Rational Perspective

JOHANNESBURG — The GADRA Matric School in Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown) has quickly become the biggest feeder school to Rhodes University. The school only focuses on learners who have previously done matric and essentially gives them a second chance to get a bachelor's pass. But as the school's Dr Ashley Westaway explains to us in this interview, he sees the school as being more of a bridging school, and its strong reputation has resulted in learners from all across the country flocking to it to better their results. - Gareth van Zyl See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chinese president Xi Jinping’s six year anti-corruption campaign claimed one of its biggest scalps yesterday in former head of Interpol, Meng Hongwei. Bloodletting at the UK’s Barclays Bank continued yesterday with the sudden departure of corporate and investment banking head Tim Throsby, in the position for barely two years. In South African news, Edward Kieswetter has been appointed the new head of the SA Revenue Services. South African stocks yesterday enjoyed a second winning session with the JSE All Share index rising just under one percent, pulled higher by its leading stock Naspers which gained 2.5% in a delayed reaction to Monday’s offshore listing announcement. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LONDON — Research on Alzheimer’s disease that afflicts an estimated 40m people worldwide has experienced a major setback when pharma company Biogen and its Japanese partner, Eisai announced that they are ending their phase three clinical trials for the drug aducanumab. They concluded that the drug had little chance of succeeding. It wiped almost a third off Biogen’s shares. The end of the trial was a blow for the theory by scientists that the symptoms of Alzheimer’s could be stopped if you manage to clear the build-up of amyloid plaques in ageing brains that destroy connections between nerve cells. And the conclusion at this point, has to be that we really do not know what is causing the disease and how to create an intervention with a pharmaceutical. The likely effect of the Biogen setback is that Big Pharma will retreat from research on Alzheimer’s disease for now, but hopefully this void will be filled by more government and public market funding. Trials are continuing at several universities who are looki

JOHANNESBURG — Peter Gent is a former veteran of the banking world having occupied top roles at RMB, including the bank's head of project finance. These days he's in a very different role as Head of Sales and Marketing at NGO Columba Leadership. This NGO is doing incredibly valuable work by running leadership programmes at schools located in economically disadvantaged areas in several provinces around the country. In this interview, Gent tells us about the impact that Columba is having on young people's lives. - Gareth van Zyl See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Global ride hailing market leader Uber Technologies has concluded its biggest ever acquisition through the $3.1bn takeover of Middle Eastern rival Careem Networks. Britain’s leading Eurosceptic Jacob Rees-Mogg, who has led much of the fight against prime minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, yesterday switched sides after it became apparent that the UK may not leave the EU after all. The Public Investment Corporation, custodian of the R2trn state employee retirement fund, yesterday suspended its acting chief executive Matshepo More. A late afternoon rally lifted the JSE all share index to a half percent better close with gaining shares outnumbering losers by almost two to one. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LONDON — The cornerstones of the world’s insurance business, the prestigious Lloyd’s of London has been accused of having a deep-seated boozy, sexist culture. Female brokers say they feel uncomfortable working there and that the alcohol-filled, long lunches are a major contributing factor to lecherous behaviour. These women generally fear that there will be repercussions if they come forward and in many instances the harassers describe sexist comments as ‘banter’. This is not the first institution accused of sexual harassment in London. The President’s club had to close its doors last year after a backlash following a raucous all-male charity event in Mayfair during which female hostesses were groped and harassed. Lloyd’s of London has responded to the allegations saying they are developing a plan of action to address complaints. Bloomberg’s financial crimes reporter, Gavin Finch who interviewed women at Lloyd’s told Carol Masser that he believes Lloyd’s is the most archaic corner left in global finance and t

