Santam

The Suid-Afrikaanse Nasionale Trust en Assuransie Maatskappy Beperk , Santam, was registered on 28 March 1918. It was then decided to convert the life assurance department into a separate company, and the Suid-Afrikaanse Nasionale Lewens Assuransie Maatskappy Beperk , Sanlam, was registered on 8 June 1918. Sanlam, the subsidiary, later became the spearhead of the operation, while Santam remained focused on short-term insurance.

Sanlam showed a small profit at the end of its first year, declared a bonus, and continued to grow consistently from there.

Santam remained the controlling shareholder until 1954 when Sanlam became an independent mutual life assurance company, as well as the largest single shareholder in Santam.

Over the years, Sanlam's focus gradually shifted from traditional life insurance to providing a broader range of financial products and services. In 1998 Sanlam demutualised, listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange Ltd and the Namibian Stock Exchange. This changed Sanlam from a mutual entity into a public company with a share capital, namely Sanlam Life Insurance Ltd. At the same time a separate company, Sanlam Ltd, was installed as the parent company of the Sanlam group of businesses. The group was also restructured into several independent businesses within a federal business structure.

Today, Sanlam is a diversified financial services provider with an extensive product offering catering for all market segments. The group has consistently grown its local as well as an international footprint – it now has a presence in 33 African countries also India, Malaysia, the UK and Ireland, the USA, Australia and the Philippines.

In 2018, Sanlam concluded its $1.1 billion acquisition of SAHAM Finances. Additionally, the group announced details of its R11 billion BEE deal, which will see it increasing its direct black shareholding to 18% and black economic ownership to 35%.In December 2021, The Sanlam Group entered into discussions with Allianz for the acquisition of the entire group in Africa except South Africa. Discussions are conducted between the group's headquarters in Bellville and Munich.

Economic empowerment

Sanlam has since 1993 contributed to broad-based black economic empowerment through the group’s partnership with Ubuntu-Botho Investments.The Ubuntu-Botho B-BBEE partnership resulted in a broad-based black empowerment consortium buying a 10% shareholding in Sanlam in what was to become one of the most far-reaching black empowerment transactions in South Africa to date.

In December 2013, the initial 10-year contractual period of the transaction with Ubuntu-Botho ended, with a final total of 66.5 million deferred shares qualifying for conversion to ordinary shares. The deal created value of about R15 billion, making it arguably one of the most successful transactions of its kind in South African history. In 2014, an agreement was reached to extend the partnership with Ubuntu-Botho into the future.In 2018, Sanlam announced details of BEE transactions, which will increase its direct black shareholding to 18% and black economic ownership to 35%. The Group will sell 5% of its issued shares to new and existing B-BBEE shareholders, creating a master trust that caters to 80% of the intended beneficiaries, with Ubuntu-Botho benefitting from the other 20%.

Operations

The corporate office of the Sanlam Group is responsible for centralised functions that include strategic direction, group financial and risk management, group marketing and communications, group human resources and information technology, group sustainability management, corporate social investment and general group services.

In addition, the Sanlam group operations are managed through five operating clusters:

Sanlam Personal Finance

Sanlam Emerging Markets

Sanlam Investments

Sanlam Corporate

SantamThe core businesses within each cluster are as follows :

Sanlam Personal Finance

The largest business in the Sanlam Group of companies, with 11,406 employees and assets worth R 472,328 million under management.

Sanlam Sky Solutions: Financial services for individuals and groups in the entry-level market

Sanlam Individual Life: Financial services to the middle-income, professional and business-owner markets

Glacier: Financial services for the affluent marketStrategic business development consists of the following diversified financial services: Sanlam Trust , Multi-Data , Sanlam Healthcare Management , Sanlam Personal Loans , Reality and Anglo African Finance .

Sanlam Emerging Markets

The Sanlam Emerging Markets cluster is responsible for Sanlam’s financial business services in emerging markets outside South Africa:

Botswana Life, Botswana – 60% via Botswana Insurance Holdings Limited

Sanlam Life, Namibia – 100%

Sanlam Namibia Holdings, Namibia – 59%

NICO Life, Malawi – 62%

Sanlam Life Insurance, Kenya – 57% via Sanlam Kenya Group

Sanlam Life Insurance, Tanzania – 64%

Sanlam Life Insurance, Zambia – 70%

Sanlam Life Insurance, Uganda – 100%

Sanlam Life Insurance, Nigeria – 100%

Sanlam General Insurance, Nigeria – 100%

Shriram Life Insurance, India – 42% via Shriram Capital

Soras Vie, Rwanda – 100%

MCIS Insurance, Malaysia – 51%

Sanlam Life Insurance, Mozambique – 51%

Zimnat Life Assurance, Zimbabwe – 40%Credit and banking:

Letshego, operating in a number of African countries – 14% via BIHL

NBS Bank, Malawi – 13% via NICO Holdings

Shriram Transport Finance Company, India 10%

Shriram City Union Finance – 9% via Shriram CapitalInvestment management:

Sanlam Investments, East Africa, Kenya & Uganda – 56%

Sanlam Investments, Namibia – 86%

Botswana Insurance Fund Management – 60% via BIHLGeneral insurance: Jointly responsible in partnership with Santam for managing general insurance business through:

NICO Malawi – 62%

Sanlam General Insurance Tanzania – 52%

Sanlam General Insurance Uganda – 84%

NICO Zambia – 62%

Shriram General Insurance, India – 43% via Shriram Capital

Pacific & Orient, Malaysia – 49%

Legal Guard, Botswana – 60% via BIHL

Soras AG, Rwanda – 100%

Santam Namibia – 37%

Sanlam General Insurance, Kenya – 39%

FBN Insurance, Nigeria – 35%

Zimnat Lion Insurance, Zimbabwe – 40%

Sanlam Investments

Asset management

Sanlam Investment Management – manages institutional portfolios and retail collective investment funds

Sanlam Structured Solutions – structured products

Multi-management

Sanlam Multi Manager International – investment management advisory business

Alternative investments

Blue Ink – hedge fund manager focusing on both the local and global investment markets

Sanlam Alternative Investments – focuses on the compounding of positive investment returns coupled with downside protection strategies to generate wealth for retail and institutional clients

Sanlam Africa Investments – with a presence in 13 African countries, Sanlam Africa Investments enables investors to capitalise on African growth opportunities by successfully sourcing and managing investments across a range of asset classes

Passive investments

Satrix – offers investors easy, cost effective access to the markets through a wide range of passively managed investment products

Capital management:

Capital management – manages portions of Sanlam's third-party and policyholders' funds

Sanlam Capital Markets

Sanlam Private Equity

Employee benefits

Sanlam Employee Benefits – Provides risk and investment administration services to institutions and retirement funds

Sanlam Group Risk

Sanlam Employee Benefits Investments

Sanlam Umbrella Solutions

Sanlam Retirement Fund Administration

Simeka Consultants and Actuaries

Wealth management

Sanlam Private Wealth – Private client wealth management and stockbroking

Calibre Investments – 50.1% – Australian investment management

Sanlam Private Investments UK – 97% – UK private wealth management and stockbroking

Summit Trust – 65% – International independent trust services group in Switzerland

Investment Advisory Services and Fiduciary and Tax services

International investments

Sanlam International Investment Partners – manages established partnerships with specialist investment management firms abroad

SIM Global – manages long-only specialist international equity funds

Sanlam Asset Management Ireland – Sanlam's international investment management platform in Dublin managing funds domiciled in Ireland

Sanlam UK – wealth management player in retail financial services in the United Kingdom, comprising Sanlam Investments and Pensions, Sanlam Distribution, Sanlam Private Wealth and Investment Management

P2 International – International Mutual Fund Administration Investment services

Sanlam Collective Investments – retail, multi-managed, institutional and third-party collective investment funds

Santam

Sanlam has an effective 60% interest in Santam, which in turn operates through the following businesses:

Santam Insurance – traditional and specialist lines intermediated business

MiWay and Centriq– short-term insurance to clients through a direct distribution channel

Santam Re – reinsurance in emerging markets

Sanlam Group Executive

Paul Hanratty, Group Chief Executive Officer

Anton Gildenhuys, Chief Executive Officer: SA Retail Affluent

Lizé Lambrechts, Chief Executive Officer: Santam Limited

Bongani Madikiza, Chief Executive Officer: SA Retail Mass

Sydney Mbhele, Group Executive: Sanlam Brand

Jeanett Modise, Chief Executive: Human Resources

Kanyisa Mkhize, Chief Executive Officer: Sanlam Corporate

Wikus Olivier, Group Executive: Strategy

Robert Roux, Chief Executive Officer: Sanlam Investment Group

Karl Socikwa, Group Executive: Market Development

Jurie Strydom, Chief Executive Officer: Life and Savings

Heinie Werth, Chief Executive Officer: Sanlam Emerging Markets. Executive Director

Mlondolozi Mahlangeni, Chief Risk Officer. Chief Actuary

Abigail Mukhuba, Financial Director

Recent news

For the six months to June 2015, Sanlam reported an increase in new business volumes of 22% to R100 billion compared to the same period in 2014. The net result from financial services increased by 5% on the first half of 2014; up 11% excluding certain one-off items. The annualised Return on Group Equity Value per share of 13% exceeded the target of 12.1%. RoGEV is the group's primary performance target for measuring shareholder value creation.

Ian Kirk was appointed as Group Chief Executive and Executive Director of Sanlam Limited and Sanlam Life Insurance Limited from 1 July 2015. This follows the retirement of former Group Chief Executive Dr Johan van Zyl from this position, as well as from the boards of Sanlam Limited and Sanlam Life Insurance Ltd.

In November 2015 Sanlam announced that the group had agreed to buy a 30 percent stake in Morocco-based Saham Finances, which operates in 26 countries predominantly across Africa with a presence in the Middle East. The US$375 million deal will significantly expand the group's African footprint.Former CEO, Dr Johan van Zyl, joined the Sanlam Limited and Sanlam Life Insurance Limited Boards as a non-executive director and representative of Ubuntu-Botho Investment Holdings, Sanlam's black economic empowerment partner as of 18 January 2016.A new business cluster known as Sanlam Corporate was created early in 2016. The unit will be headed by the former CEO of Munich Re sub-Saharan Africa, Junior John Ngulube and will offer corporate clients life insurance, general insurance, investments, health insurance, retirement, financial planning and advice.

See also

Economy of South Africa

References