Supporting the Future Springboks of South Africa

With the 2015 IRB Rugby World Cup underway in England until 31 October, local supporters have been getting behind the Springboks. While Strate is also proudly joining in on the support, it has chosen to also look at how to contribute to the future of the national sport.

 

Strate donated to the South African Rugby Union’s (SARU’s) Rugby Foundation’s Academy Programme, giving a player the opportunity to study at university or a technical institution with simultaneous rugby specific training.

 

Junior Pokomela, a SARU Academies player who plays in a loose forward position, will receive the Strate bursary. He matriculated at Grey High School, Port Elizabeth, in 2014 and participated in both the South African schools Rugby 2014 and the SARU Kings Academy. Pokomela is currently completing a Diploma in Management (NQF Level 6).

 

Strate, along with other donors, is playing a crucial role in assisting SARU to select and nurture our next generation of stars to follow graduates such as, Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira, J P Pietersen and Pat Lambie – all players whose world-class skills were developed under the auspices of the Academy.

 

According to Hans Scriba, the spokesperson for the Academy, there are limited resources to give every player an opportunity and a broad base of donors are needed to give more players leaving high-school the opportunity to develop their skills, as well as their studies. This allows them to not only sit with a good rugby pedigree, but also with a degree or a diploma that enables them to secure a job as well.

 

At Strate, it is in the company’s DNA to proudly live beyond a bottom-line approach, giving back to society. Education is close to the company’s heart and it believes the SARU bursary will create sustainable value, offering an individual an opportunity to develop and make an economic contribution, with the added potential of developing his sporting talent enough to enable him to achieve his rugby dreams as well.

 

SARU aims to reach a target of 90 players throughout South Africa in 2015 as a result of the donations. It wants to create a sustainable system of excellence for talented 18 – 22 year old rugby players in South Africa to achieve their goal of becoming world class professionals – on and off the field. The emphasis is on producing well-rounded leaders for the future and the three year course will include life-skills training as well as nutrition and health courses under the constant supervision of trained SARU personnel.

 

Players will be able to choose the vocational or educational course best suited to their specific aptitudes, which will be provided free of charge. On completion of the three-year Academy course, graduates will have the skills and capabilities to pursue a professional rugby career and, importantly, will also have achieved a tertiary diploma or degree.

 

    Monica Singer with Hans Scriba

 

 

An Overview of the JSE’s T+3 Project

The JSE has provided the following overview of its T+3 Project:

 

What is T+3?

T+3 (or T3) is the abbreviation used to describe the JSE-driven market initiative to shorten the settlement cycle in the cash equity market from its current 6 day (or T+5) schedule to a new 4 day schedule. The T+3 project is a multi-year programme of work, and was kicked off in 2013.

 

On the JSE’s Equity Market, settlement is the process whereby equities are delivered in exchange for payment. T+3 refers to the number of days – counting from the day on which a trade takes place – within which a trade must be settled. To settle a securities transaction, the seller of the share must receive payment and the buyer must take ownership of the share.

 

 

 

What does the T+3 project aim to achieve?

The objective of the project is to shorten the cash equity settlement cycle to T+3, thereby aligning the South African market more closely with international benchmarks and standards (such as the IOSCO principles for Financial Market Infrastructures). The project has thus far seen the launch of the JSE’s new state-of-the-art Equities Clearing System (ECS), which is a prerequisite for the JSE to move to T+3, and the introduction of a number of enhancements to the JSE’s other legacy systems.

 

The move to T+3 will see a change in the schedule of events that form part of the settlement cycle. The following diagram provides a graphical view of the manner in which the settlement activities will be reorganised:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why is the JSE undertaking this project?

The idea of a shortened settlement cycle has been contemplated within the local market for many years, and in 2012 the move to T+3 was formally mandated by South Africa’s Financial Services Board (FSB), the JSE’s regulator.

 

In addition to being a regulatory imperative, the move will also bring the South African equities market closer to international settlement cycle benchmarks.

