When he’s not hard at work heading up the finance team at Liberty Health, CFO Philip Timberlake can be found running along his favourite trails on Table Mountain, developing his “mental fortitude”. The key to being a successful CFO lies in communication, he says: “Within our economy of knowledge, ideas are currency. Of course, to understand, we need to listen, engage and be prepared to let go of our own ideas.”

Merchant West, an authorised financial services provider specialising in business finance and advisory services, has been awarded a AAA rating by the leading international rating agency, Standard & Poors. This is the highest credit rating that can be afforded to a company, country or structured finance transaction. In light of this, Merchant West can now officially list its bonds on the JSE.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has partnered with Finance Indaba 2017. It will be the association's second showing at the event. Founded in 1904, the ACCA casts itself as the world's most forward-thinking accounting organisation, working across the globe to uplift the profession and boasting more than 188 000 qualified members and 480 000 students of its masters-level qualifications worldwide.

Invoice fraud is considered a low-risk crime by fraudsters and is increasing at alarming levels because it is difficult to trace. Difficult, but not impossible!

Leading, trading and information solution provider Infront has opened two new offices in South Africa, one in Johannesburg and the other in Cape Town, in a bid to stimulate local business. The company also welcomes two seniors to the local team, Renier Linde and Timothy Singh.

After just two years of development, online savings platform ADDaBIT has managed to attract the interest of financial services behemoth Sanlam. The basic premise is that users choose what they want for their children – education, gifts, etc – and ask friends and family to contribute whenever they are able. There are no penalties, monthly fees or minimum payments, and users earn a competitive rate of return on their investment.

Lesrick Nayager (pictured) has been appointed CFO for Decision Inc., a company which represents leading global technology brands and are experts in the implementation, support and execution of such technologies.

Oceana, Africa’s largest black-owned fishing company, whose finance head Imraan Soomra (pictured) was recipient of the Transformation & Empowerment Award at the CFO Awards 2015, has seen impressive results for the year ending 30 September. Group revenue grew by 34% to R8.2bn, operating profit increased by 69% to R1.7bn, earnings per share was up by 34% and headline earnings per share was up by 20%.

Rajesh Mahabeer has been recognised for his work at SANParks by being nominated for a CFO Award. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

If the world's economy has slowed, Netcare does not seem to be feeling it. In the Group’s 2016 annual financial results released on 21 November, it noted that group revenue was up 12.1%, to R37 796 million, group EBITDA was up 11.2% to R5 539 million, and normalised profit after taxation was up 19.1% to R2 906 million.

Africa has a huge untapped potential for solar power generation and initiatives that electrify businesses and impoverished communities could help the continent meet its economic development goals. At the African FinTech Awards at the Finance Indaba Africa 2016 in October, The Sun Exchange CCO Morwesi Ramonyai talked about the revolutionary bitcoin-based investment scheme that is filling the gap between large-scale solar farms and solar-powered lamps and other items.

The Department of Social Development, whose finance division is headed up by 2016 CFO Awards nominee Clifford Appel, has received a clean audit for the year 2015/2016. It was one of nine other national departments to achieve this hard-won feat. According to the auditor-general (AG), the number of auditees that received financially unqualified opinions with no findings (clean audits) increased overall from 122 in 2013-14 to 152 in 2015-16.

Anthea Gardner of Cartesian Capital and popular radio DJ and TV personality Gareth Cliff have launched an investment product they hope will “uberise” the investment industry.

Arina McDonald has been recognised for her work at Atlas Mara by being nominated for a CFO Award. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

Zuretha Steyl (pictured) has been appointed chief financial officer of LexisNexis South Africa, a provider of content and technology solutions for the legal and professional markets, effective 1 November 2016.

Fintech startup DocFox has partnered with leading global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright to provide a digital solution to help companies simplify the FICA compliance process.

“We started a new business in Domino’s – our stores had only been open for a year before we started another new business with Starbucks. The food business was like a startup within a startup. At this point in time there are a lot of moving pieces,” says Evan Tsatsarolakis, Group CFO of Taste Holdings, and a CFO Awards 2016 nominee. He adds that while this brings its own complications and challenges, he is confident that future growth opportunities will be plentiful. We sat down with Evan to talk about the two acquisitions, his role as CFO and what it is about Taste Holdings – which began as a family-owned business but which is now a JSE-listed group operating eight brands within its Food and Luxury Goods divisions – that makes the company so successful.

