as possible. During National Savings Month, the acsis/Personal Finance Financial Planning Club hosted Andrew Bradley, the chief executive of financial planning company acsis, who spoke about the savings crisis.
[Full Story...]
Broker again ordered to make good
In a fifth ruling related to the Garek share investment scam, KwaZulu-Natal broker Andre van der Merwe was again ordered to reimburse clients for losses based on his advice, bringing the total amount he has been ordered to pay back to clients to R500 000 plus interest.
[Full Story...]
FSB suspends record number of service providers
The Financial Services Board (FSB) has suspended the licences of 500 financial services providers (FSPs). This is an overwhelming record number of suspensions since the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services (FAIS) Act was fully implemented in October 2004.
[Full Story...]
Investors warned about dealing with IIMSA
The Financial Services Board (FSB) this week warned investors to be cautious when dealing with a company called Integrated Investment Management SA (IIMSA).
[Full Story...]
Passive tracker funds have an important place in your portfolio
It is amazing how much questionable propaganda and misleading information is still being put out by the financial services industry, while essential facts, particularly relating to risk, are withheld or obfuscated.
[Full Story...]
How to take a realistic view of risk and return on your investments
One of the most important judgments you must make on any investment is the risk of the investment relative to the returns you want. Generally, as is oft repeated, the greater the return you require, the greater the risk that you could lose part or all of your money.
[Full Story...]
Ombud can help you clear your name with credit bureaus if you are retrenched
You may be one of the thousands of South Africans who has been blacklisted by the credit bureaus because you cannot meet your debt repayments after having been retrenched. However, the Credit Ombud may be able to help you restore your creditworthiness.
[Full Story...]
FSB takes aim at adviser incentives that harm you
The financial services industry regulator is concerned that you, the consumer of financial products, are being made to switch products for the wrong reasons. As a result, it is clamping down on product providers that place their own financial interests above yours.
[Full Story...]
Choose the right vehicle for your investment needs
As an investor, you might be easily confused by the number of investment options available. Deciding which one to go for is not always easy and, as with most financial decisions, you need to give your choice careful consideration. At a recent meeting of the acsis/Personal Finance Financial Planning Club, Gerrit Viljoen, the founder of Ultima Financial Planners and a former winner of the Financial Planner of the Year award, compared choosing an investment to choosing a car.
[Full Story...]
Is Fica tripping you up?
If you can’t prove who you are, you are locked out of the financial system. Even proving where you live is an obstacle for some, so getting the compliance ball into the Fica net can be far from easy. We look at obstacles to getting Fica-ed and whether Fica is, in fact, an adequate safeguard against money laundering.
[Full Story...]
Ruling opens door to more property syndication complaints
A financial services company and its representative were 'clueless' when they advised a pensioner to invest in a property syndication company, the Ombud for Financial Services Providers has found.
[Full Story...]
Institute suspends member for not sticking to its code
The Financial Planning Institute (FPI) this week alerted its members that it has found a member guilty of transgressing the institute's code of conduct and has suspended his membership for five years.
[Full Story...]
Nedbank in hot water with FSB for not reporting bad adviser
Nedbank could face severe disciplinary action, including the loss of its financial services provider (FSP) licence, for not reporting to the Financial Services Board (FSB) that it had fired a financial adviser for "gross misconduct".
[Full Story...]
More to be done to protect you
Financial planners and product providers will have to do far more to ensure they are acting in your best interests as policy and other changes in the post-recession environment take effect, the annual conference of the Financial Planning Institute (FPI) heard this week.
[Full Story...]
Third adviser from Consolidated wins top planner award
Natasja Norval-Hart was named the Financial Planning Institute (FPI) Financial Planner of the Year at the FPI's annual conference in Johannesburg this week.
[Full Story...]
You, your adviser and your cash are in it for life
Your financial adviser should ask you to appoint him or her as the chief financial officer of your life and he or she should help you to make wise financial decisions, the Financial Planning Institute's annual conference heard.
[Full Story...]
Life stage vs lifestyle
Financial services providers have different ideas about the ideal way to structure your investments before and during retirement. Some place importance on the affordability of your expected lifestyle once retired.
[Full Story...]
Life's a stage ... and then you retire - Part II
This is the second and final part of the retirement planning story 'Life's a stage ... and then you retire'.
[Full Story...]
Life’s a stage ... and then you retire - Part I
A popular approach to saving for retirement is to divide your working life into stages and adjust the risk profile of your investments accordingly. But this strategy is under question in some quarters as being too risk-averse in the final stages. We take a closer look at life staging and its alternatives.
[Full Story...]
The mysterious transformation
It’s not surprising that billions of rands are pouring into dividend income funds: they convert taxable interest into non-taxable dividends. But why do asset managers clam up when asked to explain the specifics of how their funds do this? And is the taxman prepared to continue to forgo the revenue?
[Full Story...]
Turning debt into an asset
Securitisations that were tainted in the United States have been blamed for triggering the global economic slump. What are securitisations, and what is to prevent a similar meltdown in the securitisations offered by South African banks?
[Full Story...]
Debt market funds: not as safe as you think - Part II
This is the second and final part of the non-equity investments story 'Debt market funds: Not as safe as you think'.
[Full Story...]
Debt market funds: not as safe as you think - Part I
Some recent developments have called into question the assumption that a money market fund is one of the safest places to invest. We look at the risks and returns of money market and other non-equity funds.
[Full Story...]
Investing by design Part II
This is the second and final part of the structured products story 'Investing by design'.
[Full Story...]
What your chances are
Unless your investment strategy takes into account all the variables that are likely to affect your future returns, you may well be making decisions based on unrealistic assumptions. We explain how what is known as stochastic modelling can help you plan your finances better.
[Full Story...]
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