What's Next with Aki Anastasiou What's Next

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Head of First for Women Seugnette van Wyngaard discusses the importance of offering insurance products tailored for women.

First for Women is owned by Telesure Investment Holdings (TIH), and before taking on her current role in 2018, van Wyngaard worked in several other positions in the group.

In her lead role, Van Wyngaard is responsible for guiding First for Women’s growth by identifying market gaps and planning how to fill them.

Van Wyngaard begins the interview by explaining why it was important to create an insurance company targeted specifically at women.

She then details how First for Women sets itself apart from its competitors and unpacks the unique value the First for Women app offers South African women – in addition to its superior products and services.

She also discusses the biggest challenges insurers face in 2024, and the work she and First for Women have been doing to uplift women in the country.

Van Wyngaard concludes the interview by outlining the exciting plans First for Women has for 2024 and beyond, and offers advice to female entrepreneurs.

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Absa CIB Managing Executive for ESG Msizi Khoza discusses how Absa CIB supports sustainability initiatives.

In his current role, Khoza provides executive leadership over the firm’s numerous ESG-related initiatives. He also works with clients to help them access local and international capital markets that meet their financing needs.

This What’s Next interview begins with Khoza discussing the pressures of his position, before unpacking the recently launched Absa CIB sustainability report.

Khoza explains why it is important for Absa to publish this information, and unpacks how Absa balances social inclusion with protecting the environment.

Another topic of interest is CIB’s approach to the fossil fuel, oil and gas sectors, which Khoza discusses in-depth, before talking about Absa’s contributions to the alternative and renewable energy industries.

The conversation then moves to debt-for-nature swaps, and Khoza expands on these and the benefits they offer to South Africans.

Khoza concludes the interview by noting how someone can engage with Absa on debt-for-nature swaps.

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Cogence CEO Jonel Matthee-Ferreira discusses Cogence’s partnership with Discovery, and how it helps Cogence build superior financial products.

Matthee-Ferreira joined Cogence in January 2024 and has assumed the roles of CEO and CIO immediately.

Before joining Cogence, Matthee-Ferreira worked at Sanlam Multi-Management and Absa Multi-Management.

In this interview, Matthee-Ferreira begins by detailing how her career has led to her current role at Cogence.

She then explains what Cogence does and how it is related to Discovery.

Matthee-Ferreira expands upon the value of working with Discovery, including how the data it receives from Discovery helps improve its investment products.

She concludes by unpacking the key trends in the investment landscape based on the Cogence 2024 Market Outlook report.

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In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Amazon Web Services (AWS) Country General Manager for South Africa, Chris Erasmus, discusses the importance of AI technology.

Erasmus is responsible for setting AWS’s local strategy and guiding its local growth.

He is well-qualified for this job, as he boasts over 15 years of strategic, commercial, and operational experience.

Erasmus begins the interview by unpacking why Amazon sees AI as an important technology.

He discusses the three technology layers Amazon uses to build its AI solutions, before expanding on generative AI and why it is one of the most transformative technologies in recent years.

Erasmus then details Amazon’s generative AI solutions and discusses the top generative AI trends he sees in South Africa.

He concludes the interview by explaining how businesses can access AI technologies from AWS.

In this What’s Next in Finance with Aki Anastasiou interview, Fedgroup’s Michael Field unpacks the biggest challenges facing local investors.

Field is the General Manager for Investments at Fedgroup and has worked for the company since 2011.

Before working at Fedgroup, he gained experience working for Murray and Roberts, and MegChem Engineering and Drafting Services.

Field begins the interview by discussing which factors investors must prioritise to mitigate risk when investing in volatile markets.

He then outlines which investment types deliver the best long-term value and stability.

Field also explains how diversification helps build a resilient portfolio, and how financial advisors can help their clients navigate market volatility.

He concludes the interview by outlining the key factors FSPs must consider when developing investment offerings that provide stability and long-term growth