Simon’s weekly wrap: Hedging your bets

With interest rates rising, and still more increases to come, many people are struggling with their bond payments and considering selling their properties. However Grant Smee, MD at Only Realty, says ‘not so fast’ and offers a few alternative options – and risks – worth considering first (read the transcript).

Second-tier real estate investment trusts on the JSE are offering some significant value, with deep discounts to NAV and chunky dividend yields. I spoke with Octodec MD Jeffrey Wapnick on its recent annual results, as inner-city residential property returns to pre-pandemic levels and even retail is picking up, with some big national retailers signing leases (read the transcript).

When buying offshore currency, I, and likely most others, just buy the good old US dollar. But Jacques Plaut of Allan Gray makes a compelling case that we could, and should, be smarter about our currency choices. The US dollar index is just off 20-year highs, but it won’t always be strong and so alternatives are worth considering (read the transcript).

I spoke with Deon Nobrega, CEO at Paymenow, about its earned wage access product – which sounded a lot like payday loans. However, it appears to be very different, in large part helping consumers manage the reality that their cash flow requirements are generally short-term in nature, while their salaries only arrive once a month (read the transcript).

Also this week:

Marc Steinhobel, head of structured FX at Investec, on why corporates should up their game regarding their hedging policies (read the transcript).