South Africa’s first global discretionary fund manager launched by Discovery

Johannesburg, 23 August 2022 — Discovery Group today announced the launch of Cogence, a discretionary fund manager (DFM) seeking to significantly enhance the business of wealth creation in South Africa. Cogence will bring asset allocation views from BlackRock, one of the world’s leading asset managers, together with personalised insights from Vitality to provide investment solutions including model portfolios. This new investment solutions offering will be enhanced by Aladdin Wealth™ technology, an industry-leading platform from BlackRock which provides portfolio analytics and risk analysis.

Adrian Gore, Discovery Group Chief Executive said the impetus behind entering the DFM space is based on two distinct areas that have been disrupted.

“Firstly, investment markets are more sophisticated and complex than ever. At the same time, we’re seeing local investors increasingly looking to invest more globally. For South Africans it’s been hard to do so but with but with the recent regulatory changes, pension funds and mutual funds are now able to invest up to 45% in offshore assets. This means we can invest nearly half of our retirement savings in offshore assets – that’s powerful. Research and understanding of risks and the opportunities that global markets present is crucial.”

“Secondly, more than 90% of people in South Africa can’t afford retirement, relying on their family or state and often the elasticity of savings behaviours is more important than investment returns. Cogence is built upon BlackRock’s asset allocation views and has been designed to pair Aladdin Wealth™ technology with Vitality’s data and analytics to incorporate personalized health and longevity metrics, which essentially maps out every aspect of a financial plan. These metrics consider how long you will live, how healthy you will be, how much money you need and importantly, supports financial advisors in making recommendations to their clients.”

Cogence combines Discovery’s investment expertise with BlackRock’s deep knowledge of asset management to help financial advisers try to realise improved investment outcomes for their clients. Through Cogence, financial advisers will also have access to proprietary Aladdin Wealth™ technology.

Kenny Rabson, CEO of Discovery Invest said, “Navigating financial planning for the future is multi-dimensional and is compounded by complexities and difficulties. The ability to use technology to model the impact that these factors will have on retirement provision is becoming vital and investors need global expertise with local applicability.”

Andrew Keegan, BlackRock’s EMEA Head of Wealth for Multi-Asset Strategies & Solutions (MASS) said, “BlackRock has been serving the South African market for many years and so we are particularly proud to be collaborating with Discovery to deliver several key elements of this innovative new retirement solution. With Cogence, we’re delighted to be putting BlackRock’s global expertise in asset allocation and whole portfolio construction, coupled with our industry-leading Aladdin Wealth™ technology, at the service of South African savers.”

Aladdin Wealth™, which will be available to local financial advisers in South Africa for the first time through Cogence, enables financial advisers to gain a full and unique picture of their clients investments along with access to a wide range of sophisticated analytical tools, such as portfolio stress testing. These tools aim to provide a better understanding of the drivers of risk in a client’s portfolio, thereby enabling the advisor to make more informed investment decisions.

Cogence will have access to the global asset allocation expertise of BlackRock and will also leverage the expertise of RisCura, a renowned local investment firm with billions of rands of assets under advice, years of local asset management expertise and leading research capabilities. RisCura selects funds on the local front using their leading due diligence capabilities and on-the-ground experience.

“RisCura is proud to take this next step with Discovery based on our shared values. We intimately understand the needs of South African investors and what it takes to achieve exceptional returns, while fostering growth and development on our home ground,” said Andrew van Biljon, Head of Investment Management at RisCura.

The asset management industry is becoming more complex, and this trend is expected to continue, making it increasingly challenging for financial advisers to manage their clients’ assets. More onerous regulations, rapid growth in the unit trust industry, currency volatility, and the emergence of alternative asset classes all contribute to this. In this ever-changing landscape, financial advisers need managed solutions to simplify the asset management process, reducing advice and compliance risk in their practice.

Gore concluded, ”Our combined behavioural science and global investment expertise will support local financial advisers to deliver more timely information, deeper insights, and superior service to clients that can ultimately result in an optimal retirement outcome. With lifespans extending, clients need the financial means to retire comfortably and drawdown at a sustainable income level; and most importantly, also the good health to ensure they can enjoy it.”

ENDS

Disclaimer

Cogence (Pty) Ltd - Registration 2009/011658/07. An authorised financial services provider. BlackRock® is a registered trademark of BlackRock, Inc. and its affiliates (“BlackRock”) and is used under license. BlackRock makes no representations or warranties regarding the advisability of investing in any product or the use of any service offered by Cogence (Pty) Ltd. BlackRock has no obligation or liability in connection with the operation, marketing, trading or sale of any product or service offered by Cogence (Pty) Ltd.

About Cogence

Cogence is a standalone entity within the Discovery Group, operating under a Category II Discretionary Financial Service Provider (FSP) license. Cogence is a discretionary fund manager (DFM) that is the first-of-its-kind given its global reach, underpinned by sophisticated technology, applied locally to the South African investor.

About Discovery

Discovery Limited is a South African-founded financial services organisation that operates in the healthcare, life insurance, short-term insurance, savings and investment, and wellness markets. Since inception in 1992, Discovery has been guided by a clear core purpose – to make people healthier and to enhance and protect their lives. This has manifested in its globally recognised Vitality Shared-value Insurance model, active in over 35 markets with over 20 million members. The model is exported and scaled through the Global Vitality Network, an alliance of some of the largest insurers across key markets, including Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and South America. In 2021, Vitality Health International (VHI) introduced shared-value health insurance to employer groups operating in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia, as well as Travel for Treatment service to the rest of Africa. Discovery trades on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange as DSY. Discovery Group is the holding company of Vitality Group in the USA and of Vitality UK.

About BlackRock

BlackRock’s purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable.

About Vitality

Vitality is the largest global platform for behaviour change, underpinning the insurance products of leading insurers worldwide, with more than 20 million members in over 35 markets. The Vitality model, established by Discovery Limited in South Africa, has been incentivising behaviour change amongst its clients for over 25 years. Vitality creates shared value by combining behavioural economics, clinical science, and financial incentives to encourage and reward members for taking steps to improve their health. The model began with a focus on health and wellness, and has expanded to include short-term insurance, investments and financial wellness.