September 2025
Welcome to Matters of Mind (MM)
“Real wisdom is not the knowledge of everything but the knowledge of which things in life are necessary, which are less necessary, and which are completely unnecessary to know. Among the most necessary knowledge is the knowledge of how to live well, that is, how to produce the least possible evil and the greatest goodness in one’s life. At present, people study useless sciences but forget to study this, the most important knowledge.” Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712 – 1778)
As human beings, we appear not to have the knowledge of how to live well. Alcohol abuse, poor nutrition, physical inactivity, smoking and inadequate screening drive much of the disease and death, which is reflected in industry statistics.
MM is about drawing our attention to how knowledge is shaped by people and events. In this edition, there are several reports and interviews which provide insight into how to mitigate risk in the future or, in other words, produce “the least possible evil and the greatest goodness” for our economies.
Don’t forget to read and listen to the articles in the About YOU section, which will enhance your knowledge on how to live well.
Enjoy!
MM Editorial Team
Economic matters
South Africa current account deficit nearly doubles
South Africa’s current account deficit almost doubled in the second quarter of 2025, underscoring the pressure from weaker exports and rising income outflows. The Reserve Bank said that the deficit widened to R82.8 billion from a revised R47.8 billion in the first quarter. 2min read
Global Economy Faces Trade-Related Headwinds
You can read the executive summary of the World Bank Group’s mid-year report here. 8min read
This report from Deloitte’s economists has a US emphasis but it does include detail on Europe and China. Two further sections of interest are ‘Potential changes to the Fed’ and ‘A pivot towards state capitalism in the United States. 10min read.
Global Market Outlook: All eyes on US jobs and rate cut expectations
A discussion which brings into focus the battle between Trump and the Fed. Jerome Powell has been analysed as being ‘dovish’ in his approach. Find out what that means in the article below. 3min read
Wall Street’s winged icons: How hawks and doves shape the economy
In finance-speak, “hawkish” and “dovish” represent two distinct approaches to fiscal and monetary policy. The most impactful of the two domains arguably belongs to the monetary realm, where the Federal Reserve’s policies—namely the Fed funds rate and its balance sheet operations—play a significant role in shaping the economy and, more immediately, market sentiment and response. 6min read
Financial Services Industry
Sanlam Corporate Investments announces appointment of new managing executive
John Anderson was appointed Managing Executive of Sanlam Corporate Investments, effective 1 August 2025. 1min read
Schalk Malan joins Standard Bank's insurance arm
1min read
A Cautionary Tale for Underwriting Managers: Enforcing Insurers’ Right to Data Access
A recent High Court judgment highlights the critical importance of strict compliance with binder agreements and licensing conditions in the insurance sector. The court confirmed that where an underwriting manager exceeds its mandate or disregards regulatory limits, an insurer is entitled to enforce its contractual rights — including urgent access to underwriting data. 3min read
Experian Ranked 6th in 2025 IDC FinTech Rankings: Top 100
The FinTech Rankings feature enterprise companies from around the world that serve multiple industries and generate significant revenues from the financial services and FinTech industries. 2min read
Diversity and Inclusion
How transformation is tracking in the asset management industry
Black South Africans owned 30% of life offices and 39% of asset managers at the end of 2024, according to an updated overview of the collective transformation progress by members of the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA) since the Amended Financial Sector Code (Amended FSC) came into effect at the end of 2017. 8min read
Shape your financial future like a pro
Despite significant strides in representation and empowerment, South African women continue to shoulder a disproportionately heavy burden of financial stress. DebtBusters’ latest Money Stress Tracker found that nearly 75% of female respondents reported high levels of financial anxiety – 10% more than men. 4min read
Owning my voice, Shaping my path
Amina Ackerman, Head of Controls, Governance, Monitoring & Audit at Credit Guarantee Insurance Corporation, reflects on her journey and how she leads and mentors today. 3min read
Life Insurance
Lifestyle has a big impact on your client’s health and life premiums
Financial advisers are more aware of the benefit to their clients of health and wellness than ever before. Discussions about morbidity and mortality, once the preserve of pricing actuaries at large insurers, now take place at insurance events, and in one-on-ones between adviser and client. 4min read
General Insurance
Insurance and Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Risks
This joint report of the Geneva Association and International Forum of Terrorism Risk (Re)Insurance Pools (IFTRIP) assesses recent shifts in the CBRN risk landscape and how existing re/insurance and national pool arrangements can manage these threats.