Do you want to keep up to date with the latest developments in finance, but you are short of time? Don’t worry. CFO South Africa weekly collects 10 of the most important articles from international media for your convenience.

Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, speaking yesterday at a press briefing at the National Economic and Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) offices, said that, in a bid to avoid a credit downgrade, he intends to highlight the findings of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) report when he meets with ratings agencies later this week, informing them of the “tremendous progress” made on labour stability issues. Ratings agencies Moody’s, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) and Fitch will make their announcements on the country’s credit rating in the next few weeks.

The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) has become the latest partner to join Finance Indaba 2017, following on from its exhibition at this year’s event. The world’s leading and largest professional body of management accountants, CIMA's qualifications comprise a unique blend of management accounting, financial accounting and business-focused subjects to produce graduates capable of leading from the front.

Three years ago, MiX Telematics decided their JSE listing was nice but that what would really boost the fleet and mobile asset management solutions firm was a New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) listing. CFO Megan Pydigadu, nominated for the CFO Awards in both 2014 and 2015, describes the listing process as a roller coaster ride. In this exclusive article, Megan shares a number of important lessons for companies that are considering going to New York.

Leading black-owned assurance and advisory firm, Nkonki, on Friday announced the results of its sixth annual review of integrated reporting among the Top 100 JSE Listed Companies. The report, ‘Integrated Reporting – Raising the Bar’, assesses how the companies measure up in terms of applying the International Integrated Reporting Council’s (IIRC) Integrated Reporting (IR) Framework. ArcelorMittal South Africa, Barloworld and Nampak came out tops.

Fintech Circle Innovate, a London-based fintech accelerator, has joined forces with the well-established Cape Innovation and Technology Initiative to stimulate growth in the local sector as well as fintech development in the rest of Africa.

Patrick Cooke, CA(SA) (pictured), has been appointed CFO of Rockwell Diamonds, a company in the business of operating and developing alluvial diamond deposits, effective 7 November 2016.

Capital & Counties Properties PLC (Capco) has announced that Situl Jobanputra (pictured) will be appointed to the executive director position of CFO effective 1 January 2017. This follows the resignation of Soumen Das as MD and CFO, announced on 26 July 2016.

Mark Godfrey has been nominated for a CFO Award for his work at supermarket behemoth Spar. He was last put forward for an award in 2015. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

Megan Pydigadu will be the new CFO of Eazi Access Group, Africa's market leader in the rental, sale and servicing of work-at-height solutions. The current finance head of MiX Telematics will leave the telematics company after serving her three-month notice period and will start her new job mid-February 2017.

How do business leaders adapt and help their organisations to stay relevant in an era of digital disruption characterized by uncertainty? At the Finance Indaba Africa 2016 in October, internationally recognized futurist Graeme Codrington provided insights into the shifting landscape and a toolkit for leaders to navigate disruption.

Mark Pamensky (pictured) has resigned from the Eskom board, according to Lynne Brown, Public Enterprises minister. His resignation follows that of CEO Brian Molefe last week, who will be stepping down on 1 January 2017.

Charl Keyter has once again been nominated for a CFO Award for his outstanding achievements at Sibanye Gold, after also being nominated for a gong at the 2016 edition of the awards. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

Kosie Louw, the longest-serving member of the South African Revenue Service (Sars) executive committee and a former deputy head of Sars, has announced his resignation. According to Fin24, Louw will be leaving end February 2017.

Donald Trump’s shock victory in the US elections has sent shockwaves around the world, causing volatility in many key markets. FinTech is not immune to the effects of the Republican candidate’s ascent to power and commentators believe there are choppy waters ahead for US firms.

“Setting a target, being clear about it and measuring it are some of the key ingredients for my success,” says Reeza Isaacs, group finance director at Woolworths, who was elected CFO of the Year 2016 at the CFO Awards on 12 May. Reeza talks to us about his adventures in Australia, acquiring a new brand, his passion for transformation, and changing the mindset of the business to focus on balance sheet and return on capital.

According to Andile Sangqu (pictured), Anglo American executive head, township economies should not be seen as secondary to or less important than big business.

Johannesburg-based AdvanceNet has signed up as a partner to the Finance Indaba 2017. Launched in 1987, AdvanceNet offers sophisticated business solutions in more than 30 African countries across a number of industries, including mining, financial services, telecommunications, logistics and the public sector.

