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Mutually Inclusive

ARTICLE BY

  • Michele Jennings
  • Chief Executive
  • glu

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The future of finance isn’t just about products. It’s about partnerships and platforms that work for people and value that’s shared. Here’s how glu’s Profit-Share benefit creates lasting value for members.

The concept of Mutuality is the belief that financial progress should be a shared journey, not a solo pursuit. This is a new kind of financial relationship, one where doing the right thing today helps secure a stronger future tomorrow. It’s about being “us-made” instead of “self-made”.

For us, that means aiming to deliver member financial well-being through the power of Profit-Share. Our Profit-Share benefit enables members to build lasting value, create wealth, and secure financial freedom for themselves and their loved ones. It’s a simple yet powerful and rewarding model that allows financial services to be fair, inclusive, and built around people. Making the circle bigger makes it better. We call this member centricity and sharing of success Financial Togetherness™.

How to create a Profit-Share model

Traditional insurers answer to shareholders; being a mutual means answering to members. This is a shift from conventional financial services models, and it essentially means, “when we do well, so do you.”

When a member joins glu and takes out a life insurance policy – Life Cover, Disability Cover, Income Protection or Critical Illness Cover – they automatically qualify for Profit-Share. This means they start building long-term value for their financial future that’s real and meaningful, grows every year and is fully theirs.

Here is how Profit-Share works:

  • When a member takes out a glu life insurance policy, a Profit-Share policy will be issued in time for the first Profit-Share.
  • Around April each year, a notional Profit-Share bonus is declared into the member’s glu Profit-Share po This bonus is based on the member’s insurance premiums paid, and their accumulated Profit-Share balance.
  • After 10 years of membership with glu, members can access 20% of their Profit-Share balance, and an additional 20% every five years thereafter. This is until a member reaches age 65 or has been with glu for 25 years (whichever happens first), at which point 100% of their remaining Profit-Share balance is available.


Within the PPS Group, there are now more than 12 000 members with Profit-Share account balances over R1 million. Some have balances exceeding R2 million by their mid-to-late-50s.

Profit-Share is not about choosing between protection now or benefits later. Members can claim when they need to. They can get support through life’s uncertainties, whether that’s illness, injury, or death – and still benefit from the growth of their Profit-Share policy. This is not a bonus or once-off reward, it’s a structural value-added feature.

Everybody benefits

This kind of meaningful value allows financial services to impact the lives of more South Africans. Leveraging technology makes it simpler, faster, and easier for members to join the community and experience Mutuality in action. We’ve seen how a robust digital-first platform removes friction and helps members to be onboarded more seamlessly and efficiently. This allows the adviser the ability to manage the member onboarding experience while benefiting from overall platform efficiencies.

Staying the course

In a world where members are overwhelmed with options and complexity, simplicity stands out. The ability to offer something more meaningful than just a product, a structure that builds long-term value, is a game-changer. It turns the conversation from “what’s the cheapest premium?” to “what’s the smartest and most impactful long-term financial decision?”

Profit-sharing also becomes a key lever when times get tough. Life happens. Budgets get stretched. And often, the first thing people want to cut is their insurance. But when members know they’re building something valuable in the background, they think twice. They weigh the short-term saving against the long-term loss. And more often than not, they choose to stay. That helps create a more resilient financial journey for all.

As an industry, we need to make financial services human again. We need to help people see beyond what they’re paying and shift their focus towards what they’re building.

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