Tony van Niekerk, Editor, COVER
Speaking to Jeanette Marais, Group CEO of the Momentum Group, shortly after the release of their exceptional results, was both insightful and energising.
The conversation reflected not only a strong set of financials, but a story of cohesion, focus, and renewed energy driving one of South Africa’s largest financial services groups.
A Year of standout performance – Jeanette began by acknowledging the positive results across the board, a rarity in a diversified group of nine distinct businesses. Typically, diversification means a few units underperform even as others thrive. This time, every business in the group delivered. The only slight miss was in the Africa business, but even that was too small to detract from the outstanding overall performance.
“This kind of universal delivery is exceptional,” Jeanette said. “Every single business had excellent results. Some even exceeded earnings expectations.”
Momentum’s diversified footprint shielded it from sector-specific turbulence and allowed it to shine through what many would consider a difficult economic year.
While Africa’s performance did not fully meet expectations, Jeanette cautioned against lumping the continent into one box. “Africa is not a country,” she said firmly. “We operate in five distinct markets, Ghana, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, and Lesotho, and each comes with its own opportunities and challenges.”
Namibia performed well on earnings, for example, but lagged slightly on value of new business. Meanwhile, political shifts in Mozambique impacted outcomes more severely. On top of these complexities, Africa’s regulatory landscape has evolved. Once largely modelled after South Africa’s, regulators in African markets are now asserting their own paths, making operations more unpredictable and nuanced.
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What is driving this success? Jeanette pointed to the group’s Impact Strategy, launched in July of the previous year. While bold in its vision, the strategy was grounded in focused, measurable objectives, particularly fostering collaboration across business units.
“Our group was never heavily vertically integrated,” she explained. “Historically, we did not pressure teams to use group products, we went for best-of-breed. But now, with economic pressures, we are seeing that more collaboration within the group is yielding better outcomes, for clients and the business alike.”
A standout example is the collaboration between the Momentum Health and Corporate divisions. Previously, these teams worked in silos. Today, they go to market with joint solutions, competing more effectively against fully integrated rivals.
Another pillar of Momentum’s strategy is deepening its footprint in the advice space. Long a leader in the IFA (Independent Financial Adviser) segment, Momentum sees massive opportunity in growing its own agency forces. “We’re punching below our weight,” Jeanette admitted. “We’re committed to investing capital into expanding our advice footprint.”
This vision is backed by more than just talk. Momentum has launched an ad campaign focused not on products, but on promoting the value of financial advice itself. “We want to make advice famous,” Jeanette said. “It’s in our DNA.”
Momentum’s short-term insurance arm, Insure, has long been under scrutiny. But the turnaround strategy is paying off. “We didn’t just benefit from benign weather,” she clarified. “We’ve made structural changes.”
These include repricing unprofitable books, implementing rooftop-level risk-based pricing, and improving operational efficiency. Combined ratios are down to 90%, and the claims ratio sits comfortably below the targeted 57–62% range. “Momentum Insure even contributed R315 million to the dividend this half-year,” Jeanette said proudly, “proving that we can run a solid business without being the biggest or cheapest.”
What’s most exciting for Jeanette, though, is the internal culture. “We had 8,700 employees dial into our results presentation. That’s an engaged organisation,” she said. It’s a far cry from the past and a testament to the power of purpose.
Last year, Momentum launched a unifying purpose statement for the first time in its history: “We build and protect our clients’ financial dreams.” That clarity is paying off, as employees across business units see their roles in delivering impact, not just chasing profit.
Challenge meets confidence – Despite political and economic noise, Jeanette remains optimistic. “When times are uncertain, clients gravitate towards advice. That’s our strength. There’s always business to be done, even in declining markets. You can grow by gaining market share.”
Momentum’s clear strategic intent, collaborative energy, and commitment to advice position it strongly for the road ahead. As Jeanette put it: “Advice is like oxygen, you can’t live without it. And if we can get South Africans to see that, the outcomes for our economy and our clients will be better in the long run.”