Investments
Investment management with a clear purpose.
Investment management is not simply about choosing investments. It is about understanding what your money needs to achieve, how much risk you can accept and how your investment portfolio fits into your broader financial plan.
Investment management & investment planning
A structured approach to building your portfolio.
OBIN Wealth Management provides investment management and investment planning for individuals, families and businesses, with solutions that can include retirement annuities, tax-free investments, unit trusts, preservation funds, endowments, offshore investments and living annuities. Our investment approach uses research, diversification, and a defined risk-profile process to build investment solutions aligned with client objectives. We work with selected fund managers rather than acting as fund managers ourselves, and our research process considers both qualitative and quantitative factors when evaluating funds.
STRATEGY
Diversify
grow
preserve
Investment solutions
Investment planning starts with the goal.
Before discussing an investment product, we need to understand the purpose of the investment. You may be saving for retirement, building a long-term investment portfolio, building capital for a future goal, preserving retirement savings after leaving an employer, or seeking offshore investment exposure. Each objective can require a different investment horizon, liquidity requirement and risk approach.
Retirement Annuities
Retirement annuity — key considerations:
Tax-Free Investments
A tax-free investment can be used as a long-term savings and investment vehicle where qualifying interest, dividends and capital gains are not taxed within the applicable tax-free investment framework. Because contribution limits and legislative rules apply, a tax-free investment is generally most useful when considered as part of a wider investment strategy rather than as a standalone answer.
Unit Trust Investment Plans
Unit trust investment plans provide access to a range of investment funds managed by different investment managers. They can be useful for medium- to long-term investment goals where liquidity and flexibility are important considerations. A unit trust portfolio can hold exposure to asset classes such as cash, bonds, listed property and equities, depending on the selected fund and its investment mandate.
Preservation Funds
When you leave an employer and have retirement savings in a pension or provident fund, a preservation fund may allow you to keep those retirement savings invested rather than withdrawing them and triggering a tax liability. Preservation funds generally do not allow new contributions; additional retirement savings can instead be considered through a retirement annuity or another appropriate retirement vehicle.
Endowments
Retirement annuity — key considerations:
Offshore Investments
Offshore investing can provide access to investment opportunities and diversification beyond South Africa. Exposure can be achieved through local unit trusts with underlying offshore assets or through foreign-currency investments in offshore funds, subject to the relevant rules and considerations. Offshore investing should be considered in the context of currency exposure, risk, costs, tax and the role the investment plays in the overall portfolio.
Living Annuities
At retirement, a living annuity can be used to invest retirement savings and draw an income within the applicable legal limits. The income amount and payment frequency can be reviewed within the rules of the product. Choosing a living annuity requires careful consideration of investment risk, income needs, longevity and the sustainability of withdrawals.
Our approach
Our investment management approach.
Before discussing an investment product, we need to understand the purpose of the investment. Each objective can require a different investment horizon, liquidity requirement and risk approach.
Diversification
We consider different asset classes and fund managers rather than relying on a single investment.
Active and passive strategies
OBIN Wealth Management’s investment approach blends active and passive investment strategies where appropriate.
Research and due diligence
Funds are evaluated using qualitative and quantitative factors and maintained on an approved list.
Risk profiling
We use a risk-profile analysis to understand the level of risk an investor is prepared to tolerate in pursuit of their investment goal.
Ongoing review
Investment portfolios should be reviewed as your goals, circumstances and attitude to risk change.
Investment management FAQs
A few things people ask before investing.
What is investment management and why do I need it?
Investment management is the process of deciding how to invest your money, selecting appropriate investment solutions, constructing an investment portfolio, and reviewing that portfolio over time. Good investment management starts with your objective rather than with a product. You may be investing for retirement, a medium-term goal, long-term wealth creation or another financial objective.
Investment management considers factors such as time horizon, liquidity needs, risk profile, diversification, asset allocation, costs and the role of each investment within your broader financial plan. At OBIN, investment planning is part of the wider financial planning relationship. The aim is to understand what the investment needs to achieve and then consider suitable investment solutions.
OBIN Wealth Management’s investment approach uses selected fund managers, an approved list of funds, qualitative and quantitative research and a multi-fund approach across different asset classes. The firm also uses active and passive investment strategies.
Investment management cannot remove market risk or guarantee returns. Its purpose is to create a disciplined investment strategy that is aligned with your goals and reviewed as your circumstances and risk tolerance change.
What is a retirement annuity and when should I consider one?
