| 17 Sep 2013 |
Avoid bad BEE practices Whether one likes it or not, laws applicable to BEE are in place, and in this article Deon Oberholzer shows you the 10 bad BEE practices that could result in you losing your business. This must be the only country in the world with a so-called "strike season" - so it's no surprise to learn that the new tyre manufacturing industry negotiations deadlocked. Doesn't anyone seem to realise that a strike is the last resort, not among the first? Some might think, with good reason, that this country is becoming a nanny state, and others might be in total agreement with the proposed ban, but in the meantime, the alcohol industry is demanding a say on the bill banning alcohol advertising. Come on, admit it... our taxis are among our favourite road-users... NOT! So here's a heady little tale of the taxi that shocked police officers. Rod Baker, Content Director
Comment online in our ed's column archive. Go mobile with apps and m.bizcommunity.com. Engage with us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+. Subscribe to YouTube and via RSS. Send all your industry-specific news and event invitations to financenews@bizcommunity.com, exclusive opinion pieces to contributors-finance@bizcommunity.com and international news to internationalnews@bizcommunity.com. Read "How to contribute to Biz, from op-ed pieces to news".Weekly top stories | The continued rise in the use of the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) debit cards as a means of paying social grants in South Africa has had a significant impact on the country's ATM landscape and has further entrenched cash as the preferred method of transacting for local consumers. Read more >> |
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[Gillian Jones] The merger of Metropolitan and Momentum to form MMI Holdings (MMI) almost three years ago is starting to bear fruit‚ the financial services group said on Wednesday (11 September) Read more >>
 | The Momentum Retirement Fund has been ordered by the Pension Funds Adjudicator to pay a widow her late son's death benefit after his wife had absconded when he became ill. Read more >> |
 | In a survey of five major banks and three specialist small and medium enterprise (SME) lenders, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) has found that there are a number of areas in which lenders trust the input of CAs(SA) above other financial professionals. Read more >> |
 | [Gillian Jones] Investment company Rand Merchant Insurance (RMI) grew its normalised earnings per share by 7% for the year to June in a difficult economic climate that included subsidiary OUTsurance suffering severe weather-related claims. Read more >> |
 | [Rod Baker] NEWSWATCH: The national broadcaster's CEO Lulama Mokhobo has slammed media reports that she says 'skew' what the auditor-general said regarding the SABC's financial issues, BD Live reports. Meanwhile, Cell C has been ordered to withdraw its '15c' ad, reports TechCentral. Read more >> |
[Taryn Cromie] Owners of rapidly growing businesses often reach a point when the company consumes their every thought. Sleepless nights are spent fretting over growing complexities and constant worry of things potentially forgotten besieges all the waking hours. For business owners in this position, the time may have come to consider upgrading the accounting system to one that provides more control, more information and better insights into business performance. Read more >>
 | [Issued by Sage Pastel] Here's an interesting fact about the Intellidex office set-up: MD Stuart Theobald isn't quite sure where his external accountant is based, but what he does know is that once a month he's exactly where he needs him to be - on the other end of My Business Online. Read more >> visit press office >> |
 | Over the years, First National Bank has followed what it sees as a simple but powerful principle: helpful innovation can change the world. (video) Read more >> |
Late payments are a cash flow nightmare for any organisation - which is why the University of the Western Cape (UWC) turned to payment services provider PayGate to make revenue collection easier and more effective. Read more >>
 | [Donvay Wegierski] The Absa Group recently ranked fourth among the top ten most valuable South African brands in the Brand Finance South Africa survey. The study was conducted by Brand Finance in partnership with Brand South Africa and Brand Africa. The Absa brand is currently valued at approximately R14.9-billion. Read more >> |
 | FNB has replaced its old Mini ATMs with 960 Slimline ATMs across the country. The new FNB Slimline device aims to make access to banking for South African communities safer, more convenient and simpler to use. Read more >> |
 | The latest Spark Cash Index (SCI) for August 2013 revealed an 8.48% year-on-year increase in average cash withdrawal values to R471.81. This also reflects a 1.97% month-on-month growth from R462.70 in July. Read more >> |
 | The recession, poor job market, low savings rate and increasingly indebted consumers, reaffirms the importance of increasing one's personal financial literacy. However, the financial terrain is often uncharted for many consumers, especially the youth who need suitable guidance, considering they make up 77% of the population. Read more >> |
[Michelle Dickens] The recent announcement from Cabinet on the approval of a credit information amnesty has been a controversial topic in the South African financial arena. Although many financial institutions objected to the amnesty due to its negative effect on their capability to evaluate risk, as well as it sending the wrong message to an already over-indebted public, it appears that the amnesty will go ahead regardless of the surrounding controversy. Read more >>
 | The lack of financial know-how to plan and budget effectively is the major reason why South Africans are not saving adequately for retirement. Read more >> |
 | South African consumers are struggling with their personal financial well-being because of too much debt, spending more than they earn and bad financial planning. Read more >> |
