ANALYSIS: Not the best of times for Sasfin
The bank’s disappointing recent results may be turned around, with plans afoot to restructure and broaden its client base
It was just as well that Sasfin’s announcement that it was terminating KPMG as its auditor took place on the same day as the release of its annual results. Its headline earnings for the year to June were down 16% to R194m, quite a contrast to the 29% growth in the previous year. Sasfin is different from other banks in SA, with a market cap of just R1.6bn and family control by the Sassoons. It still has the feel of a family business, it still knows virtually all of its clients by name, and one of CEO Roland Sassoon’s most cherished tasks is to feed the pet ducks. Many say that Sasfin reminds them of Investec in the early days — except for the ducks. Today, Sasfin’s peer group includes specialist business banks such as Bidvest Bank, Grindrod Bank and Mercantile Bank. It must have come as quite a shock when Sasfin experienced large losses from two clients, which increased the credit-loss ratio from 1.08% to 1.24%. The other factor was the 14% holding in the Efficient Group. The most pr...
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