“When information is imperfect, the presence of inferior goods corrodes the market for quality goods.” Following hot on the heels of my rant at car scams last month, I came across a very interesting paper on the “The market for lemons”. Written in 1970 by economist George Akerlof, it discusses the used car market. A…
JSE company directors, CEOs and CFOs are still predominantly white and male Young CAs(SA) blood a cause for optimism A survey of all 475 JSE-listed companies has revealed that South African company directors, CEOs and CFOs are still predominantly white and male – but indicates hopeful signs of transformation within the younger generation. Specifically, this…
As you can well imagine, it was a very tough decision for the judges with so many incredibly successful candidates. After a whole month of anticipating who the winner might be, we are very proud to finally make the grand announcement: Winner: Gavin Lucas, lead founder and CEO of the Stor-Age Self Storage Group. Runner-up…
“Recent surveys show that companies reporting on their sustainability impacts are outperforming their competitors in key financial indicators and share value.” Few predicted the Asian financial crisis of 1997/98 and the 2001 Enron shock – and the finger of blame pointed directly at accounting standards. Most countries, including South Africa, have since adopted the International…
“Start with an interesting fact or statistic that you can use to introduce your talk.” Most people underestimate the value and the privilege of the platform to speak to a group of people. Regardless of whether or you are addressing five or 5 000 people, your purpose is the same – to change beliefs, attitudes,…
Christian Wiesener discusses the traditional approach to transfer pricing, which is still relevant and applied, and highlights the need for multinationals to “operationalise” – in other words to continuously implement their transfer pricing – and the benefits thereof The increased complexity of and focus on transfer pricing by governments and tax authorities globally have necessitated…
“The REAL (car) scam we should be talking about …” It seems that wherever I go lately, I’m either reading or hearing about the “R699 car scam”. The first time I heard about it I questioned it being termed a “scam” in the first place. Seems it was all in the fine print; one just…
Last, but definitely not least! These eleven daring young professionals have not only successfully pursued their dreams to become CAs(SA), but they have all excelled and moved swiftly through the ranks. They now either hold prestigious positions or, being entrepreneurs at heart, have boldly ventured out taking risks to open their very own practices or…
“POPI: It’s easy to miss the big picture ramifications for small businesses.” The new Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI) is an excellent piece of legislation when considered from a consumer point of view; and since we are all consumers, it is easy to miss the big picture ramifications for small businesses. The issue arises…
Karl Kumbier heads up South Africa’s only niche bank that specialises in financial products and services for entrepreneurs. Now on a mission to double the bank’s market share, he wants the brand to better represent what its clients need from a business bank. Monique Verduyn spoke to him Karl Kumbier, CEO of Mercantile Bank, is…
