South African market News

Sanlam Looks for More African Deals After $1.1B Investment in Morocco’s Saham

Fresh from sealing its biggest ever deal, Sanlam Ltd. is still scouring Africa for more acquisitions to extend its lead as the continent’s largest financial-services company outside of banking. The Cape Town-based insurer will spend $1.1 billion to take full …

Cape Town Companies Threatened by Water Shortages After Record Drought

Businesses in Cape Town are growing increasingly concerned about the risk that chronic water shortages pose to their operations in South Africa’s second-biggest city and are taking steps to reduce usage and secure supply, a survey has found. Almost 80 …

S. Africa Mobile Phone Firm Cell C Seeks M&A to Expand into Insurance

Cell C Pty Ltd. is seeking acquisitions that will help transform South Africa’s third-biggest mobile-phone company into a full-service telecommunications provider offering internet and financial services as well as traditional calls and texts. The wireless carrier is working on two …

KPMG’s S. Africa Unit Names 9 New Execs in Bid to Restore Client Trust

KPMG LLP’s South African unit appointed nine new executives in an attempt to restore trust in the auditing firm as clients continued to distance themselves over its involvement with the politically connected Gupta family. Andrew Cranston, a partner and former …

Munich Re Africa Drops KPMG as Auditor on S. African Reputational Issues

The African arm of Germany’s Munich Re has dropped KPMG as its auditor, the latest company to distance itself from the accountancy firm entangled in a scandal involving friends of South African President Jacob Zuma. KMPG sacked its South African …

Sanlam Says South African Political Turmoil to Dampen Domestic Business Outlook

Sanlam Ltd., the largest South African-based insurer, said prospects for its domestic business will remain muted for the rest of this year and into 2018 as political uncertainty knocks confidence and markets. Political and economic policy uncertainty is “not likely …

Cape Town Hit by Worst Storm in 30 Years, Threatening Insurers’ Outlook

South Africa’s property and casualty insurers face an even tougher year than expected after Cape Town experienced its worst storm in 30 years and dozens of fires engulfed the region around the town of Knysna this week. The insurers, including …

Emerging Risks/Markets Offer New Opportunities: 2017 Predictions, Part 3

Insurers and reinsurers continue to look for organic growth where they can find it – sometimes from emerging risks and sometimes from emerging markets. As always, the keys to success are market knowledge and patience. Providing a heads-up for such …

Emerging Markets to See Strong Non-Life Premium Growth in Years Ahead: JLT Re

Despite recent slowdowns, emerging economies are expected to outperform advanced markets over the next five years, according to a report published by JLT Re. The emerging economies examined in the JLT Re study are also expected to gain an increasing …

Brit Invests in South Africa’s Camargue Underwriting Managers

Brit Ltd., the global specialty insurer and reinsurer, announced it has made a significant strategic investment in Camargue Underwriting Managers, one of South Africa’s leading providers of specialized insurance products. Financial details of the transactions were not disclosed. “The investment …