A retirement annuity, commonly called an RA, is a retirement savings vehicle that individuals can use to build retirement savings. A qualifying retirement annuity may offer tax advantages on contributions and investment growth within the retirement-fund environment is subject to the applicable tax rules. Retirement annuities are also subject to regulatory investment limits and access rules.
An RA can be useful for people who want to increase their retirement savings, particularly where they do not have sufficient employer-sponsored retirement savings or want an additional retirement investment. It can also provide a disciplined structure for long-term saving. However, an RA is not automatically the right solution for everyone.
Before investing, consider your existing pension or provident fund, contribution levels, retirement target, investment risk, time horizon, liquidity needs and the applicable tax rules. Access to retirement annuity savings is restricted under retirement-fund legislation and withdrawals are subject to the rules applicable at the time.
OBIN can help you assess whether a retirement annuity fits into your broader investment management and retirement planning strategy.
What is an endowment and how does it work?
An endowment is a long-term investment vehicle that can have a role in savings, tax planning and estate planning, depending on the investor’s circumstances. The tax treatment of an endowment differs from that of an individual investing directly, which can make the structure relevant for certain taxpayers. However, the suitability of an endowment depends on more than tax.
An endowment may be suitable when an investor has a suitable time horizon and wants to structure an investment in a particular way. It may also have estate-planning implications depending on ownership and beneficiaries. The underlying investment choices still matter, and the value of the investment can rise or fall according to the performance of the underlying assets.
Before choosing an endowment, an investor should consider the investment objective, liquidity requirements, tax position, costs, restrictions and how the investment fits with existing assets. An endowment should be compared with alternatives such as unit trusts, retirement annuities or tax-free investments where relevant.
OBIN’s role is to help clients understand the trade-offs and decide whether an endowment has a meaningful role within the wider financial plan.
What are offshore investments and should I invest offshore?
Offshore investing means investing in assets, funds or portfolios that have exposure outside South Africa. Offshore investments can provide access to international companies, markets, currencies and economies and may form part of a diversified investment portfolio. However, offshore investing introduces additional considerations such as currency movements, international market risk, costs, tax and regulatory requirements.
There is no single percentage of offshore exposure that suits every investor. The right approach depends on your goals, risk profile, investment horizon, existing South African assets and the purpose of the offshore investment. Some investors may obtain offshore exposure through South African unit trusts that invest internationally, while others may use foreign-currency investment structures.
At OBIN Wealth Management, offshore investment is considered within the wider investment management strategy rather than as a standalone decision. The objective is to understand what the offshore exposure is intended to achieve and whether it improves the overall investment portfolio.
Offshore investing can be valuable, but diversification should be considered alongside risk, liquidity, costs and your broader financial plan.
What fees and costs should I understand when investing, including advice, platform administration, asset management and EAC?
Investment costs can come from several parts of an investment arrangement, so it is important to understand the total cost rather than looking at one fee in isolation. Depending on the product and structure, you may encounter an advice fee, a platform or administration fee, and investment management costs relating to the underlying funds or assets. These costs pay for different services. An advice fee relates to the financial planning and advice provided by your adviser. A platform or administration fee relates to the administration, technology and infrastructure used to hold and service an investment. Investment management costs relate to the management of the underlying assets of the investment. You may also see transaction costs – abbreviated as TC in ASISA disclosures – which arise when underlying assets are bought and sold.
The Effective Annual Cost (EAC) is designed to help investors understand the overall cost of a financial product. Under the ASISA EAC framework, costs are presented through four broad components: investment management, advice, administration and other charges. The investment management component can include the costs of the underlying assets, such as the Total Expense Ratio (TER) and transaction costs, where applicable. The administration component can include relevant product or platform administration charges. The exact combination and level of costs depends on the investment product, platform, underlying funds and advice arrangement.
At OBIN Wealth Management, we believe fees should be transparent and understandable. Before you invest, we will explain the costs associated with the recommended solution, what each cost pays for and how the costs fit into the overall value of the advice and investment service. Rather than focusing on a single percentage, we encourage clients to consider the total cost alongside the quality of the advice, the investment strategy, the services provided and their long-term objectives.
Compliance/source note: ASISA currently uses the terminology Effective Annual Cost (EAC), investment management charge, advice charge, administration charge and other charges, with transaction costs (TC) included in the relevant investment-cost methodology. Do not publish a universal OBIN Wealth Management fee or EAC figure: actual costs vary by product, platform, underlying assets and advice arrangement. Final wording must be approved by OBIN Wealth Management /compliance.
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