Investec trumps rand weakness to increase its income for 2012
INVESTEC, the South African money manager, yesterday said it overcame a weaker rand to increase annual operating income by one per cent in the nine months ending December 2012.
The dual listed company, which trades in London and Johannesburg, posted the increase, net of depreciation on operating leased assets, despite a 13 per cent slide in the average rand-sterling exchange rate over the nine month period.
The business also saw its assets under management defy weak investor confidence and Eurozone turmoil last year to attract £2.8bn of net inflows, boosted by a 12 per cent rise in third party assets on a currency neutral basis. The rand plummeted last year and is trading at a three year and a half year low to sterling.
The 38-year old money manager, whose managing director is horse racing aficionado Bernard Kantor, also announced the departure of non executive director Sam Abrahams, also chairman of its audit committee, after 15 years serving on the board.
His replacement, David Friedland, is currently a partner at KPMG in South Africa and will retire from there in a month.
Shares in the Gresham Street-based firm fell more than two per cent on the FTSE 250 yesterday after the news, correcting a spike on Tuesday following a Morgan Stanley upgrade on the stock.