South African Investors Face Quandary Over Offshore Exposure
- Offshore investment limit lifted to 45% from 30% in budget
- Change enables fundamental portfolio rebalancing: Old Mutual
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A major easing of foreign-exchange controls presents South African money managers with the dilemma of whether or not to move more money offshore.
An amendment to prudential rules announced in last month’s budget enables pension and mutual funds to invest 45% of their assets abroad, up from 30% previously. That’s the largest adjustment yet made to the offshore limit, and gives South African investors the chance to “fundamentally” re-balance their portfolios, said Izak Odendaal, an investment strategist at Old Mutual Wealth in Cape Town.