Healthier companies outperform the market by as much as 50 percent, recent studies indicate. If health is an important measure of a country’s developmental status and needs, the same goes for a business. In this regard, companies are becoming more attuned to the need to both measure and report on their staff’s health and well-being. We spoke to two top CFOs and two corporate wellness experts to find out what companies can do to invest in the well-being of their staff – and what ROI they can expect.

AB InBev is set to get an improved dividend paycheck after Delta Corporation, its Zimbabwean associate, improved its dividend payout ratio to 80% for the six months to end September 2016.

The Competition Tribunal has approved, albeit with conditions, a merger between Clicks and Netcare with regards to the latter’s in-hospital “front shops”. The approval comes five months after the companies entered into the agreement on 8 June 2016.

"I have, in the interests of good corporate governance, decided to leave my employ at Eskom from 1 January 2017," wrote Brian Molefe (pictured), CEO of Eskom, in a statement released today regarding his decision to leave the company. "I do so voluntarily: indeed, I wish to pay tribute to the unfailing support I have had since I took up office from the chairman, the Board and with those with whom it has been my privilege to work. Together we brought Eskom back from the brink. I will take time off to reflect before I decide on my next career move."

According to Statistics South Africa, South Africa’s manufacturing output was flat year-on-year (YoY) in September, after expanding by 2.2% in August. Meanwhile, mining production was up by 3,4% YoY, due largely to platinum group metals, iron ore and coal.

The South African Post Office has been beset by mismanagement and labour issues over the past few years, but CEO Mark Barnes and Postbank CFO Nichola Dewar have been credited with steering the organization into calmer waters. The pair discussed their efforts in a CFO SA session sponsored by KPMG and facilitated by CFO SA MD Graham Fehrsen at the Indaba Club in Johannesburg on 10 November 2016.

Nichola Dewar has been nominated for a CFO Award for her sterling work as the CFO of Postbank at the South African Post Office, where she has since taken over the reigns as CFO. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

As far as terrorist financing goes, research indicates that there are at least four primary types:

With cybercrime, Brexit and the surprising result of the US elections affecting economic sentiment, these are unpredictable times. The modern CFO has to contend with the risks of this environment, acting as both policeman and enabler, but relinquishing the natural tendency to forgo all risk.

Governor Lesetja Kganyago has said that SA’s central bank will not react to the sharp sell-off in the rand following Donald Trump’s election victory as this was a one-off event.

As the oldest bank in the country, Standard Bank has a lot of challenges to overcome in terms of legacy systems. During her pitch at the African FinTech Awards at the Finance Indaba Africa 2016 in October, the bank’s manager of innovation capability Danielle Laity explained what her organisation was doing to better serve its customers in an era marked by fear in the banking sector amid the threat of being unbundled and attacked.

Financial services provider FedGroup is disrupting traditional approaches to wealth creation with the launch of its direct ownership network, which involves the ownership of a physical asset to generate income, instead of investment.

The historical victory of Donald Trump in the US elections has taken the world by surprise. In the next few days, weeks, months and years there will be countless analysis, debates and studies to explain why hardly anyone saw it coming. CFO South Africa Editor in Chief Joël Roerig doesn't want to wait that long and has listed six important lessons South African CFOs should learn from the property baron, tv-star and president-elect.

Richemont, a company founded in 1988 by Johann Rupert (pictured) and his father Anton, has announced that 64-year-old Richard Lepeu, its CEO, and 56-year-old Gary Saage, its CFO, will retire in 2017.

Omnia Holdings CFO Wayne Koonin has once again been nominated for the CFO Awards, after being put forward in 2016 as well. The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

Graeme Stephens (pictured), the CEO of South African hotels and casinos operator Sun International, will be stepping down from his role at the end of April 2017 to take up the role of CEO at SkyCity Entertainment Group. He will be replaced by Anthony Leeming, the company’s current CFO. Leeming has been with the group for 17 years, having joined as group financial manager in 1999. He held various group finance roles prior to his appointment as CFO in March 2013. He will take over the CEO role effective 1 May 2017. Stephens has been with the group for more than five years. As yet, no announcement has been made regarding the replacement CFO.

As Group CFO of Peregrine Group, Robert Katz says he has learnt valuable leadership lessons from his two favourite hobbies - boxing and long-distance running. In this exclusive interview Rob discusses the need for finance leaders to be both ruthless and human, and shares what he has learned in the ring, on the road and beyond.

Do you want to keep up to date with the latest developments in finance, but you are short of time? Don’t worry. CFO South Africa weekly collects 10 of the most important articles from international media for your convenience.