JOHANNESBURG — For several years now, technology company Dimension Data has been linked to a charity organisation called Qhubeka. What's incredible about Qhubeka is that it does something that, from the outside, looks very simple: delivering bicycles to children and communities who need them most. What amazed me about this story is the massive difference these bicycles make to these people's lives. Amid a lack of transport, many people and children in far-flung areas of South Africa spend hours walking to get to schools and clinics. Having a bicycle can cut down this travel time by up to 75%, making a huge difference in people's lives. In this interview, Dimension Data's Albi van Zyl explains the importance of its partnership with Qhubeka, especially in light of a recent auction. - Gareth van Zyl See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ride-hailing company Lyft Inc will IPO later this week with investors seemingly undeterred at the Uber rival’s heavy annual losses which reached $911m last year. It has been a good 48 hours for both US president Donald Trump and British prime minister Theresa May. In South African news, the stock which accounts for 25% of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s SWIX index weighting and 20% of the daily trade, is to list its major assets in Amsterdam. The JSE struggled yesterday with the overall index losing 1.3% and losers outscoring gainers by three to one. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An 18 month investigation to find a way of addressing the 40% discount between Naspers’s share price and the value of tis underlying assets reached a headline making conclusion today. The Group will hive off its global assets, including the $134bn stake in Tencent, into a new company that will be listed in Amsterdam. The new listing, to be done in the second half of this year, will create the third largest stock by value on Euronext and is set to attract $2bn in fresh investment via global index funds. The deal required approval by the South African Reserve Bank and will generate a R1bn windfall for the country in share transfer tax. In between engagements with investors and the international media (the deal made the front page of the Wall Street Journal and received blanket coverage in the Netherlands), Naspers CEO Bob van Dijk found time to take us through the rationale, explaining why he believes it will unlock masses of trapped value in a stock that has a 25% weighting the South Africa’s SWIX index.    S

In today's business headlines... Apple Inc, which at $900bn shades Microsoft as the world’s most valuable company, will today unveil a years-in-the-making strategy to install video and news subscription services as its top priority. British Prime Minister Theresa May faces another difficult week with Conservative Party colleagues calling for her head. Italy became the first major economy to sign an agreement with China to cooperate on Beijing’s global infrastructure plan, the Belt and Road Initiative. In South Africa, traders are taking bets on two big events coming at the end of the week - the MPC meeting and an announcement from Moody's. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As elections edge closer and the lights stay off, many South Africans are seriously asking themselves who they can really trust. And as the polls show, many of them are answering, “No one.” Trust in South Africa’s political parties is at a relatively low ebb, and many voters feel like political orphans, with no party out there that truly represents them. This week, Alec Hogg and Felicity Duncan discuss the political entrepreneurs who are trying to take advantage of this dissatisfaction. They also look at how the Eskom disaster may affect the elections as gloom settles over many parts of the country. And they pick up on another untrustworthy bunch – the wrongdoers at Steinhoff. This week, there were some names named in Parliament, but it looks like some of the big names may have been skipped. Alec unpacks what he thinks is going on as the fallout from the Steinhoff collapse continues to play out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's headlines: Eskom is waiting for a diesel delivery from Petro SA to ease loadshedding. Brexit has been delayed by the EU, but became even more confusing. Boeing says software fixes for Boeing 737 Max will be ready in weeks. New Zealand has banned assault rifles. An emergency of catastrophic proportions is unfolding in Mozambique as 15,000 people are waiting to be rescued from flooded areas. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

