Magnus Heystek – Uncertainty over land tenure driving some farmers into a “scorched earth” approach

LONDON – Having established the successful financial advisory business Brenthurst Wealth, Magnus Heystek enjoys a freedom of expression that few in South Africa's business sector possess. And in this podcast focusing on the country's burning issue of the moment, he doesn't hold back. Heystek shares feedback from his many clients who are farmers, warning that the ruling ANC's approach of land expropriation without compensation has sent those who provide the nation's food security into a highly defensive state of mind. Some, Heystek says, are adopting a "scorched earth" approach reminiscent of what Napoleon encountered when his troops invaded Russia just over 200 years ago. With the possibility of their land being taken from them, these farmers are abandoning long-term reinvestments in the land and machinery. Although distasteful in a national sense, squeezing the maximum out of the asset is a rational response when there is a threat of that asset being taken away. Heystek offers some logical suggestions of his own. – Alec Hogg

I've known Magnus Heystek from virtually the first day I went into financial journalism as a 20 year old back in 1980. We worked for the same publishing house and although never served the same title simultaneously, had parallel careers for a couple decades before he branched out into the financial advisory field. The owner of a cultivated pen and an ordered mind, Heystek was among the first high profile commentators to recommend that South Africans diversify their assets into the global arena, adding huge value to his client portfolios. From an Afrikaner background, he is also closely connected to this sector, including the farming community. In this fascinating podcast he shares their fears over the pressures of land expropriation, explains how many farmers are reacting and shares what he is suggesting that they should do about the situation.

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