“Gold is the universal language understood by all nations.” (George Herbert) Just a few weeks ago, the gold price climbed above $2,500 per ounce for the first time in history. This has once again got South Africans talking about the attractiveness (or otherwise) of gold as an investment. Gold is probably one of the easiest…
Dear Clients, Firstly, I must send thoughts and prayers to those who have lost loved ones and livelihoods in the wake of the recent protests. I am not writing this as an expert, but rather as a committed optimist. For the story of humanity, is a story of optimism… While writing this, I am listening…
Respecting and protecting your Personal Information (please refer to the definition of Personal Information at the end of this policy statement) is very important to us. It is also a Constitutional right, legal, and good business practice requirement, which we take very seriously. In line with the 8 Conditions in the Protection of Personal Information…
In 2001, Eskom was named as the global power company of the year at the Global Energy Awards hosted by the Financial Times in New York. The utility was commended for its technological innovation, effective maintenance, and low-cost electricity. In the two decades since then, however, a lack of maintenance, rampant corruption and deliberate maladministration…
SPACs, or ‘Special-Purpose Acquisition Company’, are the latest investment frenzy as investors ranging from hedge funds to everyday investors, rush to access these speculative assets in the hope that they might be investing in the next Tesla or Amazon. SPACs are essentially publicly traded companies that have no operations and hold nothing but cash. They…
Listed property was the top performing local asset class over a period of 15 years from 2002 through to the end of 2017, outperforming the broader equity market by 5% per year over that period. The outperformance was driven by a range of factors: the listed property businesses being managed more professionally, the benefits of…
This is a story about what the frenzy of crowds can do when sufficiently organized and have little to lose. In January 2021, GameStop shares soared almost 2500%, or 25x your initial investment. Share prices rarely make headline news, but this time was different. The apparent driver being a group of trash-talking, meme busting millennials…
Who would have thought that 2020 would be a strong year for investors? In the depths of the COVID panic the term ‘depression’ was bandied about by many, a reset of the financial system in its entirety. Sentiment in our country was at its lowest as businesses shut and jobs were lost, with our government…
Dear Client, While we are fully aware that 2020 has been a year of real challenge and struggle for many, I am writing this letter to celebrate the positives and there have truly been many. Allow me to take you on a brief journey from macro to micro; from Covid and Capitalism, to the Financial…
South African businesses have a strong history of successfully expanding their operations offshore and becoming well renowned global businesses. This has been done to access growth opportunities in offshore markets and to diversify away from a lower growth and higher risk domestic environment. While some companies have achieved success in their offshore pursuits, there are…
For many investors keeping track of their portfolios is an anxious pursuit. Markets seem to behave in a non-sensical way at times, with any manner of factors causing anguish. Inflation expectations, GDP growth, sentiment, the oil price, central bank policy, debt levels, company mergers and acquisitions, cases of fraud and market disruption. These are all…