Last week, Cabinet discussed various recommendations from the Inter-Ministerial Committee on State-owned Enterprises (SOEs) as it moves to make these entities more efficient and financially viable. In recent months, international ratings agencies have pegged South African SOEs as a source of concern over their financial management and governance instability.

“It seems that many executives continue to make decisions not only based on the past but even in the interest of the past or in its defence,” writes Dr Morne Mostert, Director of the Institute for Futures Research at Stellenbosch University. According to him, “the intellectual agility to engage simultaneously with multiple possible futures is highly likely to increase as a prerequisite for a chair in the boardroom of the future”.

In 2016, a very large portion of our population still live on the outskirts of society. Unilever’s 2014 Survivor report spoke of about 70% of SA’s population living off less than R6,000 per month. For these people it is therefore crucial to save where possible on obvious expenses such as water, electricity and even items such as food and toiletries.

JSE-listed exploration and development company Kumba Iron Ore has announced the appointments of Nonkululeko Dlamini and Seamus French as non-executive directors to the Board, effective 1 November 2016.

London’s Financial Times recognised Investec Private Banking and Wealth & Investment as the best private bank and wealth manager in South Africa (for the fourth consecutive year) at the Global Private Banking Awards.

Two vibrant women, Jo Pohl and Mary Vilakazi, whose dynamism and energy radiates throughout the room, sat down with Roy Clark from Clarkhouse Human Capital and discussed their views on women and success. To say it was inspiring is an understatement – these two women shared such powerful messages that even the most astute and experienced business person would walk away with a burning passion to succeed.

Pieter Engelbrecht (pictured), Shoprite chief operating officer, who has been with the Shoprite group for some 20 years, will take over from Whitey Basson as Shoprite CEO as of 1 January 2017.

MMI Holdings group CFO Mary Vilakazi has been nominated for the 2017 edition of the CFO Awards.The annual 'Oscars for South African CFOs', to be held on 11 May, recognises CFOs of listed companies, large corporations, state-owned entities and government institutions and awards them for outstanding performance and leadership.

Telecoms giant MTN has named Ralph Mupita (pictured), Old Mutual Emerging Markets chief, as its new group chief financial officer, effective April 2017. Gunter Engling, acting group CFO, will assume the position of deputy CFO, MTN said in a statement.

Growing up poor motivated Sihle Ndlovu to pursue a career in finance. In 2016, this now 35-year-old SAIPA member is on track to complete his PhD in Business Administration and recently received an #Agristars recognition award worth R50,000 from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, sponsored by the MTN Foundation.

What does it take to be successful in the rest of Africa? We asked four CFOs who were nominated for the 2016 CFO Awards to share some tips. Here’s what Bikash Prasad from Olam International, Johan Geel from Afgri, Mohammed Abdool-Samad from Illovo, and Osman Arbee from Imperial Group had to say on the matter. Bikash Prasad (right): look at the long term Bikash Prasad has quickly moved through the ranks and last year became CFO for Africa and the Middle-East at Olam International, a global agri-business operating from seed to shelf. Bikash has been a long-standing supporter of CFO South Africa and the panel of judges voted him as winner or the 2016 Moving into Africa Award, which he received out of the hands of Standard Bank’s CIB CFO Luvuyo Masinda on 12 May 2016. We asked him what it takes to be successful in Africa. “Look at the long term. You might have challenges in the short term, with the global economic slowdown and the slowdown in China impacting the continent, but the long term is looking very bullish and positive.” “To operate in Africa, you have to be a noble corporate citizen. You cannot be non-compliant. You need to really believe in sustainability and get a license from the community you want to work in, not just an official license from the government you are dealing with. We hardly ever run into any trouble because of that approach. Recruiting and developing talent is also crucial.”

Purple Group has become the first gold partner to join Finance Indaba 2017, after a successful showing at this year’s event. Headed by CEO Charles Savage, the group offers accessible investing and trading solutions for the man on the street, from fully managed investment solutions to DIY trading and investment platforms.

