SARS pays back R10bn, but some taxpayers’ refunds are being withheld

Taxpayers should inform SARS if they have been unemployed for a full year or longer, to avoid being flagged as non-compliant.

Clarifying Terminology

A reader recently commented on media releases from various regulatory bodies, complaining that it contains fancy sounding, but confusing terminology for the normal adviser who is only really interested in how changes will […]

RVAF Update

Die Burger reported on Thursday, 16 April 2015, that investors who placed funds with the Relative Value Arbitrage Fund (RVAF) can expect to get some of their money back. This information was contained in the […]

Sharemax Directors Appeal Successful

The FSB Appeal Board handed down a decision on 10 April 2015 in a case where a number of parties appealed against a decision by the FAIS Ombud to hold them equally liable for losses […]

Should I appeal?

Statistics contained in the FAIS Ombud’s annual report show that settlements of complaints outnumber determinations by a count of nine to one. Does this mean that only one in ten FSPs are of […]

FSB Discusses Twin Peaks Reforms

Industry stakeholders recently attended a two-day workshop on the implementation of the Twin Peaks model of financial regulation, which will see the FSB become a dedicated market conduct regulator with an enhanced mandate […]

Sharemax Directors Appeal Ombud Determination

On 31 March 2015, Julius Cobbett reported on an appeal case currently being heard by the FSB Appeal Board in Pretoria. The directors of Sharemax are appealing against a FAIS Ombud determination in […]

FSB Acts Swiftly on Allegations

The following FSB media release clarifies its stance regarding speculation in the press about a South African involvement in an alleged Ponzi scheme said to be run from Mauritius: Following media articles regarding […]

Plans to Consolidate Ombud Schemes

The Financial Services Regulation (FSR) Bill includes a review of the various ombud schemes currently active in the industry. The information below was extracted from the discussion document titled “An Integrated Ombud System”. […]

Latest on NHI White Paper

The information below was printed in Legalbrief Today last week. The National Health Insurance (NHI) White Paper and a draft financing paper are expected to begin the process of being scrutinised by Cabinet […]

Landmark SA Investment Panorama study

Major investment institutions and leading asset managers have welcomed the recent launch of the South African Investment Panorama survey. The study, which is a project spearheaded by international strategic research company Insight Discovery, […]

Industry Expert’s Views

The February 2015 IISA newsletter contains details of an interview conducted with Dr Brian Benfield who recently retired from the University of the Witwatersrand as visiting professor, Insurance and Risk Management after teaching […]

Well Bless My Soul

On Thursday, Moneyweb published an article titled: Process to repay 170,000 Defencex investors underway. This is an update on a story they have been covering for some time now. The introduction reads: Investors […]

Robotic Advice versus Personal Financial Service

Technology has certainly levelled the playing fields as far as South Africa and the rest of the world is concerned. Gone are the days when we simply piggy-backed on what happened elsewhere in […]

Will Tax Free Savings Achieve its Goal?

The announcement of this incentive, intended to promote savings, received a fair amount of media coverage. It will be interesting to see whether this continues, and what impact it will have on the […]

Product supplier responsibility for advisers

Fais Circular 6 of 2013 announced the postponement of the Level 2 Regulatory Examination until further notice to allow the FSB to amend the qualifying criteria and investigate alternative delivery models in consultation with […]

Low Cost Medical Schemes Proposed

The Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) issued Circular 9 of 2015 on 13 February. The document invites comments on the proposed introduction of a Low Cost benefit Option (LCBO) Framework. The purpose of the framework is to […]