European antagonism against Big Tech gathered momentum yesterday when Google was fined €1.5bn by the EU for limiting how some websites could display ads sold by its rivals. British Prime Minister Theresa May yesterday asked the European Union to delay its departure from the bloc by three months to June 30. In the second such case to go before the courts, a San Francisco jury has found that a man developed cancer from exposure to Roundup weedkiller. In South Africa, some big construction sites have become a battle ground as armed gangs try to disrupt building operations in the name of radical economic transformation.  It was a day of mostly red ink for the JSE ahead of the  public holiday, with the all share index losing one and a quarter percent.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Simon Lincoln Reader has built quite a following among the Biznews Community through his weekly satirical column focusing on the political scene in his South African homeland and the UK, where he now lives. This well connected financier with a light pen shares the direct approach commonly found among those raised in the African sun. Which he uses to advantage in helping the rest of us make sense of the deeply codified, often paradoxical machinations in Westminster. On the South African front, SLR taps into a wide contact base at home plus those within London's powerful Saffer network. And delivers a compelling cocktail. Have a listen to his fresh, forthright perspective on the political events dominating the headlines in our ever changing world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LONDON — South Africa has a serious problem in literacy rates among Grade 4 pupils. It ended at the bottom of a list of 50 countries in the Progress in International Literacy Study known as PIRLS conducted in 2016. It is estimated that 78% of Grade 4 pupils cannot read for meaning. Compare this figure to 3% in England, 4% to the United States,13% in Chile and 35% in Iran, where gender discrimination takes place. The most common cause of difficulties in reading, writing and spelling is dyslexia, which account for 5-10% of the world’s population. It is estimated that 70-80% of people who have reading difficulties, are dyslexic. A Cape town speech language therapist Elizabeth Nadler-Nir has come up with a computer programme, Virtual Reading Gym to help delayed older readers and it has been recognised at the London Book Fair where she won the Educational Learning Resources Award and came second in the Education Initiatives category. Elizabeth who is none other than the sister of colleague Chris Bateman spoke to B

Stage 2 load shedding in South Africa to continue until midweek after the weekend blackouts are blamed on Mozambique cyclone.  Steinhoff is looking for more answers after PWC report. Social media giants are under pressure to do more to prevent extremist videos after the New Zealand mosque massacre. Brexiteers may be caving in to Theresa May as they fear it will never happen. Electric cars rule at the Geneva motor show where a hypercar as fast as a F1 racer has been unveiled. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s global business headlines… A motion to delay Brexit initially until the end of June with a possible further extension was passed by a majority of 210 votes in the UK Parliament. The fate of Boeing 737 Max jets are now in the hands of France. Fiat Chrysler is recalling more than 800,000 of its gasoline-fuelled vehicles to replace their catalytic converters which is good news for palladium producers. Standard Bank announces the closure of 91 branches leading to 1,200 job losses. Morgan Stanley says it's time to bet on South African stocks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Election Day is getting closer and closer. As South Africans prepare to go to the polls, the ANC has released its electoral lists. The lists generated instant controversy as they prominently featured certain dubious politicians, including Mosebenzi Zwane, Malusi Gigaba, Bathabile Dlamini and Nomvula Mokonyane. Why has the ANC allowed these compromised individuals to return as public representatives? Is this a sign that Ramaphosa is struggling to implement an anti-corruption programme? Or is it a simple case of "innocent until proven guilty"? Most importantly, what will voters make of the decision? Alec Hogg and Felicity Duncan dig into these questions. They also discuss the Boeing 737 Max 8 crash and Boeing's struggle to respond effectively  to unfolding events.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

JOHANNESBURG — In May 2018, I interviewed the team at InvestSure, which developed a world-first insurance technology product which protects buyers of shares from management teams that mislead and deceive shareholders. The product is aimed at protecting shareholders from Steinhoff-styled meltdowns that are sparked off by managers behaving badly. And in the last year, there's been plenty more meltdowns on the JSE - you just need to look at the likes of EOH and Resilient. Interestingly, InvestSure has raised more capital and it's even eyeing the Australian market in combination with a push by its partner EasyEquities into that market. Shane Curran and Ignatius Nkwinika, who are the founders of Investure, tell me more in this interview. - Gareth van Zyl See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s global business headlines… President Trump grounds the whole fleet of Boeing 737 Max aeroplanes after its last ally Canada banned the jets over its air space. Business confidence in South Africa fell to the lowest level in two years. The UK is now less likely to crash out of the European Union with no agreement as Parliament decided in a narrow vote last night to block a no-deal Brexit. Elon Musk will unveil a cheaper electric car in Los Angeles tonight hoping to crack the mass car market for Tesla. And a very special auction at Cartier. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.