April 2024
16Apr

South Africa. The system is offline — Government pension fund goes silent after data breach

The Government Employees Pension Fund’s (GEPF) systems are still down following a data breach from the LockBit ransomware group in mid-February 2024. As a result, government employees cannot log into the GEPF website or its smartphone app, leaving them in the dark about the latest value of their pensions. Several readers have informed MyBroadband of the issues experienced when attempting to access the system in recent weeks. “We are still not able to log into the GEPF website and the cell phone...

April 16, 2024
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March 2024
25Mar

South Africa. Two-pot system: how the state is dealing with its own funds

There are three pension funds in the country, including South Africa’s largest fund, that are not governed by the Pension Funds Act, and National Treasury needs to deal with these separately in implementing its famous two-pot retirement system. I refer to three government pension funds, in particular the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), which holds more than R2.3 trillion in assets and has almost 1.3 million active members and another 475 000 pensioners and beneficiaries. This fund is constituted under...

March 25, 2024
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February 2024
21Feb

4 new bills passed by parliament – with big changes for pensions in South Africa

The National Assembly has passed four Bills, with one having a significant impact on South Africa’s pension system. NA has passed the Revenue Laws Amendment Bill, the Plant Health (Phytosanitary) Bill, the Deeds Registries Amendment Bill, and the Municipal Fiscal Powers and Functions Amendment Bill. The Revenue Laws Amendment Bill, the Plant Health (Phytosanitary) Bill and the Deeds Registries Amendment Bill will head to the National Council of Provinces for concurrence. On the other hand, the Municipal Fiscal Powers and Functions Amendment...

February 21, 2024
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14Feb

South Africa. GEPF warns of fake letters with respect to pension payments

By Staff Reporter   Scammers are trying to defraud government workers of their pension money via SMS by encouraging them to resign rather than retire, the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) has warned. GEPF is the largest pension fund in Africa with more than 1.2 million active members and about 500 000 pensioners and beneficiaries. The fund is responsible for more than R2.3 trillion in assets under its management. GEPF said it was recently made aware of fraudulent letters being sent to its...

February 14, 2024
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07Feb

Money and ageing: South African study shows cash grants help people live longer and have better memory function

Nearly half of South Africa’s 60 million people receive social grants, ranging from child support to pensions. The grants are designed to provide financial assistance to people living in poverty. The largest components of the South African social grant system were introduced, or expanded to include the full population, in the 1990s. Since then, the system has evolved into one of the most comprehensive in the global south. In addition to their direct financial benefits, the grants have been found to have a wide range...

February 7, 2024
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01Feb

South Africa. 2023 was a somewhat better year for salaries and private pensions

The BankservAfrica Take-home Pay Index (BTPI), which tracks the average nominal take-home pay among approximately 4 million salary earners in South Africa, ended the 2023 year on a slightly better note as salaries and private pensions performed slightly better than in the previous year. “The average nominal take-home pay was 5.6% higher at R15,409 in December 2023 compared to the R14,596 recorded in December 2022,” says Shergeran Naidoo, BankservAfrica’s head of stakeholder engagements. However, the average nominal take-home pay in 2023...

February 1, 2024
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January 2024
03Jan

Huge risks for pensions in South Africa

South Africa will have a new two-pot retirement system by September this year, but there are several risks facing members and the industry. As the name suggests, the two-pot retirement system will have two pots – savings and retirement savings. The savings pot will hold a maximum of one-third of all retirement savings and will be accessible prior to retirement. The retirement pot will hold a minimum of two-thirds of all retirement savings and will only be accessible at retirement. A third vested...

January 3, 2024
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December 2023
05Dec

Yet another twist for South Africa’s new pension system

The standing committee on Finance has once again changed the implementation date of the two-pot retirement system. In the new retirement system, up to one-third of all retirement savings will be placed into a “savings pot”, which will be accessible before retirement. A minimum of two-thirds of a pension fund will then be placed into a “retirement fund”, which can only be accessible at retirement. This is designed to ensure that South Africans can access some funds in case of emergency while...

December 5, 2023
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November 2023
06Nov

South Africa: Potential Major Changes Affecting Occupational Retirement Plans

The South Africa government has proposed that changes to the two-pot retirement system, which gives workers access to pension funds before retirement, be delayed by a year. Employer Action Code: Act Draft legislation to amend South Africa's Income Tax Act and the Pension Funds Act would allow members of occupational retirement plans to access part of their future retirement accruals during employment, with the remainder accessible only upon retirement or death (known as the "two-pot" system). Existing payout rules would still...

November 6, 2023
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October 2023
05Oct

South Africa. Some pensioners are still queuing for hours for their grants

Pensioners still had to wait hours to collect their grants at some places in Cape Town, though on the whole the payments seemed to be going more smoothly. Last month, thousands of social grant beneficiaries did not receive their money on time due to a technical glitch with PostBank. When GroundUp arrived at noon on Tuesday, about 80 people were waiting at the Gatesville Post Office to receive their pension. Elizabeth Fredericks, 75, waited for five hours before receiving her grant. She arrived...

October 5, 2023
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