You can access the 58 page report here. The executive summary is on pages 7 & 8.
Catastrophe, complexity and AI: global lessons from Insuretalk55
Sasria (South African Special Risk Insurance Association) led the discussion at the Insuretalk 55 event providing astonishing figures on how wide the uninsured protection gap is on climate change events, the challenges of managing SRCC (strikes, riots, and civil commotion) and the rise in terrorism. 6min read
20 Years Later, Hurricane Katrina’s Impact Echoes in Models, Mitigation and Reforms
Twenty years after Hurricane Katrina swamped parts of Louisiana and Mississippi, the property insurance sector is better prepared for another catastrophic storm and the litigation that may follow, according to industry leaders. 5min read
Short-term insurance: the case for consolidation
A lacklustre GDP growth has put pressure on real wages, making organic growth for motor and property insurers difficult to achieve. To increase their geographic footprint and diversify their product lines, short-term (non-life) insurers are looking to grow through strategic mergers and acquisitions. 3min read
This opinion piece exposes the lack of leveraging off the combined insight and experience across all stakeholders, from municipalities to major industries and insurers, to prevent, forecast and contain risk associated with catastrophic events. 4min read
As AI Becomes Part of Everyday Life, it Brings a Hidden Climate Cost
Jon Ippolito, professor of new media at the University of Maine, said tech companies are constantly working to make chips and data centres more efficient, but that does not mean AI’s environmental impact will shrink. That’s because of a problem called the Jevons Paradox.
“The cheaper resources get, the more we tend to use them anyway,” he said. “When cars replaced horses, he said, commute times didn’t shrink. We just travelled farther.” 3min read
Health Insurance
Medical scheme hikes: CMS calls for restraint, but will schemes listen?
In Circular 24 of 2025, the CMS advised that contribution increases for 2026 should be capped at 3.3% “plus reasonable utilisation estimates”. That’s tighter than last year, when the CMS suggested 4.4%, and the year before, when it recommended 5% plus utilisation estimates in line with headline inflation. Informative 6min read.
Platinum Health is closing the care gap with satellite connectivity
Platinum Health Medical Scheme has implemented low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite connectivity at its critical healthcare facilities to address long-standing infrastructure connectivity challenges in South Africa’s remote mining regions. The aim is to improve access to medical care for employees and families in the platinum and chrome mining sector. 4min read
Provisional curator to advise on future of medical scheme
The future of Sizwe Hosmed hangs in the balance after the High Court in Pretoria last week placed the medical scheme under provisional curatorship. 3min read
Health and Wellness – NHI must not be conflated with Universal Healthcare
Listen to four senior leaders in the industry discuss the differences: Craig Comrie, Chief Executive Officer of Profmed, Barry Childs is Joint CEO, Insight Actuaries & Consultants, Martin Kingston is Executive Chairman, Rothschild & Co South Africa &Thoneshan Naidoo, CEO of The Health Funders Association. 16 min panel discussion.
SA healthcare industry takes fight to fraud
It is estimated that FWA (fraud, waste and abuse) costs the private healthcare sector between R22 to R28-billion a year. This is standing in the way of providing better cover and additional services to millions of members. How can this be minimised? 5min read
The Healthcare Financing Crisis and the impact on Gap Cover
A comprehensive five-year analysis of gap cover claims reveals a healthcare funding crisis that's rapidly escalating across the South African private healthcare sector. Data from Sirago Underwriting Managers shows that its mega gap claims - those exceeding R50,000 - have exploded by 512% in volume and 437% in value between 2020 and 2024.
