9 Jul 2013

Finance & Insurance

Can you engage effectively with your employees?

Technology has turned the world in which we live upside-down, says Lia Marus and asks: how can you effectively engage your employees?

Still on the employee front, a mining framework agreement has been signed, unfortunately without the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU).

The mining sector has been hit by unreasonable wage demands and it seems as though some in labour are oblivious to the damage they are doing to the industry.

No business can afford unreasonable wage demands... something has to give: either the company goes under, and everyone loses their jobs, or it cuts staff and an unfortunate number are out on the street, and/or it takes the mechanised route - and that still leads to fewer jobs.

No-one is saying miners should work for a pittance, but demanding astronomical increases is just plain stupid.

Hoof would have thought of it... 10 top media personalities took to the Twitterverse to help raise funds for the charity of their choice in the #BeTheStud campaign - and they made a difference for charity.

Our tame motoring editor Henrie Geyser is a heady blend of city chic and country charm, so it's no wonder he sees those same qualities in the Volvo CC.

Rod Baker, Content Director

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Weekly top stories

South Africans are 'bleeding' medical aids
A 60-year-old man spent 156 days on a hospital ventilator at a cost to the Discovery Health of more than R3.5m and a 70-year-old patient's use of assisted-breathing machines cost the scheme R3.2m for 118 days of treatment. Read more >>
Avoid Blue Dot and Matshidiso schemes
FNB Home Loans Quarterly Report June 2013 released
[Ewald Kellerman]


Finance & Insurance
Financial agility will help combat the doom and gloom
[Helene Vermaak] We are living in a perilous time financially. The fuel price is constantly rising, the Rand seems to be weakening daily and an interest rate hike is imminent. Read more >>



Physical disability shouldn't leave financial scars
[Andre Krause] South Africans are under-insured for disability in general, with a staggering 60% of the necessary disability cover not in place, according to a survey by True South Actuaries & Consultants, which was conducted in March this year. Income earners everywhere are hard hit when disability strikes - and yet the mix of life insurance products sold remains far from appropriate. Read more >>

Green-focussed Tower Property Fund set for JSE listing
The Tower Property Fund will soon be listing under the Johannesburg Stock Exchange's REIT structure. The fund has strategised the reduction of occupancy costs for all buildings within its portfolio, and is underpinned by a "greening" ethos. Read more >>


Insurance
Old Mutual buys Faulu in Kenya
Old Mutual has bought a third company, Faulu Kenya, as it expands its footprint on the African continent, the company said on Wednesday (3 July). Read more >>



Santam fined R200k for contraventions
[Phakamisa Ndzamela] SA's largest short-term insurer Santam has been fined R200‚000 by the enforcement committee of the Financial Services Board (FSB) for contravening certain provisions in the Short-Term Insurance Act. Read more >>

Avoid Blue Dot and Matshidiso schemes
Prospective clients for funeral policies in North West have been warned not to deal with two shady funeral schemes that are currently under investigation. Read more >>


Accounting & Auditing
SA's finance intelligence head gets top post
South Africa's financial intelligence head Murray Michell has been appointed to chair the Egmont Group - an international organisation tasked with combating unlawful financial activities. Read more >>

SAIPA helps accountants to consider public sector employment
In March this year, auditor-general Terence Nombembe noted that less than a quarter of government entities had been given a clean audit. A key contributing factor is a lack of basic accounting skills in government. The skills gap also contributes to government's ongoing inability to spend and account for its budgets. Read more >>

Chartered accountants can help improve financial fitness of small businesses - SAICA
According to the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), small businesses should think twice before dispensing with the services of chartered accountants, despite the change in auditing laws. Lenders assessing financial fitness place importance on audits and sound cash flow and other advice provided by a South African chartered accountant (CA(SA)). Read more >>


Banking
New Yuan-denominated World Currency Card saves South Africans conversion costs
Bidvest Bank has launched an innovative world-first Yuan-denominated travel card, that is proving popular amongst South Africans travelling to China. Read more >>


Credit Services
Wonga.com survey finds that unexpected costs drive loan applications
While the perception exists that most South Africans applying for unsecured loans are doing so as a result of living beyond their means, a recent survey by Wonga.com has revealed that the primary reason for these applications is to cover unexpected costs. Read more >>


Finance, Accounting & Banking
Rand tracks firmer euro
[Fifi Peters] The rand continued to track the euro‚ (9 July) reaching an intra-day best level of R10.04/$‚ as optimism over Greece securing additional funds to boost its economy continued to provide support. Read more >>

Know your notes, Reserve Bank urges
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is aware of isolated complaints regarding the thread on new banknotes, it said on Monday. Read more >>

South Africans should plan ahead to increase savings - Sibiya
July is South Africa's National Savings Month, and will hopefully help to convince the many South Africans who do not save that it is wise to do so. Read more >>

