Prescribed assets “nothing to fear”: Retirement fund expert Clive Eggers

In this BizNews Personal Finance podcast, Clive Eggers says concerns about the ANC's plans to harness private retirement fund savings to prop up troubled state entities are, at this stage, a case of much ado about nothing. Eggers chats to Jackie Cameron about prescribed assets, plus how long-term investors can help the government with the transfer of land from white hands to previously disadvantaged hands in an orderly fashion – and he warns that investing offshore has been a very bad idea for many people. – Jackie Cameron

An ANC plan to make it a legal requirement that a portion of retirement investments is ploughed into propping up state entities has provoked a storm of controversy. Some fear that the proposal is tantamount to the government hijacking hard-earned savings and argue that if state entities are run well they will naturally attract capital on the basis of superior returns.

Clive Eggers, head of Investment Analytics, at wealth and financial advisory firm GTC reckons it is too early to panic. And, he cautions against making investment decisions based on the possibility that the implementation of prescribed assets plans will erode long-term wealth-building efforts. This is even though we are encouraged to invest with a long-term investment horizon in mind.

In this podcast, Eggers explains the concept of prescribed assets, which was an approach used by the apartheid government scraping around for extra funds.

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