Essential read to help fill in the picture of escalating health costs in the private sector. 3min read
Banking
Big banking shake-ups - ABSA, Nedbank, Capitec in the spotlight
From ABSA’s revolving-door leadership to Nedbank’s African retreat and Capitec’s bold push into Mexico, banking guru Kokkie Kooyman unpacks the seismic shifts shaping South Africa’s financial sector. With execs playing “musical chairs” across institutions and global interest rates in flux, Kooyman tells BizNews why investors should watch the banks closely — and why culture, confidence, and dividends matter more than ever. Editor’s choice for this edition. 44min listen
President says Postbank not yet ready to become state bank
Government’s aspirations for the Postbank to be a lever for financial inclusion still have a while to go, as the banking institution is “not yet in a position to be granted a licence”. 3min read
Bank Zero sale to Lesaka strengthens digital banking expansion
Lesaka Technologies, a financial services company listed on both the JSE and Nasdaq and operating payment brands such as Kazang, Adumo, and Easy Pay, plans to acquire 100% of Bank Zero’s shares. 2min read
Investments
From complex modelling to clearer financial advice
This article explores the first of four articles published in the Momentum Investments Mindfields report titled ‘The odds of investment outcomes: Aligning risk, return and reality.’ 4min read
Unearthed: Tariffs, Fed Uncertainty and Gold’s Surge
In this episode of Unearthed, Senior Market Strategists at the World Gold Council, examine the forces driving gold to fresh record highs – from tariff clarity in the US to renewed investor demand and shifting interest rate expectations. 7min listen
World Gold Council and Linklaters LLP Launch a Vision for the Next-Generation Gold Market
This article tells of a pioneering vision to transform the global gold market through the introduction of Wholesale Digital Gold—a transformative concept that will enhance how gold is owned, traded, and utilised. 3min read
History is full of failed attempts to establish new currencies. So what makes crypto different?
This article traces a number of currency changes in history and draws some parallels to today. It is an interesting and informative read. Currency changes are not always for the better and there can be resistance. 4min read
3 concerns for investors to watch in an uncertain world
With global economic shifts unfolding rapidly, investors often find it difficult to distinguish what truly matters from the noise. But, stepping back and grouping broader themes into the key areas most likely to shape long-term outcomes can be a helpful way to identify risk areas that warrant closer attention. 3min read
Retirement / Pensions
The two-pot system: One year on
Since its introduction on 1 September 2024, the two-pot retirement system has reshaped South Africa’s retirement savings by offering a balance between long-term goals and short-term financial needs. 4min read
Why life annuities matter more than ever for South African retirees
In the wake of increasing retirement pressures and soaring living costs, the importance of life annuities has re-entered the spotlight in South Africa – and for good reason. According to Deane Moore, CEO of Just SA, now is the best time in two decades for retirees to seriously consider this essential retirement product. 3min read
Young women save more but still retire with less
Equal Pay Day highlights the gender pay gap by showing how much longer into the year women must work to earn the same as men did the year before. New Old Mutual research shows that this inequality extends far beyond monthly salaries. 3min read
About YOU
Dr. Sue Johnson, pioneer of Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), reveals how childhood attachment patterns shape our adult relationships and explains why emotional responsiveness, not communication skills or conflict resolution, is the real foundation of lasting love.
Through decades of research and clinical work, she shows that relationships aren't random events we fall into and out of but living systems we can understand and actively shape.
It doesn’t matter if you’re single, dating, married, divorced, or just a parent looking to raise securely attached kids. You need to hear this.
The interview is two hours long but there is a summary of the key points on the site. 3min read.
9 of 10 Insurance Professionals Acknowledge Stress, Anxiety: Research
The findings are based on online interviews with 405 full-time insurance professionals spanning the United States (305 participants) and United Kingdom (100 participants), according to the global specialty underwriter and reinsurer, AXIS Capital Holdings Limited. 3min read.