AB InBev has reported a drop in third-quarter profit. According to the Belgian brewer, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation fell 2%. The shares fell by close on 6% in Brussels. The company has also cut its revenue forecast due to Brazil, its second-largest market, having a difficult year. It previously cut its forecast for Brazilian revenue in July, predicting unchanged sales. Furthermore, it said sales growth is unlikely to beat inflation this year because of declining volumes in the South American country. In numbers, its Ebitda in Brazil declined by 33%. Moreover, the company announced a decrease in SABMiller's beer volume as a result of weakness in Africa. SABMiller’s lager volume dropped 2% in the three months through September. A transport strike in Colombia, which became Europe’s largest company by market value after the acquisition, contributed to this decrease. Interestingly, the SABMiller results were not consolidated in AB InBev’s figures, and excluded joint ventures as well as assets that were sold or which are up for sale.

Far from slowing down now that retirement age is looming, Osman Arbee is about to enjoy a serious promotion. The CFO of Imperial Holdings will become CEO of Imperial Motors in January, and will hold both posts simultaneously for three months while he grooms the next CFO to replace him. “It’s not a bad way to finish off your career, running a big business for three to four years then retiring,” he says. “It’s a nice change at the right time of my life, working with people I enjoy working with in a business I know and enjoy. It’s an opportunity to use my brain in another way.”

An incredible lineup of top CFOs will shine their light on the topic that can make or break a modern business: risk. Inspired by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's quote 'The biggest risk is not taking any risk', finance executives Sandile Ntsele, (MTN South Africa), Luvuyo Masinda (Standard Bank CIB) and Charl Keyter (Sibanye Gold) will discuss risk and results, not as a threat but as an opportunity.

ABSA Capital, Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) and Nedbank took home big awards at the 15th annual Spire awards, hosted by the JSE. ABSA Capital, RMB and Nedbank were crowned winners of the Best Bonds House, Best Fixed Income and Currencies House, Best FX House and Best Research House and Best Interest Derivative House respectively. RMB alone took home a total of 11 awards on the evening. Bernard Claassens (pictured), Manager: Fixed Income at the JSE, said:

So you want to sign up for SA's new blockbuster training, but how do you convince your boss to approve it? Here you will find 10 reasons why your boss should send you to this training:

By 2020, companies will have shifted the majority of their research and development (R&D) spend away from product-based offerings to software and service offerings, according to the 2016 Global Innovation 1000 Study from Strategy&, PwC’s strategy consulting business. The need to stay competitive is the top reason why companies cited this shift in their R&D budgets. Liesbeth Botha (pictured), Strategic Digital Transformation Leader, PwC Africa, said:

The latest research from Kaspersky Lab, a global cybersecurity company, shows that half of the mobile devices around the globe are at risk from cybercrime and malicious threats, due to inadequate protection. The research suggests that users are unaware of the need to protect their mobile devices with a security solution – while 69% think that their desktops and laptops definitely need IT security software, only 56% think the same about smartphones and tablets. Victor Yablokov (pictured) Head of Mobile Product Line at Kaspersky Lab, said:

The Registrar of Banks this week gave Discovery permission to establish a banking presence in the country, so helping the entity take its first steps to starting its own bank in South Africa.

The biggest failure in business is that failure itself is not accepted and it is something to be shunned upon said Easy Equities CEO Charles Savage. Teach your staff to accept failure, said Charles during an inspirational session at the Finance Indaba Africa on 13 October 2016.

South African gold producer Gold Fields, which has mines from Australia to South Africa to Peru, will invest $1.4 billion to extend by eight years the life of its Damang operation in Ghana. The investment, which will be paid over the eight-year period, will keep the mine in operation until 2024.

Standard Bank treasurer Paul Burgoyne brought together a strong panel at the Finance Indaba Africa on 13 October 2016, to discuss accessing liquidity in Africa. The speakers included CFO and VP of Olam International, Bikash Prasad, as well as three Standard Bank team members: head of institutional sales Africa, Mark Kalil, VP for power and infrastructure finance, George Kotsovos, and global head: client solutions & distribution, global markets Steve Barnes.

Most of us are surely well aware of the recent protests around the #FeesMustFall movement, which has seen thousands of students demonstrate against fee increases and appeal for free higher education. In a recent presentation to MPs, the Parliamentary Budget Office projected that fee-free education at universities would cost South Africa around R250 billion over a three-year period.

What is the cost of not knowing? Perhaps that is the most important question in business today.

Dr Martyn Davies explains why South Africa is struggling to regain growth levels, and what is needed to make us economically relevant again.

