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A showcase for intermediation and insurance

ARTICLE BY

  • FIA Editor

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After weeks of pressure tests, strategy clashes and on-the-spot presentations, the grand finale of The Insurance Apprentice 2025 (TIA 2025) confirmed Khaya Mashologu of Old Mutual Insure as the winner.

Khaya’s authentic leadership, emotional intelligence and resilience under fire may have carried him to the title, but his success also put the spotlight on another group of winners –  the millions of consumers who benefit when intermediaries and insurers work together to deliver sustainable risk protection.

The Financial Intermediary Association of Southern Africa (FIA) would like to congratulate the winner of TIA 2025 and commend the series for its role in elevating and empowering stakeholders across society. The education focus resonates across the consumer, intermediary and insurance segments.

FIA member firms on the podium

The FIA had extra reason to celebrate in 2025. Four of the final 10 contestants were drawn from member firms, and two of them reached the final three. Darius Wyngaardt of Darius Wyngaardt Brokers and Mmabatho Letoaba of FNB Brokers fell at the last hurdle, but still secured silver and bronze in the competition. Their performances reinforce the calibre of talent nurtured within intermediary businesses.

Ahead of the series, the FIA spoke with Wyngaardt about the competition, the value of advice and the public’s perception of brokers and insurance. His insights underline why intermediation remains central to good consumer outcomes.

A breadth of intermediary expertise

Commenting on the scale and reach of TIA, Wyngaardt said: “We have 11-years’ worth of build-up in the competition … there is a potential viewership exposure of well over two million people.”

He emphasised the breadth of expertise that intermediaries bring to the table, hinting that they enjoy an edge in a competition designed to test candidates across a wide spectrum of insurance skills. Unlike specialists, who focus on a single function, intermediaries must understand claims, placement, policy wordings and underwriting, in addition to integrating these disciplines in the client’s interest. This resonates with what viewers saw across the series, namely that conflict management, empathy and leadership under pressure are as important as technical knowledge.

The intermediary also commented on the accountability that underpins advice, mentioning the professional indemnity (PI) cover that many intermediary firms carry to assist in the rare event they fail in their professional obligations. For Wyngaardt, this responsibility goes hand in hand with advocacy. “My client’s loss is my loss; my client’s win is my win … the broker must always act in the client’s best interests,” he said.

The FIA keeps this client-centric commitment centre stage by serving as the collective voice of the intermediary, and as a key stakeholder in shaping legislation and policy towards professional advice and fair consumer outcomes.

Finale colour that revealed character

The FIA believes that one of the TIA’s greatest contributions is in raising public awareness around insurance and intermediation. By bringing real-world insurance challenges into living rooms across the country, the competition shows how insurers and intermediaries work together to protect businesses and households from risk. It also elevates financial advice and intermediation as professional services grounded in accountability and standards.

 

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