Less liquidations due to business rescue procedure
Figures released by Stats SA on 24 June 2013 indicate a drop in the number of liquidations in May 2013 by 51.7% compared to May 2012. This is largely due to the business rescue procedure, which assists struggling yet viable companies. Read more >>


Financial Services
New ASISA standard on unclaimed assets
[Lize de la Harpe] The new ASISA Standard on Unclaimed Assets came into effect on 1 June 2013 and sets out the tracing process that should be followed by life companies. It also stipulates what should happen to assets when beneficiaries cannot be traced. Read more >>

FNB Home Loans Quarterly Report June 2013 released
[Ewald Kellerman] The 2nd Quarter FNB Estate Agents Survey shows little change in the interest in residential property buying for buy-to-let purposes. Remaining on a low value, the estate agents surveyed estimated that only eight percent of buyers buy for buy-to-let purposes. This figure has systematically reduced since the early part of last decade when agents quoted a figure three times as high as today. Read more >>

AfroCentric placed fourth in FM Top Companies Awards 2013
The FM Top Companies Awards 2013 have placed AfroCentric Investment Corporation (AfroCentric) in fourth place. Now with a market capitalisation in excess of R1 billion, this is the first year that the company is eligible as a candidate for the awards. Read more >>


Investment Banking
Treasury unlikely to give Sanral more cash
[Nicky Smith] It would be "hard if not impossible" to give the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) more financial support, the Treasury says, as public pressure grows to delay implementation of the highly unpopular and legally contested e-toll programme. Read more >>


Investment Management
Property lags as bonds climb higher
[Alistair Anderson] Highly volatile bond markets have turned investors away from SA's listed-property sector, but the opportunities are still there, thanks to higher yields and sound market fundamentals, said Estienne de Klerk, an executive director of Growthpoint Properties. Read more >>

Three reasons to give your investment a boost this savings month
[Nico Coetzee] July marks Savings Month. Midway through the year, it's the perfect opportunity to take a fresh look at your investments and to consider boosting your savings. Read more >>


Taxation
90% of the carbon tax bill paid by eight firms
[Marc Hasenfuss] Just eight listed companies could pay more than 90% of SA's potential carbon tax bill, research by specialist asset management house Mergence Investment Managers shows. Read more >>

Taxation Laws Amendment Bill published
The National Treasury published the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill and the Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill on Thursday (4 July) for public comment. Read more >>

Taxpayer bound by grounds of objection
[Heinrich Louw] Whether or not a taxpayer is bound by his grounds of objection against a disputed assessment has been the subject of two recent judgments. Read more >>

Clients should check tax practitioners' compliance - Kotze
In 2004 it became a requirement for tax practitioners to register with SARS. Since then, 34,000 individuals have registered. However, the tax compliance of almost half of these tax practitioners has been called into question. Read more >>

Tips for tax season
Ettiene Retief, tax expert and chairperson of the National Tax and Stakeholders Committees at the South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA), is offering some tips to assist individuals in filing their tax returns. Individuals have from 1 July 2013 to the end of November to ensure they have filed their returns. Read more >>


Venture Capital
Business Partners sets aside R1 billion for SMEs
In an effort to grow and foster the local economy and develop business within South Africa, Business Partners, a specialist risk finance company for formal small and medium enterprises (SMEs), has earmarked more than R1 billion for the advancement of SMEs within the region for the forthcoming 2013/14 year. Read more >>


International

ISS backs private buyout of Dell
NEW YORK, USA: A key shareholder advisory firm on Monday (8 July) backed a US$24.4bn private equity buyout of Dell, giving a major boost to the plan led by founder Michael Dell to reorganise the struggling computer company. Read more >>

HTC's profits slump 83%
TAIPEI, TAIWAN: Smartphone manufacturer HTC said that net profit in the April to June quarter fell by 83% year-on-year, although it was a slight improvement from the record low seen in the previous three months. Read more >>

Yahoo! needs to have a Qwiki
SAN FRANCISCO, USA: Technology shopaholic Marissa Mayer, chief executive of Yahoo! on Tuesday (2 July) announced the company had bought Qwiki, a smartphone movie application. Read more >>


More International


Government

Beware of Facebook con artists - Finance Ministry
The Ministry of Finance has warned the public against accepting any requests from fake Facebook accounts purporting to be those of Minister Pravin Gordhan. Read more >>


More Government news


People on the move


Mark Stewart appointed as BDO SA's interim CEO - more info



Jobs offered

Accountant - Franschhoek
Read more >>


Assistant Accountant - City of Cape Town Metro
Fraud/Risk Agent - Cape Town
Team Leader Pricing - Cape Town
Advisory Support - Johannesburg
Claims Manager - Longmeadow - Edenvale



New events to diarise

16th Southern African Internal Audit Conference
Institute of Internal Auditors South Africa - 12 Aug 2013 to 14 Aug 2013 Johannesburg


Upcoming events

Transaction Banking Conference 2013
Trade Conferences International - 16 Jul 2013 to 17 Jul 2013 Kempton Park


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2013 Biz Trends Report

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