In a Volatile Uncertain Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) world, management accountants are expected to provide better support for decision-making, performance management and ongoing ‘insight’, in the form of financial and non-financial data. According to a latest CGMA research, ‘Business analytics and decision making – The human dimension’, analytics has little to do with technology. It is people, not technology, who give data meaning. While there may be technical issues to address, such as getting access to data, combining data sets or integrating financial data with data generated from social media or ‘connected things’, no analytical tool can do more than augment or complement what is a cognitive and sometimes social process. Generating insight is an inherently human trait. Thus, business intelligence resides not in the data warehouse but in the minds of people.

Growing up in a rural village in Mokopane, Limpopo, Irene Mathatho, current CFO of the Companies Tribunal, didn’t have a role model. But she liked to read and loved to learn. “I even found it interesting going to the bank, watching the tellers. I used to think, one day I want to be somewhere in these offices,” she recalls. Discovering she had a natural aptitude for accounting, Irene chose to embrace this, though she laughs when she says she wasn’t aware of all the hard work a career in finance would entail. The Companies Tribunal is an agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (dti). It was established in terms of the Companies Act No. 71 of 2008 to adjudicate applications made in terms of Section 195 of the Act and resolve disputes through mediation, conciliation and arbitration. As CFO, Irene oversees the full finance function. Given the relative newness of the entity – it was established in 2012 – her job is not without plentiful challenges. We chatted to Irene about what she’s achieved since taking up the position and how she’s finding life in the public sector. Tell us about your current role and your team. “I am the first CFO at the Companies Tribunal. When it was established, many of the functions were outsourced to KPMG, including some of the CFO functions. I had to begin by reviewing some policies that KPMG developed and devise my own. I also had to align policies to processes. I’m responsible for the overall management of the finances and the preparation of financial reports, supply chain management, risk management, payroll management, asset management and strategic planning. I also need to ensure compliance with the Public Finance Management Act, as well as that everything complies with generally recognised accounting practices.”

Discovery Life has been issued with a R2.5 million administrative penalty by the Financial Services Board (FSB) for contravening section 3A of the General Code of Conduct for Financial Service Providers. The contravention pertains to Discovery’s recruitment of several financial advisers and the inclusion of sign-on bonuses. According to reports, the group finalised employment offers one day after amendments to section 3A of the code came into effect. According to the amendment, a Category I financial services provider authorised or appointed to give advice may not receive a sign-on bonus, and no person may offer or provide a sign-on bonus to any person as an incentive to becoming a Category I provider. A Discovery spokesperson has been quoted in the media as saying that while the paperwork in respect of the appointments was concluded post the publication of the regulations, the negotiations and process were done ahead of the deadline. Discovery has, however, reversed the payments made to the advisers as per the agreement with the FSB.

“We have no idea where and who our competitors are anymore,” .said business expert Terry Moore in a workshop at the Finance Indaba Africa facilitated by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA). In his talk, titled Surviving In An Age of Radical Uncertainty he explored the challenges and opportunities facing chartered accountants and businesses in general.

Integrated reporting improves firm value, cash flows, and analyst forecast accuracy. It also leads to more dedicated long-term investors. That is the conclusion of four academics in this guest article written exclusively for CFO South Africa, based on research they conducted with financial support of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). Using mostly South African data, they argue that CFOs should care deeply about integrated reporting. By Mary E. Barth, Steven F. Cahan, Li Chen, and Elmar R. Venter* Since the financial crisis, several questions have been raised about the appropriateness of the traditional corporate reporting model. Key statistics highlight some of these concerns about corporate reporting. In 1975, around 83 percent of the market value of S&P 500 firms could be explained by physical and financial assets; by 2009, that number dropped to 19 percent. The remaining 81 percent consist of intangibles; most of which are currently not communicated to investors. Bob Laux, senior director financial accounting and reporting at Microsoft, argues that “the value-drivers of a company are increasingly intangible and include items such as intellectual and human capital as well as environmental, social and governance issues”. In his view, such changes in the ways in which company value is created are not matched by developments in corporate reporting. In line with this concern about unreported value drivers, EY points out that, on average, the number of pages devoted to noting disclosure in financial statements and in management discussion and analysis quadrupled from 1972 to 2012. Former United States vice president, Al Gore, and David Blood warn that “despite the volume and frequency of information made available by companies, access to more data for public equity investors has not necessarily translated into more comprehensive insight on companies”. Adding to the disclosure burden may therefore not necessarily be the solution to the unreported value drivers. The proponents of integrated reporting see it as the solution to this vexatious issue. In this article, we briefly discuss what integrated reporting is (and what it is not), together with some of the academic evidence emerging on the benefits of integrated reporting. What is integrated reporting?

