Mergers and Acquisitions in South Africa are experiencing positive momentum, fuelled by a newfound optimism within the country. To unpack this, Michael Avery was joined by Ruven Naidoo, Head of M&A, and Marc Ackermann, Head of Corporate Finance and Co-Head of SA Investment Banking at Investec.

They discussed how recent local political and economic developments - from loadshedding and the formation of the GNU government to potential interest rate cuts and the resilient rand - are shaping deal-making trends, and what to expect for the rest of this year and into 2025.

Moreover, Ruven and Marc shared valuable insights into the most active sectors for M&A, potential opportunities for South African companies looking to expand beyond our borders, and practical advice on what M&A truly involves and how to navigate the process successfully.

In this episode, Michael Avery sat down with Sergio Barbosa, Co-founder of Global Kinetic and CEO of FutureBank. Together, they explored the challenges posed by legacy IT systems in banks and potential strategies to modernise these systems.

Sergio shares insights for transitioning to more efficient and scalable technologies, the crucial role of regulatory frameworks in fostering FinTech integration, and the importance of leadership in driving cultural change within banks.

In this episode, Michael Avery sat down with Samantha Singh-Jami, Africa Strategist at RMB, to unpack their industry-renowned annual report, Where to Invest in Africa 2024, co-developed with GIBS.

Utilising findings from the report, Sam shared some of the key insights into what is driving success in certain countries and the lead indicators she believes will drive future success. Sam also shared her perspective on the current appetite for foreign investment in Africa, examining the potential risks and opportunities.

This week, Michael Avery sat down with two industry innovators: Joshua Kaiser, CEO of Tovie AI, and Goh Hirose, Head of Digital Acceleration at BNP Paribas Cardif. Together, they share their unique journeys into the world of AI and how their diverse backgrounds have shaped their approach.

Our guests further delved into the practical applications of AI, ethical considerations, emerging trends, and how a shared value approach is transforming both the banking industry and human interactions.

To unravel the intricacies of building a digitally transformed insurance offering, Michael Avery sat down with Christo Davel, Head of Client Enablement at Nedbank Insurance, to speak about his firsthand experience. They delved into Nedbank Insurance's digitisation journey, exploring their key digital initiatives and the impact on customer experience and operational efficiency.

Christo also shared insights on how AI is reshaping the insurance industry and how he has been able to leverage the technological journey already travelled by his Nedbank banking counterparts.

In this episode, Michael Avery is joined by Dr Michael Power, former Global Strategist at Ninety One, where they discuss the complex web of challenges facing the global world order right now.

From geopolitical tensions to a confluence of potential financial crises, they explore the fault lines emerging in the global economy. Dr Power also shares what he envisions a new multi-polar financial world might look like. 

South Africa's fight to exit the FATF grey list continues. In this episode, Michael Avery sat down with Christopher Malan, Executive Manager of Compliance & Prevention at the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIC). Together, they unpacked the critical role of the FIC in detecting and preventing money laundering, terrorist financing, and corruption.

The discussion delved into the progress South Africa has made so far towards getting off the grey list, as well as the remaining challenges. They also explored how strong partnerships with other institutions are key to achieving this goal next year.

Operation Vulindlela has been one of the shining lights in South Africa’s reform goals and a crucial part of why we have gone 100 days without loadshedding.

To find out more about the impact of the initiative, Michael Avery met up with Rudi Dicks, Head of Project Management in the Office of the Presidency. Rudi shares the objectives and recent achievements of Operation Vulindlela, how the formation of our new government may affect them and their goals for the future.

Claude de Baissac, Founder and CEO at Eunomix, has consistently raised the red flag on South Africa’s economic and political standing.

To understand whether he sees the Government of National Unity as an opportunity or hindrance to delivering the required reforms, Michael Avery sat down with Claude to debate the future of our country.

There are very few people in business who have been able to use innovation as a strategic tool to the extent of TymeBank’s Co-Founder and CEO, Coen Jonker.

Michael Avery sat down with Coen to better understand his journey to launching Tymebank. Together, they deliberate on how innovation has been a key lever to success and how Coen has been able to instil innovation into his and TymeBank’s ways of working.