Black ownership in one of the largest financial sectors is performing well above targeted levels. The number of registered financial service providers increased by almost 40% in the last eight years, with black executive management having increased by 18% in the same time period. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana recently touched on the statistics when asked via a written parliamentary question about black ownership in the financial sector.
Quoting theAssociation for Savings and Investment South Africa(Asisa) transformation report, Godongwana stated that black professionals held 49.35% of exercisable voting rights and 42.72% of economic interest in the asset management industry. Voting rights and economic interest representation had increased from 44% and 40.63% in 2022, respectively, well above the 25% target for each category. Deputy Minister of Finance David Masondo in June described the financial services sector as the “cornerstone of our economic architecture” which contributed roughly 22% of the country’s GDP.
Asisa’s annual report also stated that black executive management in the life office industry had increased from 29% in 2018 to 47% in 2023, with the asset management metric up from 39% to 59%. Additionally, black junior management was up from 78% to 84%. “Approximately R12 billion was invested in the upskilling of historically disadvantaged individuals, underscoring the ASISA members’ commitment to an inclusive, diverse and globally competitive,” stated the report.
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In the Asisa report and Godongwana’s reply, “black” refers to the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Act definition for African, Coloured, and Indian South Africans. Life Offices provide financial protection products and wealth management solutions, while asset managers oversee hedge funds, bonds, equities and other asset classes.
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