With the introduction of the new accounting software, Blackline, organisations can manage the entire accounting and finance lifecycle and gain a global view into tasks and processes, all in one centralised, secure and reliable system. These were the words of Josh May, the Senior Solutions Consultant and Product Manager at Blackline, who gave a presentation on how the software works during Finance Indaba Africa held at Sandton Convention Centre on 13 and 14 October 2016. By Tiisetso Tlelima

Lewis announced on 21 October that the National Credit Regulator's (NCR) affordability assessment guidelines, along with the currently tough economic times, have led to the retailer’s profit dropping by up to 45% in half-year trading. The company said in a statement:

Zimbabwe has cleared its 15-year-old financial arrears with the IMF, making itself current on all its financial obligations to the institution.

Two case studies show how Cognos Disclosure management saves CFOs a significant amount of time when generating reports.

It is estimated that 330 million adult Africans lack access to basic financial services. In the face of an outstanding opportunity, an ecosystem of FinTech startups providing payments and money transfer solutions have grown to transform a cash-heavy payments industry on the continent.

UK-based investment group Vasari has finalised its acquisition of the operational assets of KWV for a sum of R1.15 billion. Vasari sees the South African wine and spirits producer as a “strategic asset” that will enable it to capitalise on growth opportunities in the wine and brandy sector. KWV was sold to Vasari by Niveus Holdings, the listed investment holding company majority controlled by HCI. John Copelyn, HCI CEO, writing in the company’s latest annual report, said that the exit from KWV was “very lucrative”, and that “the price achieved effectively doubled the value of Niveus’s investment over five years”. Boyce Lloyd (pictured), an SABMiller executive with more than 20 years of experience in the beverage industry, will become the new KWV CEO from November. Until recently Lloyd was the integration director for the AB InBev-SABMiller merger. Vasari has investments in various areas, such as alcoholic beverages, confectionary, soft drinks, and foods, across various markets, including Europe, Africa and Asia. Among its brands are independent Scotch whisky producer Whyte & Mackay, and Ethiopian brewer, Dashen Brewery.

Are you looking for a great job in an international fast growing company? You found it. A fantastic chance for an experienced media sales manager. A great challenge for a skilled professional that wants to make a real contribution to Africa and to the company: CFO South Africa PTY Ltd, your future employer.

What could Shakespeare’s life possibly teach us about finance today? Standard Bank’s Sean Doherty has some ideas…

Old Mutual experts explained how insurers can help companies to exchange the uncertainty of a long-term liability for the certainty of an insurance premium.

Lafarge Africa has announced the appointment of a new CFO, Bruno Bayet (pictured), effective 1 October 2016. Prior to becoming CFO of Lafarge Africa Bayet was the Strategy Director; a position he held since April this year. Bayet, a Belgian, was Manager, Corporate Finance, with PwC from 1998 to 2005, and Senior Analyst in the Investments team of Groupe Bruxelles Lambert from 2005 to 2011. Before joining Lafarge, Bayet was an executive committee member of Enterprise Generale Malta Forrest (RDC) from 2011 to 2013, having gained over 15 years of experience in the construction and materials industry. He was appointed Director of Ashakacem Plc in later 2013, combining the role of CFO in September 2014. Bayet holds a Business Engineering degree from Universite Catholique de Louvain-la-Neuve in Belgium, and completed his Master’s in Business Administration at Georgetown University, specialising in Financial Risks Management.

Team Athena from the Copperbelt University in Zambia were crowned the winners of the first edition of the CharterQuest CFO Case Study Competition at the rock-star conclusion of the Finance Indaba Africa at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on 14 October 2016.

FNB has been named the ‘Most Innovative Bank’ of 2016. At the African FinTech Awards (#afta16), a heavyweight panel of judges chose the popular bank over fellow finalists Absa and Standard Bank in the ‘Incumbent Bank’ category. FNB also received the most online votes, taking home the ‘Public Award’ in the same category.

Thomson Reuters has launched its newest Data and Innovation Lab, located in Cape Town. The lab will see Thomson Reuters engage with the region’s vibrant innovation ecosystem and dynamic start-up community. The Labs have two primary objectives: innovation and partnership. Innovation will come through driving creative conversations with customers and partners through open events and rapid prototyping, while partnership involves collaboration and co-creation with startups and other partners to put new technology and business models into practice. Mona Vernon (pictured), vice president of Thomson Reuters Labs, said:

Most CFOs think that good budgeting means cutting costs instead of looking at ways to stop wasteful spending, said Accenture’s Madeleine Joubert during Finance Indaba Africa, which was held at the Sandton Convention Centre on 13 and 14 October 2016. But zero-based budgeting means focusing on both top and bottom line, she explained. "It’s not about cutting costs, but redirecting the money.”

