The resignations followed a series of meetings of a 14-person members' council. Reuters
The resignations followed a series of meetings of a 14-person members' council. Reuters
The resignations followed a series of meetings of a 14-person members' council. Reuters
The resignations followed a series of meetings of a 14-person members' council. Reuters

Cricket

Entire Cricket South Africa board resigns

CSA announced all independent and non-independent directors have resigned

AFP

October 26, 2020

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The entire board of Cricket South Africa has resigned, the organisation said on Monday.

CSA announced on Twitter: "All independent and non-independent directors have now resigned."

The brief announcement followed the resignation of six board members, including acting president Beresford Williams, on Sunday.

It now appears the four remaining board members have also quit, clearing the way for the appointment of an interim committee.

The latest development came one day before a deadline threatening intervention by sports minister Nathi Mthethwa.

The resignations followed a series of meetings of a 14-person members' council, which consists of the presidents of provincial unions affiliated to CSA. According to CSA's website, the council "sets general policy for CSA".

A report in The Citizen newspaper quoted an unnamed insider as saying: "Not all of the directors were happy to go but they were basically told they had to, we forced them."

Six "non-independent" board members - elected from cricket structures - were also part of the members' council.

Williams resigned from both bodies but the other four non-independent board members who resigned on Sunday said they would remain part of the members' council.

CSA has been in disarray since chief executive Thabang Moroe was suspended last December, prompting calls from the country's players' association and major sponsors for the board to resign.

Moroe was fired in August on the basis of a forensic report which CSA has refused to make public.

The South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc), an umbrella body for elite sports, demanded in September that the board step down in order for Sascoc to appoint a task team to investigate CSA.

When the cricket body failed to cooperate, Sascoc asked the minister to intervene, potentially putting CSA's standing with the International Cricket Council at risk.

If an interim committee is appointed, one of its tasks will be to recommend a new structure for the board.

Under the current constitution a majority of the board are non-independent - elected from cricket structures - but there have been calls for the balance to tilt in favour of independent directors.

The fate of the members' council is uncertain but it is likely that in future it will not be possible for board members to also be part of the council.

South Africa are due to host World Cup champions England in three one-day internationals and three Twenty20 internationals in late November and early December.

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”