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Choice Offerings

There’s a lot to take into account when choosing the right medical aid cover – but bells and whistles you’re unlikely to use should not be the deciding factor, says Lee Callakoppen, Principal Officer at Bonitas Medical Fund. Here’s how brokers can help clients make sense of this sometimes daunting environment.

The Magic Touch

Following engagement with more than 400 brokers on Bryte’s annual roadshow this year, Pierre Geyer, Executive Head: Broker Distribution at Bryte sat down with FAnews to discuss the industry’s future. “Reflecting on these recent engagements, I’ve realised once again that the insurance industry can only thrive when we achieve a symbiotic balance between the human touch and technology,” he says.

Hidden Figures

When it comes to financial crime, the warning signs are almost always there, but not always spotted in time. In South Africa’s current, tightened regulatory environment, failing to detect red flags early can expose accountable institutions to reputational and legal fallout that far outweighs the cost of vigilance. Hawken McEwan, Director of Risk & Compliance at nCino KYC Africa shares the red flags to watch out for…

The Insurtech Uprising

As customers increasingly look for digital offerings to suit their modern lifestyles, a new wave of tech-first companies is entering the market. Jaco Oosthuizen, MD at YuLife SA, asks: Can legacy insurers keep up?

Advice Still Wins

The newly established National Financial Ombud Scheme of South Africa has released its first annual report. Its findings reveal valuable insights that can help clients prevent claim rejections in future, and show that intermediaries matter more than ever, writes Tarina Vlok, MD at Elite Risk.

Active Ownership In Action

Stocks are not merely pieces of paper or pixels on a screen. A share represents fractional ownership in a real business. This fundamental principle informs everything – from how a company’s intrinsic value is assessed to acting on behalf of clients as stewards of their capital. Here’s what that looks like in practice.

When client trust becomes your reputation

For brokers, reputation isn’t built in marketing campaigns. It’s built in the pressure moments, and it can be lost just as quickly. Every broker knows those moments. The late-night call after an accident. The claim that drags on for months. The renewal that hangs by a thread. In those situations, clients aren’t thinking about premiums or paperwork. They’re thinking about whether their broker will deliver.

Thoughts From Our CEO

The financial services landscape isn’t just changing; it’s accelerating into uncharted territory. As intermediaries, we find ourselves at the intersection of regulatory transformation (one example is COFI), technological disruption (such as AI), and evolving client expectations. The question isn’t whether we need to shift gears, but how strategically we execute that shift to emerge stronger and more client-focused than ever before, writes Lizelle van der Merwe, CEO of the FIA.

E.M.P.A.T.H.Y.

By turning empathy into an acronym and unpacking the values it stands for, we can create a powerful blueprint for building stronger client connections, says Wimpie van der Merwe, CEO of Global Choices.

How Generative AI is transforming South Africa’s Non-Life Insurance Industry

Generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) is reshaping industries across the globe, with non-life insurance being no exception, writes Nicholas Dempsey, Executive for On Platform Business Solutions at Old Mutual Insure. In South Africa, insurers are already leveraging this powerful technology to streamline operations, improve customer experiences and accelerate quotes handling. But the impact goes beyond efficiency: Gen AI also holds promise for tackling long-standing challenges like financial exclusion and fraud, opening the door to a more inclusive and responsive insurance sector.

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