Sanlam pays tribute to ‘titan’ Desmond Smith

Sanlam announced the passing on 31 January of former chairman Desmond Smith, whom the financial services group described as “a titan” who played a significant role in creating Sanlam as it exists today.

“In the coming days, there will be a lot said and written about Desmond as we all ruminate about his life and times. What will be consistent in our reflections as the Sanlam family is that Desmond’s blood was genuinely blue, and his career and personal history are most closely knit to Sanlam’s,” the group said in a statement this week.

It described Smith as “unassuming” and “generally modest” who engaged easily with staff at all levels throughout his career at Sanlam.

Smith was born in Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) on 21 June 1947.

He received a Sanlam bursary to study for a BSc and joined the company in 1968 in the actuarial department. He became a key member of the management team, and Smith was appointed as managing director in 1993 when he was only 45 years old. He still holds the record as the company’s youngest MD. He retired from Sanlam at the end of 1997.

Smith was the chairman of Sanlam from 2010 to 2017 and of Santam from 2003 to 2010.

Smith was the MD of Reinsurance Group of America South Africa from 1999 to 2005. He was a director of other companies.

In June 2009, Smith was appointed as a non-executive director on the boards of Sanlam and Sanlam.

Sanlam’s current chairman, Elias Masilela, said: “No words can explain the loss of Desmond, to his family, Sanlam, the actuarial fraternity and the broader business community. He touched and influenced many lives. I am one of those. His leadership as chairman of Sanlam, when I was an employee, influenced me immensely. It is sad that I must bid him farewell whilst standing in his shoes. May the family be comforted in this difficult time. Lala ngoxolo (“sleep peacefully”), Desmond.”

Sanlam said that under Smith’s leadership, the company pioneered South Africa’s first broad-based black economic empowerment deal with New Africa Investments Limited.

He championed the Sanlam Awards for Excellence in Financial Journalism and was instrumental in the establishment of the awards in 1974.

Smith was active in a number of professional bodies and academic institutions:

• President of the Pensions Institute of Southern Africa and of the Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA) and served on a number of ASSA’s committees and the International Actuarial Association.
• Chairman of the Life Offices Association of South Africa in 1996, 2004 and 2008.
• Chairman of the council of Stellenbosch University, served on the advisory board of the university’s Graduate School of Business and was a chairman of the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies.
• Member of the advisory committee of the Ombudsman for Long-term Insurance and of the ombudsman’s council.

Sanlam chief executive Paul Hanratty, on behalf of the company’s board, executive and staff, sent condolences to Smith’s wife Estelle, daughter Gillian and son Brendan, as well as his extended family and friends.