Cracks start to show as retirement funds drag feet

Published Jan 29, 1997

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The 1994 report of the Financial Services Board was recently published. Yes, I do mean the 1994 report.

I received a note with my copy from the deputy executive officer of the FSB, Andri Swanepoel, with an explanation that the lateness "was partly because information had to be submitted for the first time in the new prescribed format and many extensions had to be given".

And by the time the report went to press in October the FSB was still attempting to get information from a number of funds.

This is, rightly, of concern to Swanepoel. He says that late submission of financial returns is often the first sign of problems within a fund.

In his letter he says that these funds only number 45 of the 1 965 registered funds (2,3 percent) but "it remains important to the members".

Below is a list of the funds which had not reported by the time the report went to press. Some of them may have handed in their reports by now, but the members of these funds should ask their trustees what is going on. For many people, money in a retirement fund is their only saving.

The one thing we cannot afford in this country is a lack of confidence in the retirement fund industry because of tardy behaviour by trustees and administrators.

General opinion among respected members of the retirement fund industry is that trustees are going to have to wake up in a hurry. The casual attitudes of the past are no longer acceptable.

I was talking to some of the directors at actuaries and consulting company, Ginsburg, Malan & Carsons, which advises many of the country's pension funds.

They feel training of trustees is woefully inadequate; that many of the funds are still dominated by companies which in the past ran them as fiefdoms, putting the companies' interests ahead of those of fund members; and that sooner or later there is going to be a court case in which trustees will be sued for not carrying out the duties laid down for them in legislation.

A retirement fund belongs to you as a member. You should expect and demand the best from your trustees. If you are a member of one of the funds listed, demand a proper explanation from your trustees for late submission of returns to the Financial Services Board.

Here is the list of the tardy funds named in the FSB report as being in default for submission:

Adcorp Provident Builda

Arwa Pensioenfonds

Auckland Park Preparatory School Provident Fund

Barlow Rand Provident Fund

Bontebok Limeworks Provident Fund

Weekly Paid Employees

Broksure Provident Builda

BTRD Provident Fund

Bucco Provident Builda

Bucco Pension Builda

Corporate Computers Provident Builda

D&M Provident Builda

Deneys Reitz Retirement Plan

Dewar Rand Pension Scheme

Dewar Rand Provident Fund

Dimension Marketing Provident Builda

FG Knights & Son Pension Fund

Form-Scaff Provident Fund

Ingersoll Rand SA Provident Fund

Intec Provident Fund

Justine (1993) Pension Fund

Leighton Hulett Provident Builda

Lovedale Pension Fund

Oceana Group Executive Provident Fund

Ocean Provident Builda

Oxford Circle Provident Fund

Mackintosh, Bergh & Sturgess Pension Fund

McCasland, Ross Pension Fund

Morris-Crane Aid Pension Fund

Picbel Groeppensioenfonds

Placo Group Provident Fund

Placo Group Pension Fund

Purdue Group Provident Fund

Provestment Pension Fund

Qwa-Qwa Pension Fund for Politicians

RA Provident Builda

Rock Pension Fund

SFW Pension Fund

Shelco Provident Fund

South African Sugar Association Provident Fund

Southern Pipeline Contractor Pension Fund

Southern Pipeline Contractors Provident Fund

Sydmore Provident Fund

Sydmore Provident and Life Assurance Fund

Usabco Pension Fund

Usabco Provident Fund

* * * *

To switch to crooks and cheats: A bouquet to NBS Bank for announcing early that it has again been a target of fraud involving staff.

Too often financial institutions, in an effort to avoid publicity, sweep fraud cases under the carpet, not laying criminal changes or even having disciplinary hearings.

This attitude adds to the growing culture of business immorality.

Doing what NBS chief executive, Tony Norton, has done requires guts but it will pay dividends as staff will realise that it will not pay them to take what is not theirs, protecting you in the end. Well done, Mr Norton.

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