Sygnia has registered a range of its mutual funds in Ireland, Sygnia executive chair Magda Wierzycka (pictured above) said during the company’s annual general meeting.

‘The primary target market for those funds in Ireland is initially South Africans who have externalised their funds, and the secondary strategy is to attract money from international investors. 

‘I have been involved in several marketing sales pitches in the UK to UK investors. We have a sporting chance to attract money into our product offering,’ she said.

Sygnia is eyeing bolt-on acquisitions in South Africa, the UK and the US, Wierzycka added. 

‘We are interested in making small acquisitions. We have only made two acquisitions to date. One was immaterial, and the other was db x-trackers funds from Deutsche Bank.

‘We are scouring South Africa for acquisition opportunities, which are fairly limited. So we are looking at potentially bolt-on acquisitions, possibly the UK or the US. If an attractive enough acquisition comes along – we will use it as a platform for growth.’ 

 
Wierzycka said that the company’s global plans had taken longer to implement due to Brexit. 

New online platform
Sygnia CEO David Hufton said that the company would launch a new online retail platform in April. 

‘Regrettably, we are long over schedule, but we are in the home stretch. Sygnia believes it will be revolutionary in the South African market. This platform, which is not dissimilar to Quilter’s launch in the UK, is an absolute game-changer.

‘We believe this platform will attract more retail investors to us because of the improved functionality, straight-through processing and far better customer experience,’ he added.