 

Although many countries have moved or are in the process of moving to a T+2 settlement cycle the South African market will move to a T+3 settlement cycle and will further review moving to a T+2 settlement cycle after T+3 has been implemented.

 

What are the intended benefits of the move to a T+3 settlement cycle?

In addition to improving the credibility of our local equities market (via alignment with global best practice), the shortened settlement cycle will also unlock a number of operational benefits:

  • Harmonisation across international markets – reducing complexities resulting from timing differences between jurisdictions with different settlement cycles
  • Increased liquidity – enabling faster reinvestment of assets that are released from the settlement process quicker
  • More prudent risk management
  • A reduction in the number of outstanding unsettled trades, which in turn will:
    • reduce settlement exposure/credit risk;
    • reduce systemic risk; and
    • improve operational efficiencies (by causing participants to adapt and modify behaviours).

 

How is the project structured?

The T+3 project will be implemented in 3 phases, 2 of which have already been successfully taken live. The following diagram provides an overview of the contents and timing of the 3 phases:

 

 

 

When will project go-live?

The final go-live date for T+3 is in the process of being determined, and its final confirmation will be dependent on the following considerations:

 

  1. Technical readiness of the JSE and market participants – The JSE cannot take the move to T+3 live without substantial changes to market participants (Brokers / CSDPs / Strate / Lending Desks / Clients) systems which also includes extensive testing. After consultation with the market participants and getting feedback on milestones such as development and full end-to-end market testing timelines, the JSE has indicated that that T+3 will be taken live between the months of May and July of 2016
  2. Business readiness of the market participants – The revised schedule of events (that form part of the new T+3 settlement cycle) have a direct impact on all market participants and their clients, as a number of internal process changes will have to be affected to ensure that the market is able to align to the new T+3 timetable. The shortening of the cycle means that various settlement activities have been reshuffled, and the market will have to make sure that it has designed and adopted the necessary process changes to fall in line with the new T+3 timeline.

 

The JSE has been in discussions with all market participants (locally and abroad), and indications are that all parties will be ready to take the project live during the period of May to July in 2016. A more specific date will be determined as the JSE and the market complete full end-to-end market testing and progress though their respective readiness activities.

 

How does one raise queries related to T+3?

Any queries related to the T+3 project can be submitted to the following email address: T+3@jse.co.za.

 

Please note that the JSE will be promoting its T+3 Project on 23 November 2015 at an International Roadshow, as well as hosting a panel discussion on T+3 at the NeMa Conference on 24 November. For further information, email  T+3@jse.co.za.

 

 

Follow Strate on Social Media

Strate has a presence on a number of social media platforms, providing its followers or social media group members with insightful information and industry-related news.

 

You can connect with Strate on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook by searching for ‘StrateCSD’. Select the Follow button on the company’s Twitter Page, the Join button on its LinkedIn Group and the Like buttons on its Facebook profile and group.

 

Strate also has videos posted on YouTube that you can subscribe to and a blog that you can visit.

India’s National Securities Depository Ltd signs MoU with Strate

India’s CSD, National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Strate to build a close cooperative relationship between the central securities depositories.

The MoU aims at co-operation in securities depository and settlement related matters to help foster the prosperity of their financial markets, promote cross border investment, and explore opportunities for cooperation in both, depository and settlement. Both CSDs anticipate…

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The Express Line

The JSE’s move to a T+3 settlement cycle for the equity market is moving swiftly ahead this year, with the aim of aligning with global best practice, boosting efficiency and reducing risk. Change is inevitable. This has been a long time coming,” says the JSE’s Leila Fourie, Director of Post-Trade and Information Services. “The JSE is adamant that it would like to move and align with the rest of the world…and it’s coming together well.”

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Strate Charity Shares Donations

Strate Charity Shares (SCS) is registered as a non-profit organisation and charity donation programme that was created to address the long-standing problem of investors holding small amounts of unwanted shares. It hands donations to charities across South Africa that are dedicated to feeding, raising and educating children.

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