SmartAboutMoney.co.za is a consumer financial education website supported by the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA) to empower you to make good money decisions.
While SmartAboutMoney.co.za is collectively funded by ASISA members - asset managers, unit trust companies, life assurance companies and investment platforms - you will not be enticed to buy financial products via SmartAboutMoney.co.za nor will you come across advertising.
ASISA and its members recognise that a key aspect of treating customers fairly is ensuring that you, as a customer or potential customer, have access to accurate, unbiased, plain-language information about regulated financial products and services.
With this is mind, ASISA has tasked an independent team of content creators and developers to create SmartAboutMoney.co.za. The end goal is a user-friendly website with easy-to-understand content.
Credible content ... The value of advice ... Meet the team ... Editorial policy ... Product providers
The comprehensive educational material has been written by Laura du Preez, one of South Africa’s most experienced personal finance journalists.
The content has been checked for accuracy by ASISA’s senior policy advisers and experts in various fields from ASISA member companies and other industry bodies.
In addition, all educational content also carries the approval of an editorial committee consisting of senior representatives from ASISA, the ASISA Academy and the ASISA Foundation.
Once you have navigated the website and gained a solid understanding of how the various financial products work, you are encouraged to contact with your financial adviser or a product provider of your choice to help you take the next steps.
While you may feel confident to make your own investment decisions once you have learnt with SmartAboutMoney.co.za, we would like to remind you that an experienced and trusted financial adviser plays a more important role than just helping you select appropriate products. Your financial adviser also removes emotions from your decision making and helps you create a holistic plan. We cannot emphasise enough that none of the content, tools or calculators SmartAboutMoney.co.za can be considered financial advice in any form.
For more information about ASISA, visit www.asisa.org.za
Laura du Preez, editor
Shunning a bent for numbers for fear it would lead to being an accountant, I studied journalism so I could keep learning for ever. Not far into my career, I landed a job with Independent Newspaper’s Personal Finance section.
In that role, new learnings were practical, relevant and grounded in numbers – how to invest, insure and file tax returns. And how to share those lessons in plain language.
When my now almost all-grown-up daughters were little, I made time between feeding and nappy changes to consolidate those learnings in a post-graduate diploma in financial planning and return to my love for being challenged by numbers.
Lucienne Fild, editorial adviser & contributor
In 1997, I made a tough career choice to stop working as an investigative journalist and venture into personal finance journalism. I joined the Sunday Times Business Times as a personal finance writer.
A rewarding career as a financial writer followed, first as a journalist and later as a communications specialist in the savings and investment industry.
I now consult to the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA) and the Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA).
I still get excited about tackling complex financial topics and changing them into easy to understand articles that add value to readers looking for information not coated in jargon.
Championing the creation of SmartAboutMoney.co.za on behalf of ASISA was therefore an exciting challenge and I remain involved by contributing consumer education articles and as a member of the Smart About Money editorial committee.
I hold a National Diploma in Journalism from the Pretoria Technikon.
Jenny Gage, webmaster
Project managing the creation of the Smart About Money website with a dynamic all woman team provided an exciting opportunity.
My current role as webmaster and communications co-ordinator for the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa (ASISA) has afforded me the experience and skills necessary to take on the responsibility of managing the Smart About Money website. Being a member of this team is a learning curve and working with the content has undoubtedly improved my financial knowledge.
I obtained a National Diploma: Executive Secretary from Port Elizabeth Technikon and have worked in the financial service industry for over a decade. During this time I have fulfilled various roles in marketing, communications, and event management. My most fulfilling role by far is that of Mom to my two young daughters.
We are proud of the original and credible content that we create. Organisations that share our goal of providing consumers with access to accurate and relevant financial education and news are welcome to use our content under the following conditions:
The content cannot be altered in any way. Providers of regulated savings and investment products
To view a list of asset managers, unit trust companies, life assurance companies and investment platforms that offer some or all of the regulated financial solutions referred to on the Smart About Money website click here. You are strongly encouraged to obtain financial advice before buying products.