CFOs in the public sector have to be as skilled in the art of strategic relationship-building and diplomacy as they are with working with numbers, finance executives agreed in a breakaway session at the Finance Indaba Africa at Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on 14 October 2016.

Standard Chartered has appointed Mohamed Abdel Bary (pictured) as Regional CFO, Africa & Middle East (AME), with immediate effect. Sunil Kaushal, Regional CEO for Africa & the Middle East, said following the announcement:

MTN has agreed to make a €20-million investment in support of Iran’s first taxi-hailing smartphone application, Snapp. This as the telecoms company tries to repatriate R15.4 billion from the country, following the lifting of US-led economic sanctions, and strengthen its ties with the Middle Eastern nation. According to Shahram Shahkar, Snapp founder and CEO (pictured), the money will be used by the app’s owner, Iran Internet Group, which operates and invests in start-up and e-commerce companies, to expand the company’s service offering to other cities.

In his presentation titled The Inconvenient Truth About Cybersecurity at CFO South Africa’s Finance Indaba Africa, which took place on 14 October 2016, KPMG Cyber Security Manager Nathan Desfontaines called on CFOs to be more involved in finding solutions to dealing with cyber attacks in their organisations.

The “Africa rising” narrative that dominated headlines ten years ago has taken an anecdotal beating, affected by the downturn in commodities, and several of the continent’s biggest economies being plagued with poor growth, both private and public corruption, and political bad news. But, investment wise, does that mean Africa is no longer a strong growth space? Do investors consider this bubble burst?

Political upheaval, King IV and ethical leadership were all on the agenda as some of KPMG’s leading minds applied themselves to the question of regulatory change and its impact on business at the Finance Indaba Africa at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on 14 October in an entertaining session hosted by the multinational auditor.

Mervyn King told the Finance Indaba Africa that business has shifted from thinking about short-term profit to focusing on sustainable capitalism, but that there is much still to be done.

During CFO South Africa’s Finance Indaba Africa held at the Sandton Convention Centre on 13 and 14 October 2016, Head of the Advisory IT at Grant Thornton, Oupa Mbokodo warned internal auditors about playing a policing role in an organisation and encouraged them to employ a more integrated thinking approach to their audits.

“One ERP is not about creating a utopia, but using technology to create an illusion of a single interface for things like cash and shared service centre management. Robotics is fantastic – we have a lab in Germany dedicated to playing around with – but most robots today only fix things that are broken.”

How should smart leaders position their organisations for change? That was the central question in a through-provoking keynote from KPMG chairman Ahmed Jaffer at the firm's cocktail function on 13 October 2016 at the Finance Indaba Africa. The event was one of the highlights of #findaba16, with the who's who of CFOs and corporate South Africa enjoying the entertainment, food & drinks and networking.

"Let's take the lessons and the inspiration from the Finance Indaba Africa with us and use it in our daily jobs," said SAICA CEO Terence Nombembe at the opening of day 2 of #findaba16. In an impassioned plea, he called on finance professionals to start contributing more to the future of South Africa, listing several practical steps for CA(SA)s and other finance professionals. "All of us need to be courageous enough."

Well over 3000 finance professionals came to the Sandton Convention Centre on 13 October for the first day of the very first Finance Indaba Africa, an expo and conference that has announced itself as the annual highlight on the calendar of South Africa's finance professionals. With 75 exhibitors, 120 speakers and incredible energy levels, the success of the event was firmly established - attendees and partner organisations alike enjoying massive value from the interactions, learning and sharing of knowledge.

Easy Equities is the overall winner of the 2016 African FinTech Awards at the Finance Indaba Africa at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on 13 October 2016.

Two women share their views on what women need to do to achieve success in the finance industry, and how they can uplift other women along the way.

Keeping track of what happens in the business and measuring everything is what makes McDonald’s flourish as a business, conference attendees heard during Finance Indaba Africa which took place at the Sandton Convention Centre on 13 and 14 October 2016.

Two CFOs who have developed their careers by working in different locations around the world share their views on whether international experience is essential on your CV.