Can Liberty be simpler, better, faster?
Can a strategic overhaul lift the struggling Liberty, the company founded by Donald Gordon 61 years ago?
Just a few years ago, many insurers were positioning themselves as a one-stop shop to capture as much of the disposable income their clients were willing to fork out on insurance. But fast-forward to 2018 and insurers’ strategy documents are far more muted, riddled with words such as "refocus", "reset" and "refresh". Liberty, 54% owned by Standard Bank, is one of those insurers undergoing what polite company might refer to as a "strategy refresh". Under CEO David Munro, the group is now aiming to refocus its attention on the mass affluent market, and grow its risk and investment businesses. The decision to "refocus" on the mass affluent market is an interesting one given that everyone else, except for Discovery, is trying to expand their business in the low-income mass market. The irony, perhaps, is that Liberty’s investors would probably be pretty happy if the company were to steer entirely clear of the low-income market, as it has made almost no inroads into that sector until now,...
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