 | Ads 24 unpacks the hidden economy of the South African traditional saving scheme. Read more >> |
 | According to the recently released Old Mutual Retirement Monitor, respondents in the pre-retirement group, aged 55 and older, have a very low level of understanding of their options. Read more >> |
 | [Gillian Jones] Though FirstRand suffered some setbacks in its African growth strategy‚ it remains committed to growing its presence in the rest of the continent through greenfields operations or small acquisitions. Read more >> |
 | [Tina Weavind] It is no accident that few people have ever heard of Rayhaan Hassim, the driving force behind Aucor, one of South Africa's biggest auction houses and a ream of other businesses. He is obsessively private. No photographs of him appear on any of his companies websites and he refused to be photographed by Business Times. Read more >> |
 | [Nicole Velleman] Africa offers a ray of hope in an uncertain global economy. Many parts of the continent are experiencing rapid and sustained economic growth, with political, social and infrastructural conditions continually improving. Read more >> |
Funds of hedge funds help investors to protect their total portfolios against severe market downturns so that investments can compound at a stable rate. "Hedge funds represent a fairly small proportion of the investment universe in South Africa, but they can make a big difference in terms of reducing risk in a portfolio," says Carla de Waal, head of Alternative Investment Solutions at Novare Investments. Read more >>
According to the results of an economic impact study conducted by economists Economics Information Services (EiS) led by Barry Standish, the V&A Waterfront should be viewed as an economic hub that has contributed some R198 billion to the South African economy over the last ten years alone. Read more >>
 | [Joan Muller] Three years ago only a handful of formal shopping centres exceeding 10,000m² were scattered across Africa north of SA's borders. And not a single JSE-listed property company had a presence on the continent. Read more >> |
 | [Marc Hasenfuss] Empowerment investor Brimstone faces a predicament in dealing with its investment in fashion retailer Rex Trueform (Rextru), which owns the Queenspark chain. Read more >> |
 | [Nicky Smith] Security considerations aside, improvements to visa processes and policies will benefit travel and trade, with direct benefits to gross domestic product (GDP) growth and job creation. Read more >> |
 | Yuppiechef, one of SA's prominent online stores, says it is "growing rapidly", but has no immediate plans to accept outside investment into the thriving business for now. Read more >> |
 | [Paddy Hartdegen] For some people the only purpose of a business is to make money for shareholders. For others there might be some underlying social investment - such as creating jobs or providing a better quality of life - but one thing is certain: without profit, no business is sustainable. Read more >> |
So you've been earning a steady income for the past few years and your recent promotion convinced you that it was time to make your mark on the world of property by buying your first home. Bond originator ooba notes that 51.7% of its bond applications in June were from first timers and a survey by FNB reveals that first-time buyers were estimated to make up 22% of total buying in the second quarter of 2013. Read more >>
 | Development financier the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) has announced that it has approved an investment of R15 million into a global automotive company: TrelleborgVibracoustic-Ikhwezi, which is based in East London, Eastern Cape. Read more >> |
 | After 23 years in SA's R6bn fruit industry, many of them as managing director of Tru-Cape Fruit Marketing - SA's biggest producer of apples and pears - Charles Hughes is retiring without having fulfilled his ambition of gaining access to China's vast market. He blames it on the SA government. Read more >> |
 | Vehicle production will stop by the end of the week as a result of the strike in the automotive components industry, the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA (Naamsa) said on Wednesday (11 September). Read more >> |
The South African housing market is in the healthiest position since 2009, said Seeff's chairman, Samuel Seeff. We are in a much healthier position than in 2009 and even 2010 when market activity was buoyed by the positive sentiment of the FIFA World Cup. Read more >>
 | LONDON, UK: British police said they have arrested 12 men over a "sophisticated" plot to remotely take control of a computer at a branch of Santander bank and steal millions of pounds. Read more >> |
 | NEW YORK CITY, USA: Shareholders in Dell approved on Thursday (12 September) a proposal led by company founder Michael Dell to take the iconic computer company private. Read more >> |
 | NEW YORK CITY, USA: Apple shares fell hard on Wednesday, 11 September, after the US technology company's unveiling of two new iPhones failed to allay concerns over a loss of momentum in the smartphone market. Read more >> |
 | COPENHAGEN, DENMARK: A Danish bank worker who was fired for using Facebook to tell late-running customers to "go to hell" has won a dispute with her former employer, her union said on Tuesday (10 September). Read more >> |
More International
 | Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe is in the United Kingdom to promote investment, especially in South Africa's mining industry. Motlanthe left South Africa for the UK on Saturday. Read more >> |
Parliament said on Wednesday (11 September) it has been given an unqualified audit for the past financial year. Read more >>
 | Treasury has agreed to amend some of its proposals on the taxation of hybrid debt instruments in response to comments made by tax experts on the draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill. Read more >> |
 | [Richard Davies] South Africa remains off track when it comes to meeting its promise two years ago of creating 5m jobs by 2020, President Jacob Zuma conceded on Wednesday (11 September). Read more >> |
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